Need someone to convince me to shoot wood arrows. Shot aluminum all my life,I talk myself out of changing when I get ready to order a dz.
Ernie
Well......
Quote
You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.
We cannot convince you to do something. Only you can decide what is best for you.
It's Surewood douglas fir for me from here on out. It just feels right.
I shot aluminum from 1980 to 1982 and haven't used anything except wood since then (except fiberglass fishing arrows).
Currently I'm favoring Douglas fir. Making them is a great February pass time. I use wipe-on dyes, poly finish and Sharpie markers and metallic ink pens to decorate and weatherproof.
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But I can't convince you. That has to be a personal decision. What do you want from life?
I switched this August. I don't know what took me so long. Surewood Doug fir for me. I made a large investment in arrows fletching,jigs, feathers, nocks, tips, spine tester. Etc.with hopes of getting to make arrows for my friends.
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If nothing else you ought to buy a good dozen from one of our arrow makers to satisfy your curiosity. If you don't love them so be it.
Or $42+shipping will get you a good dozen hunters tapered, with point and nock tapers from Surewood. A couple coats of wipe on poly from Walmart and you are ready for nock, feathers and point. At the end of the day cheap aluminum and quality wood cost about the same if your building them yourself.
Really just have to experience them for yourself in order to see what they offer.
Why in the world do you "need someone to convince you to shoot wood arrows"? They are beautiful (look at those in the earlier reply), quiet, affordable to buy and easy to make yourself and they fly beautifully as well. Check the scores at 3d shoots that have "traditional" recurve and longbow classes and you'll find scarcely if any difference between them and the carbon/aluminum scores. Did I mention they are "traditional" as well?
You either want to try them or you don't. We can't convince you unless you actually want to be convinced. However, we can tell you about our experiences with them, which may help you decide.
I got interested in them because of the nostalgic notion of wanting to do it like the really old timers did. Secondly, I have found it possible to get some really attractive arrows. Most importantly, I have gotten good performance. My wood arrows will shoot more accurately than I can hold. They are more durable than you might expect.
Regarding durability, you are going to lose or destroy a fair amount of arrows, whatever they are made of. I was fortunate enough to be introduced to the longbow by Dan Quillian, and he made a statement to me that has stuck. He said, "Don't fall in love with your arrows, because you ain't gonna have them that long." He said, particularly since I was just getting really serious about archery again after having been out of it for a number of years, that if you shoot as much as you should, you will use up a lot of arrows in the process. You will find, especially since you are already an accomplished archer, that wooden arrows will serve you very well and are tougher than you might guess. Yeah, you will break some, and as many say, cedar smells really nice when it breaks. Whatever you shoot, arrows are expendable.
Try a dozen. If you do and then decide you don't like them, well, at least you will know for sure, and you can always go back to aluminum.
15 thousand years of success ought to be enough to convince you.
QuoteOriginally posted by Pat B:
15 thousand years of success ought to be enough to convince you.
LOL, I hear ya!
