Best type of wood for arrows?

[B3a5t]

Can anyone give me some opinions on what is the best type of wood for arrows and why?

Thanks all  

Max

I like tapered cedars that are heavy for their spine.  I like how they are predictable, have a quick recovery,are heavy enough and stay straight as long as they have finish on them. Good dense cedars are tougher than what most people think, but when you do break one, they smell nice.

[Bjorn]

I think it depends on what weight you want to end up at; light-Spruce, medium-Doug Fir, heavy-Ash and Hickory. There are more but those will get you started.

[B3a5t]

Lol I just broke a cedar this morning and you are right I kept it because it smells good..

I wanted to buy a bulk amount of arrows and so far ive only shot cedar and carbons..and break my fair share.. Oh we'll it's a cost of this new addiction I have.. Are the other woods stronger?

[Frank V]

Iike split hex shafts. they are tough & you don't have to worry about which way the fade outs are when you fletch them.

[Zradix]

Originally posted by Bjorn:
I think it depends on what weight you want to end up at; light-Spruce, medium-Doug Fir, heavy-Ash and Hickory. There are more but those will get you started.

x2      

With my 45# bow I like tapered spruce.
They are a little lighter than most woods and plenty strong for me.
Being lighter in shaft lets me add a little more weight to the tips alone instead of the whole shaft and stay under my max wanted gpp.

[JEFF B]

i like river cane why because they are free and are so strong they are like modern day carbon  easy to make and shoot good and whats more fun to make.

[Grey Taylor]

There is no "best" arrow wood.
There is no "best" bow.
There is no "best" broadhead.

There are only the ones that you decide work best for you. No one else can do the homework for you.

Guy

[Dan Bonner]

I dont mind helping with your "homework". Most of the trad stuff I have acquired has been after reading positive reviews from others. "Best" is tough to call  as it is subjective but asking certainly helps narrow the field.

To answer the question- I like denser than average Doug fir. It is as straight as cedar but heavier and more durable. Ash is very tough and heavy but hard for me to keep straight. That's all I have experimented with thus far. DF also stains well and has more interesting grain than the other two in my opinion.

Bonner

[longstiks]

I've shot almost all of the arrow material and now shoot bamboo for best results and toughness.
Denny

[Shawn Leonard]

Find some compressed shafts, they can be cedar, Doug Fir, Chundoo, they make a tough arrow! Shawn

[jsweka]

IMO, douglas fir.  Tougher and heavier than cedar and much straighter than the hardwoods like ash.

[Converml]

Originally posted by Grey Taylor:
There is no "best" arrow wood.
There is no "best" bow.
There is no "best" broadhead.

Guy

While this is true, who has the time and money to try them all? Most vendors will gladly tell you theirs is the best. A question like this does spark "discussion" at times but is part of his homework process.
 
 As long as the thread doesnt deteriate into a fist fight, it can help the one who asked the question to at least get closer to their goal of what is "best for them" without taking out a loan.
 
As long as we respect and allow others to have have a diffrent view these discussions can be productive.

[Mike Vines]

I have found that Surewood douglas fir shafts have been the straightest, toughest and just the righ amount of weight for my liking.  They take stain well, show beautiful wood grain, stand up to quite a bit of abuse and keep coming back for more.  

I have yet to break one on a shot.  I have had inexperienced people break them while pulling out of a stubborn target though.

I would be willing to bet that I would still be shooting the same dozen I made if I hadn't lost or given them away.  I made the switch from cedar 3 years ago, and have tried about a 1/2 dozen hardwood shafts including Poplar, ash, hickory, teak, maple and walnut shafts.  Most of them were to heavy for me.  Poplar made for a really nice shaft material, but I prefer the look of douglas fir better.

[SuperK]

Lodgepole pine (chundoo) is good arrow wood also.  Its is easier to taper with hand-held taper tools than Douglas Fir and it costs less than either Fir or Spruce.  It makes a nice middle weight arrow that is easy to straighten and stays straight.  Twig Archery is where I get mine.

