Carbon, Wood or Aluminum

[Weekend Warrior]

Which do you shoot and why?

[Timberghost]

I like aluminum because it is straight and consistent in weight and spine  - shaft to shaft, arrow to arrow,  day in and day out and year to year. Been shooting the same length 2114 X7 and XX78 for years.

Wood is pretty and nostalgic and "traditional" and fun but its REALLY tough to get a dozen straight,  weight and spine matched shafts of any kind of wood. Tapered POC shafts seem to work better than parallel but they are expensive and/or tiring to make myself.  I like to make wooden arrows for others and I'm getting pretty good at it but I don't usually shoot wood myself.  After all the work I put in to them,  they just get broken and lots of times they won't all fly the same no matter what I do.

Been wanting to try the carbon arrows - been thinking MFX 400s or MFX 500s - but  I'm just not sure I'm gonna get the same performance, consistency, and dependability I have always gotten out of my X7s.

I guess the old saying, "If it ain't broke don't fix it" is just how I am about my 2114 X7s.

[Frank V]

I like wood arrows, just seems right for me. Frank

[Stone Knife]

I use wood arrows for all my hunting and shooting. I'm surprised at times with the abuse that they will take.

[Curveman]

I started with wood and got tired of breaking them, I went to alumminum and got tired of bending them, I went to carbon and now they ricochet of trees never to be seen again!    I am getting some woodies to "match" my new longbow but will probably stay with carbons for my hunting set-up, mostly because I've been sucessful with it.

[W.Tim]

allum. or wood for me

[DesertDude]

I have done some thinking on this subject. I LOVE wood arrows. with all their faults, I love them. metals have everything going for them except, they bend and sound wrong it the forrest. Carbon, WOW!!  the best arrow material I have seen in 20+ years in archery.  Yep  still make alot of wood arrows but carbon is by far the best all around shaft material.  Hello, I'm mark and I'm a Carbonholic...

[Shawn Leonard]

DesesrtDude said it! Aluminum is consistent but if do any amount of stump shooting it will not hold up at all, wood holds up better than aluminum. I too still make 5-6 dozen of woodies each year but carbon just has it all, quality, consistency and it holds up better than all other arrow material. Shawn

[Jeff Strubberg]

Carbon.


I switched over from aluminum last November.  I lost one arrow and broke another in my initial tuning (also known as the "what happens if" phase...).  I haven't lost or broken another since then.  

With weight tubes and point options, it's very easy these days to dial in the weight you want on a carbon arrow.  Combined with their inherent stiffnes and lack of "noodle" on impact, carbons penetrate most target materials significantly better than other materials.

If you can get past the initial investment, go carbon.  In the long run I think you will be money ahead.

[bentpole]

Yep carbons.I shot aluminums forever.Just switched to carbons I'm a believer now.When I'm shootin in the yard no matter how close I get to the bullseye it seems I always get closer with the carbons.It seems like they penetrate the target deeper also. I'm shootin gold tip traditionals so they even look like wood.

[Timberghost]

I hate these threads! I always wind up thinking I NEED to go spend money I DON'T have on some new carbon arrows.  Thanks a lot guys!    LOL!

[just a bit outside]

I shot wood, too fragile for a beginner but they are pretty and nostalgic. I shot aluminum... better but they bend and I don't like the "fatness" of them (they hit hard though) so now I shoot Carbons. I love them. The are like bullets, they don't bend or break very often, and they tend to last forever.

I personnaly like the Gold Tip 3555s and the Carbon Express Predator 2000s. I think the Predators are just slightly faster so I've been shooting them on a regular basis lately.

Greg

[Mulberry River]

T'ghost, you won't regret it. Straight/tough/consistent/penetrating/versatile/dependable.  What's left?  For looks & nostalgia, I still like my footed wood arrows, but I have some Vapor Carbonwoods & CX Heritage that look as good.

[Big Dave]

90% wood 10% alum.  :D    :D    :D

[Jwilliam]

I shoot them all. I guess it just depends on my mood.    I really like building wood arrows, and shooting something that I have spent some of my time building. But I really like the consistency of alluminum and carbon.

[TSP]

I shoot all three but freely admit to really being an elitist when it comes to arrows.  I.e., I don't regard carbons as traditional gear any more than I do my scoped rifle or my compound (back when I shot one). They do give an advantage for long shots at 3-D shoots.  Just a specialized tool, like an adjustable wrench or a flashlight. Not all that interesting but useful for achieving results.  On the other hand I like wood and aluminum for their intangibles.  A reflection of what hunting used to be about, for the 'idea' they suggest from 'way back' and onward/into the 60's, and especially throughout my own early days as an aspiring hunter (sure loved perusing those old Sears-Roebuck and Herters catalogs).  Wood and aluminum.  Tools, but not 'just' a tool.  More of a personal connection.  

If I ever chose to use a compound again or take up serious level target shooting I'd likely use carbons.  Not likely, though.  Like ham and eggs and wood shafts and longbows the hi-end bows and arrows are perfectly matched for each other.  Not warm or fuzzy and certainly not traditional, but definately good at what they were made to do.  Effective tools.  If you like that sort of thing.

[mcgroundstalker]

When I got started with this "trad stuff" it was 2016 gamegetters for me...Went at it G.F.A. style and made arrows three dozen at a time...Need lots of ammo!...Don't care if ya lose or break any...Take The Shot!...That's how you learn to shoot...

BUT THEN...After getting tired of having bent arrows in my quiver...Alot...Went to Carbon Express and never looked back...When they are footed with 1 1/4" of 2216 on each end, the Rebels become bomb proof...Well kinda...

... mike ...

[Bonebuster]

I have used carbons now for four years. I have found them to be the most durable. They are as user friendly as aluminum and given the way they last they are actually cheaper.

Wooden arrows are the most satisfying, and by the time they are weighed, spined, straightened, sealed, crested, fletched, and test flown, they can be part of the family. It can break your heart to lose or break one. With kids, a wife, a house, my job, there is just not the time needed to keep up with them.

If I ever won the lotto and did not have to work for a living, I would build wooden arrows and give them away to anyone who asked.

[NY Yankee]

I like wood arrows and shoot them as much as possible. They will do the job any other arrow will do and can be more durable than any other as well. They are not the fragile warped tomato stakes those carbon guys make them out to be. They are not for everybody. You do have to learn a little more about them and care for them more. If you don't like that, don't get them. If you want something with some character, warmth and beauty, get a set of wood arrows.

[Dave Lay]

75% wood, due to the fact, I really enjoy building them from spine testing to the final coat of clear, they are quiet coming out of a bow. and more durable than folks let on..

25% aluminum 'cause they shoot so dang well and are easy to work with,

never saw a need to shoot a carbon, dont like all that point loading and back end loading stuff my buddies go through....and all that other new fangled stuff!!  LOL