[Fletcher]

in reply to: Wood and FOC #30246

300 grains is a long way off the regular “formulas” and IMO the only way to figure what spine is going to be needed is to shoot a set of test arrows and see what spine works. As long as Dave has opened the door that these are his arrows I will say that when he did the test arrows, he ended up needing less spine than I thought he would – a good thing as anything over 80 lb in a sitka is pretty hard to come across. I think the point weight to spine increase ratio may flatten out some as point weight becomes heavier. Scout, your bow, draw weight and arrow length are very close to Dave’s and you might be very close on spine needs for the 300 gr TH as well.

I’m looking forward to Dave’s report on how these arrows shoot for him and his bows.

[Fletcher]

in reply to: Wood and FOC #29423

It is 29.5″ BOP. I have edited my post above. Length definitely makes a difference when figuring FOC.

[Fletcher]

in reply to: Wood and FOC #29384

I measured a wood arrow today at 23.7% FOC, AMO. When it gets a 300 gr Tuffhead mounted it will be just a bit higher due to the longer point length. It is a 23/64 Sitka Spruce tail tapered shaft, 29.5″ BOP, 85 lb spine and a 300 gr brass field point, 4 fletched with 3″ parabolics. Total arrow weight is 715 gr. That is the best I have done so far with wood, but it would be higher with a shorter shaft. 715 gr is more arrow weight than I want to shoot, tho.

One thing I have found is that the higher the FOC, the smaller effect an increase in point weight gives whereas reducing nock end weight has a greater effect. It has to do with the length of the moment arm.

I’m still trying to figure out why we measure FOC without including the point in the length measurement.

[Fletcher]

in reply to: Building EFOC/UEFOC hunting arrows #29362

EFOC requires a light shaft and heavy point/insert. Starting with a 17 gpi shaft is going to defeat your purpose. 750+ grains total arrow weight is a lot for 54 lbs, even with your long draw. It’s not necessarily overkill, but more than you will need. Dr. Ashby’s studies have bone breaking at 650 gr, which would give you a nicer trajectory for shooting. Congrats on your return and for looking to improve your arrow setup.

[Fletcher]

in reply to: Ace Broadheads #61090

Ace are one of my favorites; great heads. I use the 165 Express.

[Fletcher]

in reply to: New to the EFOC idea #40978

As a good start, you can figure that you are going to need to add about 5 lb of static spine for each 35 grains of point weight added. The seems to work pretty well up to about 200 gr points. Pick a shaft size that will give you the spine and weight desired. I recommend starting a bit long and shortening the shaft until it tunes well. Many shooters like bareshafting; paper tuning works the best for me. Every bow/ shooter combo is different, but a 28″ 2114 with a 125 gr point is stiffer than usual for a 45 lb bow. If you still have the 2114’s, I’d start with them and some heavier points to see how they tune with your project bow. A 160 gr BH with a 100 gr steel adapter will move you right up in weight.

[Fletcher]

in reply to: Looking for a good broad head #31028

The Tuffheads are great broadheads; Grizzlys are a more economical choice and a very good head as well. I’m pretty fond of the 200 gr model, formerly the ElGrande, now the Kodiak. The new Grizzlys have a MUCH better grind than in the past. These are all SB heads, a good choice IMO.

[Fletcher]

in reply to: Tuning wood shafts #31025

If you are serious about shooting wood arrows, I recommend investing in a set of test arrows covering the span of spines you figure you will shoot. If you don’t know your spine, a good fletcher can point you where you need to be. These arrows can be cut to your desired length and you let the arrows tell you what spine you need. I prefer the arrows to be marked with their actual spine rather than a 5-6 lb group and find paper tuning with fletched arrows to be better than bareshafting when tuning wood arrows. Bareshaft arrows can fly pretty sideways and woods tend to break when they hit a target that way.

[Fletcher]

in reply to: Tanto Point? #31010

Here are a couple pics of my tanto on a Zwickey Delta. I do these freehand with a 6″ file. I can’t type enuf to describe how I do it but it really is pretty simple. PM me for a phone # and I can probably describe it.

[Fletcher]

in reply to: Purple Heart shafts? #30998

Bill Bonzar at Allegheny Mtn Arrow Works has doweled purpleheart in the past but I don’t know if he has any at this time. His laminated birch could be a good alternative. My suggestion would be to go with a heavier point. It will give you the arrow weight you want and there are no drawbacks to going up in point weight. You will likely need a stiffer shaft to match the heavier point.

[Fletcher]

in reply to: Best account of true archery in Disney History #48103

Youth archery is fixing to take another jump, esp amoung the girls! 😀

[Fletcher]

in reply to: Noteable Quotes! #47156

“Anything worth doing is worth doing well.” Card on my Grandfather’s shop wall.

“Give a man to fish and he will eat for a day. Teach a man to fish and he will come home smelling of strong drink and the truth shall not be in him.”:D

[Fletcher]

in reply to: Mother Earth News #47148

I also was a MEN reader/subscriber back in the 80’s. Still have many issues buried away someplace. I’ll have to find this issue and check it out, maybe write a letter in support.

[Fletcher]

in reply to: which longbow #36595

The best thing would be to shoot a few or several longbows to get a feel for what you like and don’t like. The big shoots are the best way to get access to a large number of bows, but you may also be able to find a few LB shooters in your area that will let you try their stuff. When you get a feel for what you like, buying used is a great place to start. You can generally get all or most of your money back as you buy/sell/trade your way thru the journey of finding the right bow for you.

What draw weight are you looking for and are you close to central Illinois?

[Fletcher]

in reply to: Advice about a Long Bow #34197

Longitudinal cracks in glass generally are not an issue as long as they dont run off an edge. Lateral cracks in the glass are prone to failure. Many lateral cracks however, are only in the finish; they are not an issue, either.

[Author]

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