broadhead tuning

[nhbuck1]

can you guys explain to me how you to your broadheads?

[Cory Mattson]

Bare shaft tune an arrow - this will yield an arrow with a specific length, spine and head weight. Next when you finish arrows and fletch then trade a broad head for the exact same weight head that balanced out - these will fly exactly the same as the target head as long as you glue them on perfectly straight - while spinning your arrow to confirm it is true - if it wobbles just reheat a sec then turn until your broad head sits perfectly straight - should spin like a top - do not stop until it does.

[Cory Mattson]

and if you need to add weight we add bird shot weighed out and melt it inside the head - easy for 10 grains maybe little more - and when we need 10 grains off a head we sharpen the trailing back blades

[The Whittler]

If you have an arrow with feathers and is flying good then put a broad head on and watch how it flys. If said arrow is flying bad then you need to bare shaft.

[smokin joe]

Do what Cory said. He ia absolutely correct. I have used the birdshot trick and it works well.

Another test to confirm perfect tune: Once you have done all of what Cory said and shot your broadhead arrows and they fly well, wet down the fletching and shoot again. If they still fly well you are very well tuned. Go hunting with confidence.

[Orion]

In more than 50 years of bowhunting, I can't say I've tuned a broad head.  Made sure they were on straight, sure.  Occasionally some finagling to get my arrows with field points to fly correctly, but once that's accomplished, I just switch to a broad head of about the same weight and shoot it. Can't say as I've ever encountered a broad head that didn't fly good, unless it was damaged in some way or on crooked.

With today's screw in components on aluminum and carbon arrows, it's easy to vary point weight to modify the dynamic spine of an arrow. Get your field points flying well, then screw on a broadhead of the same weight and shoot/test it.

[DarrinG]

I've also found that if my arrows are tuned right with field points (bareshaft tuning), then when I put on a broadhead of the same weight they fly right with my field point arrows. I do believe that its better to have a borderline stiff arrow than to have a borderline weak arrow when it comes to switching to a BH. I think the extra length of the BH will weaken the spine just a tad more than a FP does. If your FP arrow is a wee-bit stiff, then when you put on the BH, it will be about "perfect".

[K.S.TRAPPER]

Originally posted by Orion:
[QB] In more than 50 years of bowhunting, I can't say I've tuned a broad head.  Made sure they were on straight, sure.  Occasionally some finagling to get my arrows with field points to fly correctly, but once that's accomplished, I just switch to a broad head of about the same weight and shoot it. Can't say as I've ever encountered a broad head that didn't fly good, unless it was damaged in some way or on crooked.

X10, guys make this game so hard and it isn't. 35+ years of shooting trad and never ever bare shafted any kind of arrow. Common sense goes a long ways these days of googling everything, everybody wants a short cut, not overthinking every step along the way can sure help but using your own brain is much more rewarding. IMHO of course    :D

Tracy

[nhbuck1]

what do you mean by finagling? can you please explain? thanks you for your help so far guys.

The main thing is to get them straight.  I can spin them and do a a trial and error thing.  I have found that an arrow roller or anything that one can turn an arrow with stability and checking the tip rotation against a fixed object works just a good.  When the arrow is turned and the tip stays on an exact spot on the fixed object, it should spin true as well, if your arrow is reasonably straight.

[Bill Carlsen]

I think finagling simply means doing all those things to get good arrow flight. For me it is bare shafting. If I can get an unfletched shaft to shoot straight then a matching weight bh will shoot just fine, like Corey said.

[slowbowjoe]

"Finagling" with it means the same as tweaking it. Or fiddling with it, that's all.

I'm with Orion and KS Trapper on this subject. I tune the broadheads same as my field points: see how a finished, fletched arrow flies fron 20-25 yards. No paper or bareshaft involved (it'll probably just confuse things for you - due to form/release variables).

Whatever works for the field points will work for the broadhead, though sometimes I'll shoot a slightly lighter broadhead than field point, as a BH has the effect of making the arrow shoot just a couple/few pounds lighter spine. Trust your eyes (and ears... for arrow slapping riser).

[DarrinG]

Im not really sure why some folks think bare shaft tuning is hard, or difficult. Its one of the easiest ways to tune a shaft/point setup that I've ever tried. And done correctly it will give you a straight-flying arrow. And a straight flying arrow that the fletchings aint having to correct much (if at all)results in more energy going straight downrange to your intended target instead of energy lost by the shaft veering and the fletching correcting it. It results in better penetration and ultimately, accuracy.

 

[Orion]

I don't think bare shaft tuning is hard or difficult.  I do it sometime, but I've been matching arrows to bows for so long that I seldom need it.  Too, one's form needs to be at least reproducible for bare shafting to work.  A lot of folks don't have form consistent enough for good bare shaft results.

A lot of folks also make the false assumption in the other direction. That is, they think one can't get good arrow flight without bare shafting.  Just not so.

OP, finagling as it pertains to arrow tuning is experimenting with point weight, arrow weight, length, diameter and spine, and bow brace height, side plate thickness, even bare shafting, etc, to get an arrow to fly well out of a given bow.

[BAK]

Bare shaft tuning is as difficult or as easy as you make it.  It works, but if you don't wan to do it, your call.

[David McLendon]

I use a Dixon Broadhead tuner to true up my broadheads and field points. The majority of points are not screw in so they go into the spinner hot and true up before the Ferr-L-tite cools.

[nhbuck1]

do u still have to spin screw ins to see if there aligned right?

[DarrinG]

Originally posted by nhbuck1:
do u still have to spin screw ins to see if there aligned right?

I sure do. I've seen more than one that wasnt glued into the ferrule straight.

[bhylton]

especially if you have done some stump shooting or hit something hard with a field point. it can make the front of the insert crooked. when your BH seats tight against the un-true face of the insert it will be un-true.

[JimB]

This is how I align my tips.Checking on the jig after a shot in the field or a miss on the target,is a good habit to get into.
 http://www.singlebevelbroadheads.com/Mounting_Aligning_the_Tuffhead.html