Squirrel Arrow Discussion Thread.

[Terry Green]

Chatting with Lance this weekend got me to thinking....I really dont' have any 'designated' squirrel arrows.  So, figured I might as well ask a few questions.

What head is best for ground shots?  And why?

What head is best for Tree shots?   And why?

Flu Flu or regular fletch?  And why?

Any other thoughts or considerations?

Thanks,

[ky_longbow]

Terry, not that im an expert but here is what i like.......flu-flu's,dont go far and as far as i can tell spine doesnt much matter with those big feather's, i only use 4 feathers on my arra,s,i like the tiger claw heads,simply awsome and devastating.........also like the magnus blunts, the ace hex heads are also awsome.....and tree or ground doesnt matter about the heads.......havent lost one yet in the trunk of the tree or the ground.......and i use junk arra's ones i cant straighten perfect and ones that get roughed up during stumpin or 3D shoots........

[deerfly]

well, Mussatto and Torges are probably the last word, but I'll tell ya' what I do...

On the ground I use what ever I'm using for big-game.

When shooting up I use either a judo or blunts.

The choice to use a flu-flu for skyward shots usually depends on whether I'm actually trying to hunt squirrels or just trying to bag one here and there while waiting on a larger critter. If I'm hunting squirrels I'll use regular fletch for the speed and quietness. I'll loose a few but so what. I use the flu-flus when primarily hunting big-game so I don't have to trounce all over the place fetching arrows and potentially stinking up my set-up.

[Dvalin]

I like Judo's for both ground and tree shots, mainly because they don't go far once you hit something. Though....you can manage to stick them in a tree branch on occasion    

Bright FluFlus, Again, they don't go very far, and they're easier to see.

Ash shafts, Tough, the only one I've ever broken was on 1/4" steel.

[trashwood]

Nor am I an expert and putting squirrels in the frying pam but I am an expert at shooting at them.....and losing arrows shooting at them.  Even it ya'as a bonified dead eye shot ya ain't gonna come home with the same nuber of arrows ya started with.  If ya get into a real good run of squirrels ya might get a dozen or so shots in an outing.  Lose rate of the arrows is about 1 in 3 or 4 shots for me.  Well that means ya don't want a hunt point that is real expensive.  Ya don't want a hunting point that well easily stick in a tree.  Ya do want a hunting point that has a cutting edge on it (least in my experience).

For my money there ain't much better than the 38 pistil case with a mone made bleeder blade.

it ain't the number of squirrels ya kill it's the nukber of shots ya get that counts.  He who comes home with the most arrows loses.

Rusty

[trashwood]

oh and I use mill run pine shafts.  buy them a couple of 100 at a time.  I use a lot of feather but not a flu-flu.  

Cheap is one of the keys for a squirrel arrow.  Disposable even.

Rusty

[Tom Mussatto]

I've yet to find anything that works better than a combination blunt/blade such as .38 casing with insert or the Magnus blunt. The Ace Hex head knocks'em cold with a good hit. I pulled a couple of stills from the 2003 ATHA Rendezvous video to show the Hex Head at work. I don't think that squirrel moved after hitting the ground.

 

 

[deerfly]

the original video was great Tom, makes me wanna' quit workin't this morning and head for the woods...

Rusty where ya get them mill pines? Chundoo by the hundred is about the cheapest I've found, but at my salary I wouldn't consider them disposable...  

[Arthur P]

I like judos when they're on the ground and rubber bludgeons when they're in the trees. The few times I've tried flu-flus, they made so much noise that the squirrels had plenty of warning and were gone before the arrow got there.

[cajunbowhntr]

What a timely topic.After returning from my first trip out with the recurve I was wondering about squirrel arrows and heads.I passed several shots because I only had 3 deer arrows and did'nt want to waste em.How do you make the bleeder set up for the 38 blunts? Darn judos aren't cheap to be losing either.I'll check out the magnus blunt.

Thanks,
CB

[deerfly]

CB, here's the defacto authority on the subject...  

 http://tmuss.tripod.com/sa.html

[trashwood]

deerfly, I can't rememeber.  Wingnut and I split 500 the last time we ordered.  I think they came from somewhere in Canada.  Maybe he'll remember.

Rusty

[cajunbowhntr]

Thanks,Is the head of the case flush with the shaft or do you leave the 3/8 gap so as not to saw in the end of the shaft?Also what is a good place to get cheap woodies?

