I am looking for some "tournament quality" wood arrows that's only purpose will be hitting the foam target(in the 10 ring). Unlike Bisch, I like to hit the 10 ring every now and then! ;)
But seriously, what is the best wood for consistent wood arrows?
Also, should I try to DIY or just order from a sponsor?
I had good luck with Laminated Birch a few years ago when I shot wood.
The best I have experienced lately are tapered Surewoods, which are Douglas fir. Cedar used to be the norm, but good cedar is hard to find these days.
I buy the shafts directly from Surewood or from Snag at Wilderness Custom Arrows. Snag could also set you up with some unbelievable customs if you choose to go that way.
D.P.
Daniel, I have to agree with Dave.
Unless you like making arrows.... By the time you buy the shafts and materials, then invest the time.... You basically break even compared to buying them from a sponsor. Plus the sponsors arrows look great which if you are shooting poorly at a competition, they will at least look good doing it lol
I personally like making arrows. I find it therapeutic.
Good luck.
If you are going to make your arrows, I highly recommend any shaft from Forrester Wood Shafts. Kevin's quality is second to none!
Darren
I think Surewood Shafts are best around.....but I like Douglas Fir. Others prefer Rose City for cedar.
Forrester is awesome especially for his exotic woods that have little problems with grain runout due to types of woods he uses but also more expensive.
When all said and done...there is something to be said for going to a high quality custom builder and letting him do all the work especially if you have not built many yourself and do not have the materials already on hand. Whispering Winds, Wilderness Custom, Raptor Archery are some I would consider for their high quality and fair pricing for premium completed arrows.
Get a hold of Paul Jalon at Elite Arrows...he will set you up with a set of arrows as close to perfect as you can get.
POC, Doug Fir and Sitka spruce can all be found in equally straight grain. As a target shooter, you might also be interested in arrow weight. Generally, Sitka spruce is the lightest, POC next and Doug Fir the heaviest of the three. There is some overlap in physical weights within a given spine range, of course.
If you're a newbie with wood, probably better to buy arrows made for you. A grain scale and spine tester are absolutely essential to put together a set of we'll matched shafts. Likewise, a sanding disk provides consistently truer tapers than the hand held taper tools. There are even a few tricks involved in properly gluing on nocks and points. It's surprising how many folks don't get them on straight.
Times two for Paul Jalon , he makes a great arrow .
Bill and Jody at Lost Creek also makes great arrows .
I make all of my arrows from Rose City Archery cedar shafts. If you just want to fletch your own the LCN shafts, (Lacquer, Crested & nocked) are hard to beat for looks and durability.
My complaint on wood arrows is the spine variation. 55-60#?
Check with the supplier about getting them all matched for the same spine, i.e. 57# for example.
I know Rocky Mountain Specialty will do this so I suspect others will do it as well.
I thought real arrows were wood ;)
Paul Jalon of http://elitearrows.com/ is THE man for wood arrows.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pzk6bxKAMoQ
Weight match, spine match and straightness (that one is adjustable by you) are more important than the wood type. You won't want a heavy wood but within reason they will all work well if the first three factors are met.
If you get in touch with Rocky Mountain Speciality Gear and tell them what you want they will match your shafts very closely.
They were offering 11/32 compressed cedars which I found to be excellent shafts.
I have gotten excellent shafts from Wapiti Archery formerly Rogue River. I bought a bunch of parallel RC shafts off the Ething. I did not know that one could buy 100 shafts and that 90 of them could all be flare grained, some did not even make good tomato stakes. I think they were someones reject pile. The higher grade Wapitis have been 100% good for me. I am phasing into Surewoods for hunting, I like the weight and quality, but its hard when people keep dropping off 1918s, (my other favorite).
Living in Sitka Ak we all like Sitka Spruce air planes and boats last for ever with Sitka spruce I am sure arrows be good the wood a little harder to stain ,
Yeah Paul Jalon has a pile of tournament winners shooting his arrow.
The best use the best
http://elitearrows.com/champions/
I still prefer cedar when I can get good shafts, but I also like Douglas Fir. All of the popular arrow woods make good arrows, otherwise, they would not gain popularity. Personal preference is usually the deciding factor. Checking out the sponsors should get you hooked up with some very competent arrow smiths.
Some don't like the fact that wood arrow shafts vary in spine, such as 50-55#, or vary several grains in mass weight. With a closely matched set, none of us are good enough that that these small variations would make a difference in our shooting. However, some guys are really concerned about this, which is fine. If tighter tolerances spur one's confidence, then it is worth it to be very selective.
All I can say is that wood is my choice hands down. Yes, it is simply my notion of tradition. Others don't agree with me, which is why they make arrows out of numerous materials. In fact, I used to be an aluminum shooter. Whatever arrow material you choose, you can find arrows that will shoot tighter than any of us can hold.
I can really tell the difference between a hardwood that is extra long for spine and a net cedar at 30 yards. Just like I can sorta tell the difference between a 9 grain per pound cedar and a ten point five grain per pound doug fir or a 1918 net easton, these problems that I fret over have never seemed to make any difference to deer. If target woods are the objective, net length then super straight grained tapered cedars are the way to go. Hill knew what he was doing, he even preferred barrel tapered wood shafts, although he conceded that aluminums were probably better. I prefer nice short aluminums over woodies for target work myself. Not for how they fly, but for the way they pull out of foam targets.
I live 5 miles away from Rose City, I buy my shafts from Surewood!
Surewood Steve's Doug fir....Pagel hit the nail on the head. Matched in spine and weight, very straight and consistent.
I am impressed with the western larch from Kootenai River archery. They stain well, stay straight, and are very tough. When you shoot like I do, tough is an important attribute. I have POC, ash, doug fir, and the western larch and the larch seems to work best for me. They are a tad heavier than doug fir and fly nice out of my Hill style bows.
It easy to get near perfect shafts already tapered, spined and weighed from Surewood and others, so that cuts down on how much equipemnt needed. I rely on my arrow roller for the accuracy of my arrows down the road and for mounting heads. I like making my own and rotating nocks when I play with three fletch. Any body can do it, nothing fancy, but accurate and a few bucks cheaper than the custom boys. The most important thing when ordering shafts or custom arrows is to be deadly accurate and honest about the specs you give them. Remember that the shot does not begin until the string leaves the finger tips. When I make arrows for my friends that draw length versus release length is always an issue. If I were to trust them, most of the time I would be making arrows to stiff and too long.
I haven't used them (yet), but Wapiti bought out what was the finest Port Orford shaft maker I ever knew (Rogue River Archery).
Making your own arrows is like making your own strings...if you have the money for the initial investment, and the time and information it takes to do it right, it can be a great hobby. That being said, I have a buddy that has made mine for me the last several years--he does a much better job than I, and I just don't have the time to do it right.