Graphite finish is on backorder. Brother got his green one, I'm starting to get stir crazy lol!
Who's shooting? Tuning? Tinkering?
- Thread starter bowhunter1023
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Graphite finish is on backorder. Brother got his green one, I'm starting to get stir crazy lol!
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I’ve been fooling around with FOC and trying to get my arrow weight up while maintaining good trajectory. Partly due to @giles posting Ranch Fairy stuff a year or two ago and partly due to the fact I’ve never liked carbon arrow performance. Years ago I hunted with a guy that was friends with Dr Ashby. Chris has shot everything, including elephant with a bow. He knows about getting arrows through big animals, and he got all the information from Dr Ashby directly. I knew just enough to know I could build better arrows for my recurves, honestly. To say I’m impressed with the flight characteristics of higher FOC arrows would be an understatement. Right now my arrows are right at 550 grains, 275 of that on the front end. I’ve made up fletching just as Ashby prescribes and they are quiet as a whisper and work well. But they are not without flaws, currently. The way I most often grip the bow puts my finger up pretty high and as is evident with the accompanying photo, I need to figure something out. Lol. I’ve made half a dozen different arrow combos and plan to try getting to 650 just to see how the old recurves will shoot em. I haven’t figured the exact FOC on my current set up but I am fairly confident with the proper broadhead it will zip right through whitetails.
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Good stuff Brock! High FOC arrows are something I was inadvertently flirting with for years and since embracing it, I won't shy away from them. I shot last night for the first time in 3 weeks and honestly, its bad for me. Arrows 7, 8, and 9 at 44 yards were inside a coffee cup. Some of that's the Indian, but a lot of it is the equipment. These new arrows are the best I've ever built and it translates from spot shooting, to deer killing. It's more than just RF hype, it's physics.
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Smawgunner2
Active Member
I should say it's bad for me because it makes me lazy. If I struggle, I shoot more. When I shoot lights out, I smile and take 2 weeks off
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It seems I too get better groups even when I don’t do my part as well. I can’t say that for certain just yet but I’ve had a lot of arrows seemingly land better than I shot ‘em.I should say it's bad for me because it makes me lazy. If I struggle, I shoot more. When I shoot lights out, I smile and take 2 weeks off
I just love me some heavy, high FOC arrows. From the way that they fly to the way they blow clean through deers. Ooohhh and they’re deadly whisper quiet too.
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I did the math today. My hunting arrows are currently at 24 % FOC. They are just a tiny bit stiff according to my bareshaft shooting. I’m going to add another 25 grains or so which shouldn’t make much difference in trajectory but will likely make my occasional goof up less of a problem. That will put my arrow weight up to 575 which will be adequate. Heck, the really light arrows I shot last season were fine for deer with the right head.
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I had to bust out the old Mathews Switchback just to see. I essentially just bareshaft tuned it by switching points weights with the same old shafts I’ve shot out of it for years. I was very surprised to find a 200 grain point up front of an aluminum insert gave me really nice flight. I’d always thought I was a little light on the spine considering this is only a 400 shaft. I was wrong. They are cut 27 1/8”, weighing 480 total arrow weight with blazers, which I’ll likely switch out soon. I was also surprised to find the blazers weigh almost 7 grains each! The 2” feathers I e been cutting have been around 2 grains each... anyway, here is a pic I snapped after shooting the bareshaft and a fletched arrow at 50 yards. I also shot 30 and 40, but the pics looks about the same. Might have to use the Mathews a time or two this season and I’m pretty confident it will hit where I point it.
Milo
Tatonka guide.
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Fun event in Hocking county if you all are interested. This is a good buddy of mine
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These arrows went from 20.4% FOC to 22% just by switching from 2” blazers to 2” feathers. Every little bit helps I guess. I am certain I could gain FOC without changing shafts by adding weight and cutting off another inch of shaft. Doubt I’ll fool with though.
Hopefully those feathers work out for you. I tried some 2” razor feathers a few times. For some reason, they just didn’t stabilize my broadheads worth a damn, compared to the blazers. It was a real head scratcher for me because my bow was pretty well tuned. Evidently, maybe not tuned well enough for those tiny feathers though.
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I’ll be launching broadheads soon. Was your compound set up with high FOC arrows? Supposedly, that’s the key to making it work with a fixed blade up front.
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I should add that Mason shot some of the Simmons heads that Boarhead gave me last year. 2 1/2” feathers. They flew exactly like field points at 20. They are huge. 2” diameter, I think. Now that was out of a recurve but I think it will work out of a compound too. We will see soon enough.
Nothing crazy. I think they were probably only around 14-16% foc if I remember correctly. Easton ST Excels (10 gpi) with aluminum inserts and 150 grain Stingers. It probably didn’t help having a sub-20% FOC.
She's almost done....like driving a Lamborghini vs. a Pinto
. Some small tweaks still need to be made but 20-50yrd. pins are set.
12dz. Easton Axis 5mm @ 422-423.5gr round it out. I couldn't believe all the new arrow technology out there....micro diameters, outserts, etc.....damn man, just need a dozen carbon arrows with the correct spine cut to 28 5/8", lol.
. Some small tweaks still need to be made but 20-50yrd. pins are set.12dz. Easton Axis 5mm @ 422-423.5gr round it out. I couldn't believe all the new arrow technology out there....micro diameters, outserts, etc.....damn man, just need a dozen carbon arrows with the correct spine cut to 28 5/8", lol.
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