spine for woodies

[KOTAKID]

hey guys how is it goin out there?!  new to the forum and absolutely love the site!   anyways i was wonderin what spine would be the right one for my bow....  i shoot a 54# KOTA prarie fire @ 28"  my draw length is about 27 1/2" to the back? (not the palm side) it has a fast flight string and i am going to be shooting 125gr tips  the arrows i have now are cut to 28"bop and are spined 70-75.  when i am shooting them they kick knock right...that means too much spine right?  

[SlowBowinMO]

Welcome to the site!

Nock right would be overspined for a right handed shooter, as you suspected.  How deep is your shelf cut out?  I'm not familiar with your bow, recurve?  Give some more info and the Gang here can help get you get close.

[KOTAKID]

a long bow with pretty good reflex deflex.   not sure the center cut but by the looks of it it looks close to center.

[Molson]

First I'd put a heavier point on the arrows you have and see if they will tune.  If not, drop to a 60/65.

[Tree man]

60-65 might indeed work but I would try 55-60s cut them long and reduce until they fly perfect....which will probably happen at 28.5 leaving you set up just right for broadhead clearance.

[SlowBowinMO]

You can potentially save yourself a lot of grief if you figure the center shot.  Take a string and tape it to the exact center of the limbs well above and below the shelf.  Then looking at the side plate area head on, and the string will show you a much better visual of your amount of center shot.  In addition to the actual bow weight, this factor (amount of center shot) will have a tremendous effect on required spine.

Some   loose guidelines for you, for a 28"-29" arrow.

Less than cut to center - often at or below marked bow weight.

Cut to center - often at or slightly above marked bow weight.

Cut well past center - well above marked bow weight, typically 15-20 pounds.

Arrow length and point weight will cause you to tweak this a bit, but I think you'll find the above guidelines pretty close for a typical set up.

Hope this helps, Tim

[Bill Carlsen]

The Kota you are shooting looks like a regular, non center shot longbow. In that case you would probably do best with an arrow (28") that is spined in your bow's weight range...50-55. However, the modern string may require a 55-60 spine. The best way to know for sure is to call the bowyer and get his recommendation. That would be the cheapest way unless you have access to plenty of shafts to play with.