Best wood shafts for hunting?

[AkDan]

stick-o hot melt and a propane torch, preferablly one with an auto light feature.  learn to get good tapers is the key to getting good broadhead alignment imho.   Do it right and they'll spin like tops.

[LONGHORN]

I agree with akdan,I take my time to do arrows and I never rush.Doing arrows is fun.
I use field points and also judo points,on this shot I went with field point,just to get the feel of it,plus those are 160gr heads,same as my snuffers.Judo are 135gr that is why I always shoot both,not a huge difference but there is one.I do not unglue my points to switch to  other ones,I simply build more arrows and carry both.
Those I did last year.
 

[Bowspirit]

Well, it's seemed like the tree didn't really care that it wasn't a Judo...          

[LONGHORN]

No it didn't really care Chris     ,I like those hexshaft.I should get my POC via mail this week,should be fun.

[Forester]

Judo are 135gr that is why I always shoot both,not a huge difference but there is one.I do not unglue my points to switch to other ones,I simply build more arrows and carry both.

drifter2 - you and I are in the same boat.  I also just build more arrows to match and carry both, well all four actually.  I finally have things matched up pretty well for the 160 gr. head.  Broadheads and field points come @ 160, and the 160 gr. hex head from Ace is a great stumper    and bunny thumper.  The judos were a little tricky but I found the most convenient adjustment to be a 1/16 ounce lead "bullet" weight for worm fishing.  They seem to run 26 to 31 gr. between different makers but within 1 grain in a package.  They will drop into the judo taper and the little piece of tapered wood that you remove balances out the extra grain or three of lead.  It brings everything together nicely.

I didn't think I could shoot good enough to notice the difference but once they are all matched you can really tell.  I still can't shoot very well but I notice the consistency.

[Forester]

As for the original question 2Bblade, hard maple shafts carry the weight and take a beating.

[Jimbob]

Hexshafts are my favorite. They really do seem to stay strait better and they are fairly heavy. Very durable for general shooting. The only time I break them is when deer fall down dead on them. Bob at Whispering Wind arrows sells them. Unfortunately Whispering Wind is not a sponsor.

[LONGHORN]

Thanks forester for the tips,good ideas    
I will get those hex head from ace,I just never taught about them      , so many to choose from.Where do you get the hard maple shafts from?

[Titan_Bow]

I really like douglas fir. I find that it is easy to straighten, somewhat durable, and the grain is beautiful.  Although, if I run into some good POC that bareshaft upwards of 430-450 grains, I prefer it.
 I've got a couple dozen maple shafts from a friend, and I really dont care for them. It takes alot to get them straight. I ended up using heat from the burner on our kitchen stove to straighten them. I also noticed that they tend to hold quite a memory. So if you coax a really crooked shaft into a nice straight arrow, it will tend to want to go back to that crooked state more so than softwoods. You also cannot cut tapers with a hand tapertool.
 I bought some white birch shafts last year, and they were OK, but again, you will need to take a lot more time and effort to get them straight compared to POC or doug fir; and they also seem to have more memory than softwoods.
 I am playing with some ash shafts now, and I like them so far, but they do require alot of effort to straighten.  However, they seem to hold the straightening better than the maple or birch shafts I've tried. I dont like how ash takes a stain however.
 So, all in all, unless you are hell-bent on a 700gr. or higher arrow, I think Doug Fir is the way to go.

[String Cutter]

I like ash. Never broke one yet. But I have noticed for me anyway, that I need a lighter spined arrow with it. I was shooting 50-55 POC but my bow seems to like the 45-50's in ash.
 I would also like to try maple or hickory some day.

[**DONOTDELETE**]

ASH

[huntsmanlance]

2 Blade i stump shoot allot and got sick and tired of breaking arrows so i tried the Ash and they are really tough! The weight is what i dont like but if you get them tapered that really helps. I cant say about the hex shaft or fir because i havent tried those yet.

I had allot of problems getting the ash to stay straight so i asked and Guru posted this and it works great!!!

Stain them whatever shade you want but dont use one that has a sealer in it. Then leave the shafts in an area for a few days so all of the moisture will dry out...Then preheat your stove to 200 deg. Place one arrow diagonally across the rack and check every couple of minutes. Let the shaft heat up just hot enough so you can still touch it. Take it out and straighten by hand....then IMMEDIATELY wipe on a coat of MinWax Polycrylic with a small foam brush or rag($13.00 at Walmart) It is water based, it isnt flammable, it doesnt have the fumes so you can use it right there in your kitchen without your wife yelling at you! and it dries in 10 min! Put on three or four light coats and it will not warp on you ever again.

I havent used this technique on the other hardwoods but i bet some of the other guys can tell ya if this works on those.

[snag]

I have been making sitka spruce arrows with good success. With 160gr heads and field pts. they are running at 510gr. I have a 4X4 frame around a sack target that I hit with an arrow w/ a field tip. It buried the whole field tip in the wood. I got out the needle nose pliers and worked it out. The arrow was fine. Spruce is the strongest light weight wood. They did build an airplane out of it. Actually there was a lot of other woods used. But they used spruce because of it's strength. At 510gr. an arrow it might be a little light in weight for some. I'm using 60-64# spined shafts. If you went up you could use more weight out front. They have been real durable.

[LBR]

I'm partial to POC.  I've shot tougher arrows, but POC is more apt to go where I want it to.  Haven't found a wood arrow yet that I can't break, usually preceeded by a "Hey ya'll--watch this!".  Haven't had any problems with breakage using POC, as long as I do my part and keep the arrow in the target.  If I don't do my part.....well, like I said--haven't found a wood arrow (or any other as far as that goes) I can't break.

Chad

[2Blade]

I wish I knew all this stuff I have no clue how to do any of the stuff mentioned above. Can I order wood shafts already done and ready to shoot?

[Titan_Bow]

You can, but learning how to do this stuff is what traditional archery is all about!

[Ron LaClair]

I've been bow hunting with cedar arrows for over 50 years. I stray at times and try other wood shafting, aluminum and carbon shafts but I keep coming back to Port Orford Cedar. Why?...I guess because it's the best IMO.

They worked then

   

they still work today

   

[**DONOTDELETE**]

Great pics Mr. Laclair. I'm just starting out with making my own POC's. Can't wait to fling some. Justin

[LONGHORN]

Great pics Ron,I can't wait to try POC.I can already smell the aroma of cedar in the mail    
2Blade,like Titan_Bow said,you can buy them already done,but nothing compare to when you learn as you go.We are here for you for any help you might need,I learn the how-to on this great and friendly place    

[JBiorn]

I am noticing a lot of "whats the best" threads. I am of the opinion that each hunter has their own thing that works. This is stemmed from experimentation and just plain shooting.

 Be it bows or arrows.

 Jeff