Total arrow weight for elk?
Elk
For a compound at 60 lbs, fixed broadhead and 28” draw length. What would you suggest for a total arrow w/broadhead weight for elk? What broadhead weight?
I would recommend 400-450 total arrow weight. A good cut on contact broadhead in either 100-125grain.
I’d start at 450 and adjust from there. A good arrow @ 9 GPI and you can play with vanes, wraps, lighted nocks, inserts weight and collars to add or decrease weight. I personally like 125gr heads because they are beefier.
Don’t overthink it whatever you can shoot the most accurate with, my sister just recently killed a 340” bull on her Nebraska oil tag shooting a 380gr arrow with a 100 gr iron will shooting 45 lbs at 28” complete pass through bull went 105yds
How do you hunt? If you are keeping all your shots close (<25) then there’s no penalty for a heavier arrow. If you are capable of longer shots, then trajectory becomes a bigger factor.
I’d be aiming for a 475-500g arrow with 125g head.
425-475. 125 grain broadhead with a 50 grain insert.
this years elk behind the shoulder out the hip. 450 G. arrows 100 G. slick trick. 65 pound s
I also shoot 60 lbs, but with only a 26” draw. My arrows weigh 445gr, which for me is a great compromise for weight and trajectory.
hunt98, have you hunted other big game like deer or bear? just use the same set-up, no need to change.
I use 470 grain arrows with a 125 grain (Iron Will) broadhead. My bow is 63 pounds. That set up easily gets pass throughs on elk.
If you want maximum penetration look more at broadhead design.
As heavy an arrow as you can shoot and still be acceptant of it's drop. For me, that comes out to how heavy an arrow I can shoot that will fly around 270 fps.
B2K X2, I like 270-290fps, my current set up is a 495gr going 280fps
As others have said, start right around 450 grains. Shot my bull 2 weeks ago with 28 inch arrow(FMJ), 58 pound compound,, 3 blade cut on contact BH at 35 yards, complete pass through. Don't make it harder than it needs to be........
1st one was 53# recurve, 29" 2117 aluminum & 125 gr 3 blade. Complete pass thru. 2 others were with 60#s compounds, 29" 2216 aluminum & 3 blade, pass thrus @ 35 yds. I've also arrowed a Couple Black Bears (pass thrus) & 55#s compounds & arrowed 1 with 53# recurve. Same arrow set up. A Buffalo @ 42 yds, complete pass thru, 60#s & same 2216 Arrow set up. My heads are always 125 gr 3 blade fixed last 45+ years. 60# Compound the last 20+ years, same aluminum arrows. I hover around 500 total + or - a few.
I have been shooting a 28” 340 spine Legacy Carbon with 235 grains up front from #62 the last couple years. Close to 9 GPP. I shoot Gapstinctively and don’t really think about elevation until I’m past 40 yards or so… That’s Foam Range for me…
I don’t think I would care to hunt Elk at under 450 grains, simply because there’s no reason to do it…. and JMO fixed vs mechanical makes a whole lot more difference than 25 or 50 grains of BH.
Just get your tune down cold with an efficient, fixed-blade head and keep your shots sensible, and you will be well beyond “adequate”…
420 +/-, tipped with 125 grain head
Of all the bulls I’ve arrowed, my total arrow weight has generally been between 390-410 grains…..with the exception of one (aluminum days and it was 550 grains). All of them were complete pass throughs. I’m with beachtree…..all about the head, IMO. I’ve always used cut-on-contact (traditional style) type heads to help achieve a pass-through. So far so good.
Not knowing what arrow or bow you are shooting so I am guessing on IBO. With your specs you listed I would shoot an arrow weight around 410 grain range with as much added weight up front as it takes to get there. I have shot Bulls with arrows ranging from 375gr to 456 grains. I have had no complaints with any of them.
You are going to get a wide range of answers for this. It all depends on your shooting capability and what you feel is more important to you in your set-up
Kinda need to know your bow. If you’re 30”+ and 70lbs, it’s impossible to stay under 500g using durable components.
52 lb draw, 29 inch draw length. I use the same 420 grain arrow for Coues deer to bear to elk to muskox to moose and have made two holes in all the above species with it, although the muskox and moose, the fletchings caught inside the animal and the arrow didn't fall out the other side.
