Experience with Red Balau

[Wudstix]

Have some and am getting ready to make some up.  Right now just have too many ready to fly arrows!!!  A raw shaft 28 3/4" from taper to taper weights 660 grains.  That should make a decent hunting arrow with three or four fletch and 160-250 grains up front.
 

[rufus_d]

Got some 2 years ago. Nice heavy wtl shafts. Fletched them up and took them elk hunting. 1 year later all but 1 had taken a very crooked set. Gave up trying to keep straight. Hope you have better luck.

[UncasUK]

Would steaming them over a kettle help.
It works with cane fly rods, or you could use an hair dryer.

[Wudstix]

Mine are spined 80-84# and when I get them finished I'll probably have to shoot them out of my 70# Kota longbow.  They'll be 870 grains finished arrows.

  [size=78%] [/size]

[A Lex]

Hey Wud

Over the last few years, I have bought the best part of 200 Red Balau shafts from Kevin Forrester. I reckon it makes a fantastic arrow.

Yep, they're heavy, but that's a good thing to me. Mine run around 880-900 grains for my normal arrows from my 75lb longbow, up to almost 1100 grains for my Water Buffalo hunting arrows from a few years back with the same bow.

Other than the nice weight, I've found Red Balau to be tough and very durable. I normally do any straightening needed with a polished stainless rod, but the odd stubborn shaft has responded well to a little judicious application of heat from a heat gun and then the stainless rod. Once they're straight I seal them really well, then seldom have any straightenss issues from there on.

Mine have behaved normally during tuning, and I've run from 190 grains up the pointy end, right up to 335 grains.

How do they shoot? Well I've got a swag of ruined ones in a bucket that I've wrecked over the years by driving another arrow into the nock, thus splitting and destroying the shaft, I think that's called Robin Hood-ing them. Attests to how well they shoot for me 

I'm actually going to need to call Kevin Forrester soon to organise getting some more 11/32" Red Balau shafts at 105#. That seems to be the pick of the spine weight with 190 grains up front for me. I love how my bow shoots them, and it shoots them very quiet too.

Best
Lex

[Wudstix]

Lex, Glad you chimed in!!!
 

[A Lex]

Well, to add a little to my previous post about how well my 880-900 grain Red Balau arrows shoot from my 75lb Blackwidow longbow, yesterday I did this......

This was 1 arrow at 20, 10, 25, 15 & 30 yards. I've got absolutely no complaints whatsoever about how these arrows shoot.

I've learnt to mix the ranges up as I shoot, it seems to considerably increase the life expectancy of my arrows, I don't bust many now.

I sent a message off to Kevin Forrester yesterday to organise some more Red Balau shafts  too.

Best
Lex

[Wudstix]

I might as well.  I just have 7-8 dozen of heavy tapered Cedar to make up as well.  Plus the arrows I've received in trade already made up.