I have always strived for a well tuned arrow. Paper tuning at first, then bareshafting along with the paper tuning. Shooting bows in the 50-55#@28″ I had been using a Easton Traditional Only .400 shaft cut to 29″ bop with a 100 gr. brass adapter and a 200 gr. broadhead, 4×4″ 90 degree fletching. Out of my 54# recurve these flew as well as anything I’d ever put together.
Enter my new acquisition, a 60″, 55#@28″ MOAB. Arrows flew well and I like the light physical weight of the little longbow. I have had excellent results with the VPA Terminator broadheads and VPA recently introduced a 2 blade head called the Penetrator. I came across some of the new 2 blades used at a good price so I bought them figuring on changing my inserts to 50 grain, maintaining my arrow weight and the same flight characteristics. With the broadheads, the seller included 6-250 grain field points, so just for kicks, I screwed them on my practice arrows. They looked to fly great with no real difference in point of impact out to 35 paces. Stuck a 250 grainer on a bareshaft and could see nothing but the nock on the way to the target! Shot a series of 12 shots, different distance and shooting positions (treestand, kneeling, standing, setting) using both fletched and bareshaft arrows and to my eye there was no difference in the flight!!
Using the Doc’s chart, I am right at 24% foc and my arrow weight is 637 grains on my scale. I am thinking I have found my arrow for most anything I would ever choose to hunt here in the lower 48…….maybe anywhere! I am by no means new to bowhunting and I have had a good bit of success since switching to traditional bows in the late ’80s, BUT I definitely learned something this weekend!
Mike