VPA 125 grain unvented for everything except sheep/goat which I use the vented version due to mountain wind.
I think guys overthink it when considering an elk setup. With any modern compound, your whitetail setup will kill an elk, although I'm a firm believer in COC heads. I've seen poor penetration on elk X2 with the old Rage shot by a hunting partner.
Anything north of 400 will work just fine…
“With any modern compound, your whitetail setup will kill an elk, although I'm a firm believer in COC heads.”
He’s Not Wrong. Just use the 3R spine calculator and plug in your arrow & component weights and then for a generic recurve or longbow, see how high you have to dial up the poundage to get it to spit out the same velocity you’re getting….
Carcus said “ I like 270-290fps, my current set up is a 495gr going 280fps”;
A good recurve won’t do that at #100… Not off of fingers…
Yup. All my compounds are 52 lbs. I'd have them at 50, but several animals in specific states require 50 lbs minimum, so I increase by 2 just to give myself extra room.
I realize that it's below what most guys draw, but I'd rather have the option of holding my draw longer with less effort and the ability to draw with the bow pointing at 12 o'clock, 6 o'clock, in the cold, etc.
Again, I've made two holes in a muskox and a moose with that setup. And shattered a 6-year-old mountain goat's humerus on a frontal that landed the broadhead in the guts. More velocity is always going to be better, but 52 gets the job done just fine with a quality COC BH.
^^^^ Oh, to be blessed with a 29” DL! ;-)
Geez. I’m pulling 75lbs with 30” draw and a 575 grain arrow at 285 fps. I like my chances.
You could go through 3 elk.
My setup is very similar to Idyll's. 55#draw weight, 28.5 draw length, 125 grain COC broadhead, total weight of 433. I too want to be able to draw smoothly and hold for a while.
“ I’m holding 75lbs ”
HOLDING??? So many questions come to mind, but suffice to say please clarify….
I suppose I get cheated on speed with my 30” sleeve length, but I have developed a 27.5” DL….. which ain’t bad fer a little dude….
I do hold net #62 at full draw, but at 9GPP I don’t expect I’m getting much over 180 feeps.
I can honestly say I have blown through all the elk I have shot with my bow. 53# longbow and 560grain Beman carbon arrows. It has only been 2 elk of course lol, the last one Forest was my witness.
Haven't owned a compound bow under 70# for 35 years. I guss i figure if i can pull it why not. Im 74# 27.5 draw 495-505gr total. 125gr SS vortex
The rest of you need to hit the weights like me and Forest. No pain - no gain. Cmon bro.
"The rest of you need to hit the weights like me and Forest. No pain - no gain. Cmon bro."
I workout/exercise 6 days a week and have my entire adult life. But I don't work out for hypertrophy, as the last thing I want is a bunch of upper body muscle to carry around in the mountains. Upper body muscle for men is like getting a tit job for a woman: Nice to look at, but not much use for what it's made for.
I've drawn and shot my dad's old 80lb Darton without too much difficulty. Just because you can, doesn't mean you should.
I don't want to end up a member of the "I shoot a crossbow because of years of shooting a bow and doing bench presses" club. And I have nothing to prove to anyone.
I'm 46 and after this year's hunting season, I'm sub-10% body fat and weigh what I did when I was 18. And I can shoot 100 arrows with zero shoulder pain.
And I just put two holes in an Alaskan moose with my current setup. I wouldn't change a thing.
I'm unashamed and unapologetic about shooting 52#s. In fact, 90% of my shooting is done on a 35 lb recurve. It's fun and keeps my form without killing my rotator cuffs.
I do believe that an arrow with more velocity is generally going to be better than an arrow with less. But I still maintain as I have that after interactions with so many bowhunters and seeing guys draw/shoot, that most male bowhunters are 5+ lbs overbowed. And you can kill a deer with a 30 lb compound.
I'm not pointing the finger at any one person here, it's just my experience. It's in our DNA to compete on a physical level; it only makes sense. Nonetheless, I'd encourage everyone to keep it real regarding your shoulders as you age if you want to keep shooting a bow.
And know that NA big game can be killed just fine with a lower draw weight than what most guys draw for whitetails.
