Just my take

[Mad Dog Mike]

#7631

Just completed 144,,,yes, that is 12 doz handmade Sitka spruce arrows. They shoot great out of my longbows and recurves. I have one that has now taken 4 whitetails bucks with complete pass through the lung/ribcage. Why in God’s green earth would I need those damn overly expensive carbon arrows? This isn’t the need for speed compound group lost in space is it? Again just my take and I have been flinging arrows since 1957 at age 8. And still a traditionalist. Any body with any sense knows how dangerous those shards can be. Just say yes to wood.

[Ptaylor]

#9368

Mad Dog,

I don’t think you’ll get much on the way of disagreement from this group:D

Preston

[Jason Wesbrock]

#10387

Mike,

It’s not about need, it’s about want. Why would anyone need a fiberglass backed recurve when a longbow will work? Why does anyone need a longbow when a selfbow will work? See where I’m going? I have nothing against wood arrows, and the thousand-plus shafts in my basement can attest. But how boring would life be if everyone liked the same things?

As far as carbons are concerned, the last dozen hunting shafts I bought cost less than a dozen weight and spine matched POCs from the large traditional archery suppliers. I’ve been shooting carbons for about 25 years now and haven’t found them any more or less dangerous than any other type of shaft. Twenty-plus years ago when pultruded carbons were the norm, there were some safety issues. But that was a long time ago. Today’s cross weave carbon shafts are tough as nails, and when they break they don’t produce “shards.” They break clean, just like a wood or aluminum shaft.

In the end, it all comes down to personal preference.

[DK]

#10920

I would really like to shoot wood but I cant find any that are 33.5 inches. After I taper the nock and the point they are to short. I know forrester shafts sells some but I am not in a place where I can afford them. Not saying they are over priced, I just have a young family and carbons are cheap and durable. If you know of any Sitka spruce that are long enough let me know. I love working on wood arrows.

DK

[Stephen Graf]

#17219

J.Wesbrock wrote: …In the end, it all comes down to personal preference.

Wiser words were never spoken….

[Ralph]

#18241

Yup……………..Like stated below…………

[Stephen Graf]

#27999

J.Wesbrock wrote: …I have nothing against wood arrows, and the thousand-plus shafts in my basement can attest….

Jason, seeing how you’ve been shooting carbons for 20 years, and knowing that your wife has asked you to clean your basement out a thousand times, I am prepared to do you a favor….

How about I store all those woodies for you free of charge? 😀

[Jason Wesbrock]

#29544

Steve,

If I’d have known how expensive wood arrows were going to become I’d have bought a lot more. Back when I got these you could still get good quality shafts for a dollar each, and I only paid a fraction of that for these. Now they’re closer to four dollars each.

I stocked up back when I used to lose or break about a hundred of them every year chasing squirrels. I should probably set up a bow and go lose some more this fall. It’s been too long.

[Ralph]

#29700

Jason, sounds like Steve and I both would be willing to help you lose some of the thousands.:D

I don’t know about Steve but postage to me on me…:D

Don’t have legal hunting for squirrels here but rabbits and jackalopes are fair game. 🙄

Yeah, and still on my quest for Rio Grande turkey with my longbow….

[Jason Wesbrock]

#30861

R2,

The last time I was in west Texas I was supposed to be hunting hogs. I think I spent more time chasing jackrabbits. 😉

[Ralph]

#32614

One thing about wood arrows, they’re the economical choice for my stumping on my lease.

That’s where all of my old, mismatched, getting beyond their years arrows go to the their happy stumping grounds.

Lots of rocks, cactus and in that big country, who can resist an occasional across the canyon shot.

Amazing what I find sometimes chasing after one of those long shots though. Often not the arrow or the arrow in one piece but perhaps a relic of the past. 😀

[Stephen Graf]

#39893

I just read an interesting recollection about going jack rabbit hunting with the Wilhelm brothers in their desert mobile. They hunted jack rabbits like we hunt carp, by standing on a platform and driving along.

Anyway, I guess they got tired of killing jack rabbits, so they just shot them in the ear. Not bad eh? Shooting I mean, ethics aside. Running rabbit from a moving vehicle.

[Ralph]

#40370

A vehicle uh, ethics aside? 💡 I never have enough breath left when running beside them jackrabbits to pull my bow. Ummm:?

[Stephen Graf]

#51694

The ethics of driving all over the desert leaving a trail of destruction behind you – questionable at best.

The ethics of shooting rabbit ears off – not questionable, just bad.

But that was then, and this is now. So I don’t hold it against the boys. In fact, I sure would like to have been on a few of those adventures!

But knowing you, that’s probably not what you were talking about. Is it Ralph. I get all twisted up in your words and fall down 😳 🙄

[Ralph]

#52087

Steve, nope.. I’m a firm believer in doing what’s right but like you I understand different times and places and the relationship on those to ethics.

Shooting holes in rabbits ears to me is not cool at any time or place to me.

If I’d been around then and in that environment who knows. Cannot and should not judge others of the past until we’ve walked in their footsteps and if I’m the one doing the walking would I be the one shooting holes in the ears:?

I would hope not but I know not.

[Stephen Graf]

#62770

Mad Dog Mike wrote: Just completed 144,,,yes, that is 12 doz handmade Sitka spruce arrows….

When you say handmade, does that mean you doweled the shafts yourself? If so, where did you get the wood?

[John Dilts]

#21115

DK wrote: I would really like to shoot wood but I cant find any that are 33.5 inches. After I taper the nock and the point they are to short. I know forrester shafts sells some but I am not in a place where I can afford them. Not saying they are over priced, I just have a young family and carbons are cheap and durable. If you know of any Sitka spruce that are long enough let me know. I love working on wood arrows.

DK

http://www.leevalley.com/en/wood/page.aspx?p=42331&cat=1,180,42288

You can always make your own

[Alexandre Bugnon]

#11571

There are a number of reasons why I switched to carbons. They are more functional to me personally. I lose more than I break. I love stump shooting, but the very rocky terrain up here is unforgiving to arrows, to woodies especially. I have been using the same set of 18 carbon arrows for 6 years on 4 different bows. I just change the point weight for each bow and add weight tubes when I go Elk hunting. Lastly, although I love the process, I don’t have the time or the place to seal, dip and crest wood arrows anymore. I do love making arrows, and always made my own since I started in Traditional archery almost 15 years ago. Maybe I will be making wood arrows again one day. I know one thing for sure, It would be great if I could find the same type of tapered compressed cedar shafts I used to buy from a guy in Montrose, CO. I loved those, and they flew as straight and precise as my carbons, at short and long range.

[Author]

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