Thanks again
CB

[trashwood]

push the shaft as far in the case as ya can get it. The bottom of the case is radiused and the shaft will not go to the bottom unless ya radius the end of the shaft to match the case.  that takes too much time.  push it in as far as it will go.

rusty

[Terry Green]

I've been eyeing the Hex heads for small game.....since I do have some.  I like stumping with them....and I'd like ot hear a bit more about their effectiveness on squirrels.

[Rob DiStefano]

I like "country rat roving" a whole bunch and I use a steked on 38 case head.  I usually up the head weight with flattened shot inside the case, so the arra balances well and has some punch when it hits.  Never used a blade insert, but IMO that would probably be best, only I'm too lazy to go through that work.  38 case heads can take a goodly beating, will snap off on hard glancing shots that miss the target, and they force you to aim for head shots!    

I use whatever good (but cheap) wood shafts I can find - I don't like shooting reject or junk arras as I hate missing just 'cause the arra is crap.  Recently I've been looking around for more shafting and figure I might give  Allegheny Arrowwoods  a try with their ash shafts (11/32" or 23/64", spined within 5# and matched to +/- 10 grains) at $75/100 + shipping.  I make sure to give each shaft 4 wipes of polyU, with steel wooling between coats - super durable waterproof finish and adds some total arra weight.

I like my arras to fly like an arra is s'posed to fly, which shouldn't be much different than a field pointed arra or well tuned BH arra.  So, I use a 3 feather fletch - each fletch is half of a full length feather, trimmed as long as possible (to around 4") and left full, not cut to shape.

As always, YMMV.   :cool:

[Tom Mussatto]

Terry, I’m still up in the air about the Hex Heads for squirrels. I’ve only hit 4 squirrels with them and lost 2 of those. 4 squirrels is not a large enough sampling to determine really how effective they are overall but if that 50% recovery rate holds up over the long haul it ain’t good enough. The trouble with them I think is that it is harder to get enough penetration and since the face of the head is larger than the body and the shaft, the arrow usually does not stay in the squirrel. I’ve actually had better results with a regular field point with the point ground down to about .25 caliber blunt. Hits hard yet penetrates enough for the arrow to stay in the squirrel if the shoulder or head is not hit. Keeping the arrow in the squirrel if the shot does not kill immediately improves the chances of getting the squirrel, especailly if you are quick on your feet like Dean.     I do think they are better heads for live game than Judo’s, work better in a back quiver than Judo’s, keep from burying under grass almost as well as Judo’s, and are cheaper than Judo’s.

Like Rob, I don't particularly like using flu-flu's for hunting. If you're hunting with blunts or blunt/blade combo's you need to smack'em hard and flu-flu's do reduce impact even at short range. Shooting at birds with broadheads is where flu-flu's shine.

Hit your squirrels in the head and it shouldn’t make any difference what head you use.  

[Charlie Lamb]

I've had pretty good luck NOT losing arrows shooting at squirrels. At least not a whole quiver full each trip.

Since arrow mortality can be kind of high I tend to like the homemade .38 blunt with blade for squirrels. Doesn't matter to me if they are on the ground or in a tree. They need at least a little "blade" to take them out cleanly. I'd love to use the Magnus blunt for them, but they are just too pricey for my blood.
Been eyeing the Hex head blunts. Might just get enough cut from the corners to do the same job as a bladed blunt.
I don't like flu flu's at all for squirrels. Just too noisey. Nothing like making an otherwise good shot and having the little beggar scoot out of the way before the arrow hits.

[trashwood]

The hex heads will stop a cottontail like it was hit by a Mack truck.  Only hit two squirrels with them.  I don't use them anymore for squirrel hunt'n and I shot them out of a 67# recurve so it ain't exactly like I don't have enough stuff behind the arrow to do some good.  I ain't good enough to hit 'em in the head like Tom does........I ain't even good enough to hit them most of the time.  If I do hit one I want to take him home.  I'm sticking with a cutting head.  I will tell ya before I saw what Dean and Tom were doing with the 38 cases I used 160 gr blunts and drilled a hole for 1" long piece of spring steel wire.   Worked will but I have had a better recovery rate with the edged inserts.   Squerrils got tuff skin

Rusty

[Tom Mussatto]

"I ain't good enough to hit 'em in the head"

Neither am I, hence the need for a head that allows for poor shooting skills.    

I've always wondered if the archers from the past (Stevenson and Gouthier) were really that much better shots than we are today or if maybe their squirrel populations were so great they could get the stringers of head shot squirrels like they did. Then again, it's hard to tell from those old photos if all them squirrels were really head shot.