No, Ike hunts at #52 with a compound. But we’re still on speaking terms…
But Lou has killed about as many Elk as anyone, using recurves at around that #52-#54 weight class.
Ike is going to live to be 127 so i like his plan. I thought I'd be dead by now......but i am not.
GF, my longbows were heavier, like 56-57#, but we built a 53# "speed" recurve that smokes and I switched to that. I used to shoot heavy recurves, 68-70#, until I figured out it wasn't necessary and my shoulders would last much longer if I dropped draw weight down a smidge.
What’s your DL, Lou? I feel like I just can’t get the area under the curve at my DL, but I AM getting the back of my point to my knuckle on a 28” arrow, so drawing a good 27.5”, I guess…
84lbs 30” 536 grain arrow at 294fps. I get asked all the time why I shoot an 80lb bow. The answer is always the same… because I can and they don’t make a 90 or 100lb bow. I’m a firm believer in shooting as much weight as you can shoot, comfortably. Shooting more weight means you can make an arrow that weighs more faster too ;)
Ironic that there ARE longbows and recurves still being made at weights into triple digits.
Maybe you should look into ordering a War Bow?
FWIW, I tried an #80 in a shop some years back, and it was no big deal to roll it over, at which point I was holding less than 1/5 of what I am shooting now….. I think all of Howard Hill’s bows were #85-#110 range… War Bows run north of #150, and the men who shot them were expected to be able to hit a man reliably at 200 paces….
All of us these days are peons compared to the King’s Longbowmen…..
I'm with Ike! Because of an injury, I'm shooting 53# compound. I'm 65. Won't ever be more than that. Just happy to still be able to do it! Was told I never would again. Shooting 31" 340 Gold tip, weighted front and Slick Trick 125. Shot my bull this year at 27 yards. Cut thru rib on opposite side with 12" sticking out. Watched him somersault at 100yds. Modern bows have so much better efficiency than they did when I started bowhunting. Matching and knowing your equipment is key.
All I ever shot was recurves. I am 67 now weigh 168lbs (same as HS) bows of the last 25 years are blacktails, fantastic bows. I shot heavier in the 65lb class and arrow weight was always in 600-625 grains. now I shoot 58LBs at my 28inch draw with carbons and 3 blade VPS steel inserts coming in at 610 grains. taken 18 bulls in the last 37 years here in the PNW . Not sure i could shoot a compound.
Not sure you need to! ^^^^^
I had that exact thought! LOL
I’m following this with renewed interest because I had a huge ol’ splinter pop up on the #62 yesterday and I don’t know if I will be able to keep shooting that bow… but also concerned that I won’t be able to replace it with anything fully comparable….
Agree with Murph. Been hunting with 390gr + - since I started. It's all about shot placement in the end.
Did you see one of the Youtube hacks has a new video on Elk arrows?
I didn't watch it but he is on the Ashby Train....so it's probably another "you have to shoot uber heavy with high FOC" from that crowd.
I think there is some common sense that needs to be applied to arrows for elk. A light arrow with a big over the top mech head is asking for trouble. A very efficient BH works well with just about any arrow. The big inefficient heads do benefit from a little bit more arrow weight behind them.
I put 2 arrows through a 800# moose at 30y with my 46# recurve. I matched the very efficient 2 blade BH with the low energy bow- 2 complete pass throughs...and both arrows hardly slowed down through that moose....ending up 20-30yd past it buried in the dirt with the moose down in 7 steps.
Tune for BH's [a must]...and match the arrow/BH to your bow and you have a killing machine.
So many factors at play … Beendare, with the stats you stated above, I’m going to guess your bh is of the 3:1 long taper variety? The angle of that edge plays a huge part.
Everyone I know with compounds uses 400-450 gr and a good fixed blade. Trajectory is important out west. Last few shots I’ve heard of on elk were 86,84, 65, and 55 yards…nothing closer With a stickbow I like about 600 gr. 30 yards and in on elk
I think the perfect arrow weight with a compound bow for elk is one that allows you to just fit 6 pins within your sight housing, 20-60 yds. With that you can draw your bow on an incoming elk and shoot him anywhere from zero to 70 yds. No dialing needed. For me at 70 lbs 28.5 draw it’s about 460 grains, and will get a complete pass through.