(http://www.shrewbows.com/firefly/Fire_Fly.JPG) Firefly
Deep within the forest glade, that's where the big bucks lie The canopy is heavy there, it covers up the sky In gloomy shadows void of light, nothing's very clear especially the outline, of the ghostly whitetail deer But when you send your arrow, upon it's deadly flight you'll know it's path through the gloom, by fletching showing bright Like it's namesake, it's clear to see, like a beacon in the sky This arrow is the hunters friend, it's called the Firefly
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When the sky is gray before the dawn
what lies in wait for the gobblers song
When the call comes back and the birds respond
what quivers slightly like a magic wand
At the moment of truth when the shaft does sing
what ends the hunt..... Shadow Wing
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When summer's gone and leaves turn gold from frosty mornings to colors bold Our hearts are pulled to the woods again where hunting time must soon began With bow in hand and arrows true the goal is clear what we must do Release the hunting spirit bold then Autumns Legend can unfold
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Sitka Supreme:... The woods are quiet when the sun goes down The rustling of leaves is the only sound A buck appears as if from a dream you're ready for him with a Sitka Supreme Ramrod straight and tough as nails A darn good arrow for hunting Whitetails When the moment of truth rolls around your Sitka Supremes won't let you down
WWW.Shrewbows.com (http://www.shrewbows.com)
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WWW.Shrewbows.com (http://www.shrewbows.com)
Here is my latest set. If you want a chance to win them, visit this link http://tradgang.com/noncgi/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=146847
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I started traditional archery in 2012. I shot carbon arrows for 1 1/2 yrs, then a friend gave me some woods that he didnt shoot and i was hooked. I got rid of all my carbons and only shoot woodies now! To me, its the alure of shooting them and ofcourse watching the mystical flight of a wood arrow. I build all my woodies and they just look way more awsome to me then any carbon or aluminum arrows. Like was said above, their are guys on here that build beautifull woodies, carbons and aluminum arrows and can hook you up. You will not go wrong shooting any of the 3 materials, they all have pros and cons and it comes down to what you like the best. Get a set of woodies and see for your self, you will not go wrong.
All I shoot. What's your bow made of?
Simple, quiet, natural material.
Talk to David at Wilderness Custom Arrows, get a set, and see what you think.
If you like, after that, get a few tools and build your own with shafts of your choice, when and how you like.
The only problem I had with wood was before I got done one doz. I was thinking about what I wanted to do with the next doz. very addicting.
Just for my 2 cents, as I can get about 8 good ones out of a dozen, I really like the last four, cuz if they have a little bend about a third of the way down, they shoot pretty good around the corner... go figure :bigsmyl:
I like wood arrows for the building time, the variety of colors and woods, and then going into the forest and trying to make arrows like they did long ago :archer2:
http://tradgang.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=145957
I buy cedars from Wapiti Archery and Doug firs from Surewood, I always get good shafts from them.
I put the part of this Wapiti cedar back into the hole that it came out of, I did not find the feathered end. The arrow skipped off a sampling after it went through the deer. The bow is the JD Berry prototype to his Heritage model, 50 pounds at 26". Not the biggest racked 8 pointer, but he had good weight to him. I shot him while still hunting, I wanted to be sure to get a deer with the bow that I received from James. Our area was getting a lot of hunting pressure, the deer were starting to move out of this piece public land and not come back, the hunters were outnumbering the deer. He went about 80 yards before going down hard in a skid. The bow, the cedar arrow, and the Hill broad head did their job well enough.
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That would make Howard smile :bigsmyl:
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If I knew how to do it I would just copy a photo of a nice group of Snag's arrows and my Tall Tines. Or, a photo of my spring bear taken with my 53# Blacktail with a Sitka Spruce arrow from. Paul Jalon. That arrow with a 160 grn STOS shot completely through the bear. If you search here they are probably still here somewhere.
And that is what I like about wood arrows. They are quiet, can be beautiful, but I like how you can easily get to the weight you want to shoot without messing around with inserts, adding weight, etc.
I like Wilderness Custom Arrows a lot. Another reason to shoot wood : David is a great guy to do business with. Very helpful.
Gary
Gary, those are kind words. We are all blessed on this site as we don't have to look far to find what we need. Lots of talent and knowledge to draw from.
It is a blessing to be able to serve this community of archers.
Ron, those arrows are works of art. Sure makes me have a craving to sort through some wood shafts and get started making some.
QuoteRon, those arrows are works of art
Gordon, the arrows on my web site are made by Paul Jalon. The poems are written by me. When you get the arrows a copy of the poem that goes with it is included in the box. :readit:
(http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c390/swamper1/20762261-00f9-4c01-a263-bfbacee5c14d.jpg) (http://s31.photobucket.com/user/swamper1/media/20762261-00f9-4c01-a263-bfbacee5c14d.jpg.html) I used them too,off and on but had to retake photo without arrows,it just didn't seem right.So strickly wood for me now.
