Arrow length question

Pine · July 12, 2015, 12:11:00 PM

This might seem odd for an old timer to ask but here goes .
I have all my life been told to cut arrows an inch longer than your draw length .
I have noticed several people that have upwards of 4 inches of arrow past the riser and the arrows fly good and the shooter is doing well .
I do understand that the spine can be adjusted by length , so my question is , how many of you prefer a longer arrow and why do you like it ?

JRY309 · July 12, 2015, 12:40:00 PM

There are enough different spines available in wood and aluminum.Carbons are a whole new game,they don't come in as many different spines.So you adjust the dynamic spine by length.You may find one with the correct spine for the bow you are shooting with a 1" overhang,but that can be a hit or miss.With carbon arrows length doesn't matter to me.I let my tuning determine their final length.

monterey · July 12, 2015, 03:27:00 PM

I shoot mnostly wood and I always start out tuning with the full length shaft. It may or may not be a go to for tuning but usually not. Nearly always other aspects of tuning bring the bow/arrow combo together. They end up long and that is fine with me.

Babbling Bob · July 12, 2015, 04:25:00 PM

Like you Graps, I like a shorter arrow. Might come from shooting those Easton 24srt's with nibs which were set just one inch longer than my draw and barely over the arrow rest for my target bows used for field archery.

When I stated back shooting and carbons were strange things to me, many people were telling me not to trim back my carbons, but I found that heavier points would allow me to have relatively short arrows. Mine are 28.5 inches for a 26-inch draw. My former boss at OSU who has a collection of trad bows shot 28 inche arrows for the same 26-inch draw length. I only have the 28.5 inch length because it works well with my arrows and thinking that at least 2-inches is needed to clear the riser, so I allow for a 1/2 inch past that. When I shot target bows, the 1-inch extra length allowed the arrow to just clear the arrow rests, which was about right, but the arrow did not clear the riser. It did not matter because I used nobs for points. Don't personally like long arrows and they feel weird to me. I wish I could get by with even shorter arrows and may in the future, especially for the bows I shoot 3-D with.

reddogge · July 12, 2015, 06:00:00 PM

I gap so in order to reduce my point on distance and gaps I use a longer arrow. Very simple.

Yewbender · July 12, 2015, 06:37:00 PM

I shoot wood arrows and tune to the bow so I have about 3 to 4 inches around there that stick out past the bow and the arrows shoot great.

Yewbender · July 12, 2015, 06:44:00 PM

Rich, i didn't notice i posted after you lol. Anyway you arrows at full draw look like a compound stabilizer of about 3 feet.....lol you dirty rotten stinken cheatin gapper!!!! Just kidden Rich, i hope to see you at Denton Hill and hopefully can shoot a round or two with you brother.

Orion · July 12, 2015, 08:48:00 PM

I didn't see the need to change the practice when I switched from wood to carbons. First, I buy the carbon spine that is closest to what I'm looking for in both spine and weight. Then I cut them to one inch longer than my draw length. I tune them to the bow by changing insert, adaptor and point weight and side plate thickness.

I don't like arrows longer than they need to be. In a bow quiver, the arrow nocks tend to stick in the ground if you lean your bow against a tree. They create extra /larger movement taking them out of any quiver and positioning them on the string. The extra couple of inches length, accentuates the movement of the fletched arrows in a bow quiver when the bow is moved slightly.

I realize that a lot of folks tune mostly by using arrow length, and, of course, longer arrows reduce the size of the gap for gap shooters, but I prefer them to be no longer than necessary.

July 12, 2015, 10:43:00 PM

I have a set of longer aluminum target arrows with lighter narrow bullet points that I crested so that a black line at the edge of the crest lines up to the belly side of my grip. I practice my draw length by looking directly at it without shooting and I suppose, I can kinda see it when I shoot. I have noticed that at longer ranges with those 1918s that am more consistent when I shoot the length where I can shoot 200 grain fatter back tapered points and tag my finger on the draw. All of my wood arrows are either net or I tag the point with my finger, including all broadheads Alaskan carbons, aluminum and wood. I find that keeping wood arrows to a minimum length takes the guess work out of the spine, it seems that they behave differently for different people when there is a lot of extra wood out front. When I make arrows for others, knowing their exact draw length, release strength, bow type and poundage, I can hit the spine on the first try. A couple of times I had to talk them into a heavier head, but that was almost always due to the fact that they had a weaker release than they thought. It gets to be more of a challenge when they pick the head weight in advance, in those cases I want to shoot with them for a while before I select a spine and perhaps do a few test shots with different arrow after their form is stable.

Pat B · July 12, 2015, 10:56:00 PM

I cut all my arrows at 30" for my 26" draw. I shoot mostly selfbows or sinew backed bows and I think the longer arrows get around the bow better plus I like the extra physical weight. That extra length still has to be calculated into the proper spine value. Four inches over 28" will subtract 20# of actual spine weight.

**DONOTDELETE** · July 13, 2015, 12:44:00 AM

QuoteOriginally posted by reddogge:
I gap so in order to reduce my point on distance and gaps I use a longer arrow. Very simple.

Bingo!

Firstlight · July 13, 2015, 02:22:00 AM

I used to go 1" past shelf like you, for years.

Once I started reading more about how Howard Hill shot using split vision, as well as other notable archers, I started adding an additional inch to arrow length. I may go more!

In my opinion it will only help, whether shooting instinctive, split vision or gap, whatever aiming method you prefer.

Assuming of course your arrows are still tuned to your bow.

I was reluctant to break the 1" past the shelf "rule" but am so happy I did. That, along with some major form changes, have raised my accuracy.

Try it. You can always cut them shorter.

It will decrease your point on distance and you will see more of the (out of focus) arrow in your secondary vision which, for me, gives me a better more consistent site picture.

PeteA · July 13, 2015, 06:32:00 AM

I shoot aluminum, 2016's from my 46 @ 28 Predator Hunter. I draw 26.5 -27. My arrows are cut to 29.5 the extra length does to things for me. One, it helps to weaken the arrow a bit I prefer a little heavier arrow. Two, I shoot split vision so I use the tip of the arrow as a reference point. the longer arrow helps shorten my split vision gaps. My point on is holding at 6:00 at 40 yards. I also shoot split finger and anchor with my middle finger in the corner of my mouth.

old_goat2 · July 13, 2015, 06:48:00 AM

I wish i could trim arrows, 31" draw, i need them full length and tune by y tip weight and strike plate thickness!

katman · July 13, 2015, 07:17:00 AM

For shooting a fixed crawl, full length reduces my crawl distance. Otherwise carbon length will be dictated by starting full length with desired point weight and trimming to tune ala bareshaft planing.