Heavy arrow tuning struggles

[Sheltowee]

So fall of 2021 I shot two bulls and didn't recover them. One of them I got almost zero penetration, like 2", which led me down the ranch fairy rabbit hole, and which eventually led to to this thread. Later in 2022 I shot a bull in WY and... didn't recover. Again, not nearly enough penetration. That caused me to simply abandon archery.

However, 4 years later, and I do really miss Sept archery elk. So I applied for, and drew, and ID archery elk tag. Picking the bow back up and what do you know, this issue didn't self resolve over 4 years.

I don't think there's any issue with the bow cams are timed correctly per their manufacturer specs.

There isn't anything wrong with the rest (ripcord).
The grip isn't the issue.

I'm simply getting shitty inconsistent flight.

I think I'm going to go back to a slightly lighter arrow. drop the inserts, impact collars, and stupid single bevel bullshit.

I'm also not going to build them myself. I've never been a super high quality builder of anything, and I just don't trust me.

Recommendations for arrows? For threads I missed in the last couple of years? Any other useful tools out there I should know about?

And yes, I did think about buying GH's bow. But Bozeman ain't exactly just down the street.

I'm a pretty big fan of Black Eagle arrows. Shooting the Spartans right now but they've got plenty of flavors depending on your preferred diameter and GPI. That being said, no arrow is going to make up for an equipment issue. It is almost like you've got something shot loose on the bow itself. Bowtech shows a dealer in Moses Lake and Yakima, about an hour away from you. I'd have a good shop give it a thorough exam and see if there is any equipment malfunction. If that checks out, I'd go to a vented 3 or 4-blade COC and try to build an arrow in the 450-480gr. class. Then, I'd buy an Elite

The wild fishtailing could explain the poor penetration you were experiencing.

 

[Point Creep]

Maybe just try just going light. My hunting arrow weighs in at 348.

 

[Irrelevant]

The wild fishtailing could explain the poor penetration you were experiencing.

That is what I've concluded as well.

 

[Irrelevant]

Maybe just try just going light. My hunting arrow weighs in at 348.

What are you shooting?

 

[Point Creep]

Easton 5.0 400. I was wrong it's actually 374 grains

 

[R.K.]

I just got a dozen of these Scheels/Victory Arrows. They’re pretty damn great. 300 spine for 70# at 29.5”. I went with the 3” fletching, and they may have a slight helical to them.

I had pretty bad nock pinch before, which was wearing out my serving- so I got the string re-served to reduce the diameter. When they replaced the d-loop, however, I noticed the nocks on the new arrows (Victory) have a taller profile than my old arrow nocks (Easton), as the Easton are flattened instead of round- meaning I have some play when using my old arrows that affects the up/down tuning with the new setup that was sized for the Victory arrows.

So that’s something to be aware of- you might have to change nocks to keep consistent nocking height in your d loop.

 

[Dan O]

Spend the time and get it to a Bow tech dealer and take the bow + arrows and release with you. See if the dealer can get it figured out. There may be an underlying problem with the bow that has been missed.