A bit of personal failure here. It is sad to admit that for decades, yes decades, I was one who spent a lot of money on a quality bow, rest, sights and then went to the nearest box retailer for the cheap arrows. The ones that I could get a dozen for thirty dollars. And for decades I could not understand why I could not get the accuracy I sought. Finally one day while shooting at my local range, I was talked into shooting some quality arrows. Within minutes of dialing them in, my accuracy increased drastically.
After that day, I began researching better arrows for hunting, I have shot them all, Easton, Carbon Express, Gold Tip, Victory, Beamon, you name it and I have shot them and one thing I can say is that all of the above mentioned make quality arrows. But for the archer that is wanting extreme accuracy and reliability one stands out in my book. More on that later.
During my period of transition and commitment to a good arrow, I came to understand that the bow is the least important element of a quality shot. That even a poorly built bow can launch a good arrow with accuracy. Whereas a one thousand dollar bow cannot, I repeat cannot make a bad arrow fly well or consistent. So the moral here is, get a bow you like and then find the best arrows you can afford and get those.
There has been a big push lately on micro diameter arrows. Meaning what I term as thin arrows. They are very thin and small in diameter. The reasoning for this is as much marketing as it is functional. If a broadhead cuts a hole twice the size of the arrow, you are more likely to get greater penetration and little to no arrow friction during the shot. Small diameter arrows also fly better at longer ranges being less susceptible to wind drift. It is my opinion that the diameter is not as important as is the straightness. Look for arrows that are listed with a straightness of .005 or greater. This guarantees you that your arrows are about as straight as possible. Those that are considered more straight than .005 are usually so expensive no one except professional archers shoot them.
Secondly, get arrows that are spined correctly for your setup. Spine is the stiffness the arrow has. It all depends on your draw length and the pounds you are drawing to determine your spine for your particular bow. But always, always opt for being over than under on the spine chart. Weak spine arrows fly very erratically and are prone to not getting enough penetration.
Many archers prefer to build their own arrows. If building your own, there is a great video by Gold Tip that shows how to cut your arrows to length and how to fletch to get the optimum performance from your particular dozen. An example is that full length arrows come 32 inches long. If your draw is 28” and you are cutting your arrows 28”, you do not want to remove all four inches from the same end of the arrow. It can make it out of balance. Many will just trim all four inches from one end. But by using an arrow spinner you can determine which end and how much of each end to trim to your desired length. If you are buying precut arrows, you cannot control this and for most applications it is ok.
Shooting arrows is similar to shooting bullets. Meaning, when sighting in a new gun of scope, I will often shoot different brands and weights to find the one that shoots best in my setup. I have found it similar with my bows. In my setup, GoldTip Pro hunters are the most accurate I have shot. These are medium diameter shafts and are without question the most accurate arrows I have ever shot. In 3D competition, my scores went up over fifteen points since switching to GoldTip Pro Series 22. And in target archery, my ranking have steadily climbed since switching to GoldTip Pro Series 22. Ask another archer and they may tell you something else. But the point is simple, and worth restating. Get the best arrows you can afford. A fifteen hundred dollar bow is almost worthless with cheap arrows. You owe it to yourself and to the animals to be as accurate as you can. Whether you opt for micro diameter, medium or otherwise, get the straightest and best you can afford and you won’t regret the switch.