Wood has spirit.
QuoteOriginally posted by Mike Vines:
We cannot convince you to do something. Only you can decide what is best for you.
It's Surewood douglas fir for me from here on out. It just feels right.
X2, same for me I will never go back as long as there available. The arrow I used this year to kill my buck has gone thru 3 deer in two years and ready for another. Been shooting them for many years now.
Tracy
Haven't shot anything but wood in the last 30 years, don't see any reason to change.
QuoteOriginally posted by K.S.TRAPPER:
QuoteOriginally posted by Mike Vines:
We cannot convince you to do something. Only you can decide what is best for you.
It's Surewood douglas fir for me from here on out. It just feels right.
X2, same for me I will never go back as long as there available. The arrow I used this year to kill my buck has gone thru 3 deer in two years and ready for another. Been shooting them for many years now.
Tray [/b]
Dang Tracy...you get your moneys worth out of those arrows! :thumbsup:
Really can't add much more than what has been said already. I switched just last year to wood and I couldn't be happier. The only thing more fun to shooting them is making them. It seems daunting at first, but there are so many people here who will help and give guidance along the way. But, they are not for everybody. Only you can decide. As I get older, my journey in hunting seems to be moving backwards from technology. I am leaning more towards wanting to shoot selfbows, wood arrows, and maybe next season...stone points. Simpler seems to be better...for me. Enjoy your journey!
Bill-
If you dont mind having to do a little care-taking with your arrows, you should get some. If you just want to set your arrows in a corner and forget about them and have them be good to go next time, stay with aluminum. I enjoy building and shooting wood arrows no matter what the plastic arrow guys say. Wood can be just as good as anything else. Better in many ways.
I too started with aluminum after coming from compound in 1992....then went to wood and trying different types. Cedar was too brittle with all my misses LOL....hickory, ash....durable but very heavy. Now all these years my primary wood has been Douglas Fir followed by Sitka Spruce and love them both with Doug Fir being preference.
Get good shafts to start with and make them yourself...or spend some money and get some made for you by an experienced arrowsmith...and you will see what is possible with good matched set of arrows.
Yes the carbon or aluminum may be more PERFECT but my shooting is not perfect and in 15+ years of wood only shooting....have not had an arrow or bow that I could outshoot and honestly say the bow or arrow was the cause for an errant shot. :)
Good luck....
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Wood has soul! After going around with all different types of woods, I am back with good old cedar. Killed 5 deer this year with them. They just seem right out of my longbows.
I break a lot but most of them are covered in red by that time.....
Quiet, natural and deadly!
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Its a NEW journey for me also that friends of mine on here :muzzy75 and dirtybird: kept saying to try and i can honestly say WOW so simple and truly traditional and i am gonna have them in the quiver after christmas for our 2nd season here in PA looking forward to it for sure ....ahh yeah and there beautiful too!!!!KEEP THE PICS COMING GUYS...
I made the switch.... Its hard to explain.... Nothing flies like them. They feel different shoot different. I will never switch back. The Footed shaft has really cheap shafts pre finished I think they are like 1.50 a shaft.
I shoot wood only. Call me weird but I do find a more spiritual connection with wooden arrows. I guess its because I build my own arrows too. From spining to fletching, I can customize it exactly the way I want.
In terms of performance, you will probably not be as accurate as with aluminum or carbon but I think it is a good thing. This allows you to get to know your equipment more and shoot better over time. When I first started shooting I broke dozens of wooden arrows. It cost a lot to replace/build. In order to keep the cost down I got better pretty quick. When my equipment and I are in sync, I shoot as consistent as most compound shooters at the range at 20-25 yards. 30 yards is pushing it though for me. My recently made arrows from this spring has lasted me till now and I've shot them probably over a thousand times.
My arrows are poplar by the way.
TTT keep pics coming