[Fletcher]

Most everything is a compromise and that holds true with arrow woods.  Which arrow wood is "best" depends on what is important to you.

Port Orford Cedar or POC (actually a cypress, not cedar) was the #1 arrow wood for many years and is pretty much what all others are compared to.  It is a very good arrow wood, reasonably durable, lightweight, straight grained, straightens well and holds it's straightness.  Weight can vary 100 grains or a little more within a 5 lb spine range.  The quality has dropped of terribly over the last 20 years or so and good POC shafting is limited now, altho still available sometimes.  

Sitka Spruce makes great arrows.  It averages lighter than POC and spines in excess of 75 lb are rare.  It has a fiberous structure that makes it quite durable.  It straightens well and holds it.  It is also the most consistent in weight, usually within 50 grains.  It's fiberous structure sometimes makes SS hard to break, but watch out for compression fractures.  If an arrows becomes bent and doesn't want to straighten, retire it.  I like it for lightweight arrows or if trying for a high FOC.  Hildebrand is the only source I currently know of.  FYI, SS has the highest strength to weight ratio of all woods and is the wood of choice for aircraft construction.

Douglas Fir has been my personal favorite arrow wood for many years.  More durable than cedar, it also averages somewhat heavier than POC, which I like in a hunting arrow.  It is a pretty "snappy" wood and seems to recover from paradox more quickly than the other woods.  I just like the way it shoots.  DF grain weights can vary quite a bit, over 150 grains.  This does necessitate weight matched shafting, but you will likely be able to get a good weight for your needs.  DF can be quite durable, but when it does break it generally shatters.  That might sound like a negative, but I like it.  Better to be in pieces than hiding a flaw.  

Larch I'm not very familiar with, having only worked with it once several years ago.  It reminds me a lot of fir.  I did notice a wide weight variance in the 2 dozen I had.

I'm not very fond of the hardwoods.  They seem to me to be "sluggish" on the shot, but if you want a heavy arrow they can be just the ticket.  I have used laminated birch from AMAW with great success and find it very tough.  Ash and hickory, there is a reason they are used for tool handles and baseball bats.  The stuff is borderline indestructible, which is a plus in hunting arrows.

If you can find ramin, it can make a very good arrow as well.  It is tough, heavy but not too much, shoots well and straightens fairly well.

These aren't the only arrow woods and with proper selection most woods can make a serviceable arrow.  These are just the ones I know.

[B3a5t]

Thank you everyone for the great input didn't mean to start any sort of arguments here but it' seems I will go and buy a bunch of arrows and do my homework.. I don't mind as long as my wife doesn't find my credit card statements... It will be fun to shoot all these types of wood arrows...Visa here I come!

[Grey Taylor]

No arguments from me. I apologize if it looked that way. I think I'm getting acquainted with my grumpy old fart side as I get older.

My point is that for every arrow wood there will be someone who likes it for X reasons and someone who dislikes it for Z reasons.
Anything I say about what wood shaft I like or dislike is really only my opinion, and somewhere out there will be someone happy to have an opposite opinion, and their reasons will be just as valid as mine.
Honestly, the only way I see to find out what arrow wood is "best" is to try them for yourself... which it looks as if you're about to do.

Guy

[Surewood Bob]

Shawn mentions finding "compressed" arrows. This is much easier said than done. I live in Eugene,OR,home of Bill Sweetland and Sweetland compressed cedar arrows(forgewood). Bill was a personal friend and mentor to us at "Surewood Shafts". Bill compressed the cedar before he made the shafts and to the best of my knowledge, no one is using that method today. They may run the shaft through a die to compress the outer surface, but that is a much differnet process than the one Bill used. I have several dozen old Forgewood arrows and you know right away when you pick them up that they are true compressed cedar.
Surewood Bob

[Mike Vines]

How was it that Bill compressed the shafts BEFORE they were made?