Today's arrow builds and tuning problems
Equipment
Okay, guys, so I have been thinking a lot about it, and if I'm dead wrong here, or I'm missing something, go ahead and shoot me down. It seems to me like the most common arrow builds we have today lend themselves to unnecessarily difficult tuning. Let's say you have two different objects you are trying to throw in a perfectly straight line (like a well tuned arrow) and one is a dart you would throw at a dart board and the other is a pencil. Which one is going to be better for this task? Obviously the dart, right? The dart has some big ass fins on the back of it for steering and a lot of weight up front. The pencil is very light up front and has no vanes or fins. I think a lot of the arrows we shoot today are a lot more like the pencil than the dart. It seems like the vast majority of arrows now have straight-fletched little 2 inch blazer vanes. The more minimal the fletching you are using is, the more similar it is to just shooting bare fletch. Unless you build your own arrows, the guys at the bow shop are probably putting in a standard 12 grain insert, and you're most likely using a 100 or 125 grain broadhead, but most likely a 100 grain. This will usually mean a lowish FOC. On the other hand, let's take an arrow with a 4 to 5 inch vane with a helical twist on it. Now you have something that will really grab a hold of the wheel and steer that arrow. Couple that with a lot of weight up front in the form of heavy inserts, broadheads or both (but not so much that you make your spine too weak) and you have a really aerodynamic projectile that will fly like a laser and not care so much about your less than perfect form or the fact that your bow isn't quite tuned to the nuts! Yeah, yeah, I know if you are a knowledgeable and super anal tuning freak you can probably get a bare fletched, 9% FOC arrow with an old school muzzy to hit with your field points at 130 yards. However, I would rather spend more time shooting than tuning, and be out scouting, getting in shape for the hunts (haha well...kinda). If you want to spend hours obsessing and tinkering and messing with your setup then that is great for you, but is it really necessary for the guys that don't? Of course you will be losing some speed with the more forgiving arrow build, but it's not like we aren't shooting plenty fast with today's bows anyhow. Sorry for the big wall of text. I'm just thinking out loud here.
In case you've missed it, Blazer vanes and low FOC carbons have killed a million tons of meat in the last 15 years.
Tuning problems are caused by string material, lack of knowledge in bow design materials used for cam bushings, etc..... Bow manufacturers have crossed the line into better designed materials, more knowledge on designed, better string material to use for strings that don't stretch, etc..... So, this tuning issue you speak of is not an arrow build problem. It's a people, equipment, material problem.
I like a little heavier arrow. But, with drop away rests, center shot bows, release aids, and great shafting material, tuning issues are caused by something other than arrow foc's and steering choices in most cases. And, FOC really is non relevant in hunting accuracy of todays compounds..God Bless
Good post WV
Comparisons: Throw your dart from directly behind it- you know... like the arrow you are compariing it to- grin....and tell me how that works out for you!
Physics is like that:: arrow flight is not a vaccuum, you have to factor in the launch.
Lots of weight up front destabilizes the launch making it more critical.... but then helps once in flight. Maybe those Easton engineers actually know what they are talking about with thier happy medium rec, eh?
