Arrow and BH Weight for Elk

[deadeye]

Well I read some opinions on another forum regarding this so I thought I would ask here. I am going back to CO in Sept for elk. This year I am shooting a PSE Mach X, 62lbs, 27 in draw.

Last year I took CX Terminator Hunter Select arrows cut to 27" that weighed 325 without the broadhead. I also have Terminator Select arrows that weigh 289 at the same length. Which arrow would you guys use...AND what weight head...100 or 125?

last year I used Razorcaps. They grouped well but not with the field points. I was thinking about Magnus Stinger 4 blades, Montecs, or the Slik Triks.

I know BT swears by the lighter arrows and read the post he put up the other day regarding K.E. and momentum. A guy on the other forum took pics of a group he shot at 40 yards. 350 gr arrows compared to 450gr. The heavier arrows group was two inches lower. Not bad for 100 gr more weight.

Let's hear some opinions.

[marty]

35 grains of weight is not worth considering differences in my opinion but the arrow itself is.I would go with the shaft that has the better tolerances if I were in your shoes.mainly because distance would play into my game enough to warrant it.
100grains makes more difference than2" on most bows but some do better due to the efficiency.2" still does not seem right to me.

for a big animal like an elk I would simply go with the best penetration and best cut diameter in that order.

[BT]

deadeye said:

I am going back to CO in Sept for elk. This year I am shooting a PSE Mach X, 62lbs, 27 in draw.

Last year I took CX Terminator Hunter Select arrows cut to 27" that weighed 325 without the broadhead. I also have Terminator Select arrows that weigh 289 at the same length. Which arrow would you guys use...AND what weight head...100 or 125?

awhile back one of our members (2chucks2) came up with a formula that gave best results in flight and impact results and I have to say that it had alot of merit

I personally would use the 125 on the heavier shaft and the 100 on the lighter.
Having said that...the heavier shaft offers you a variable outside of the perfect match when considering the 400 rule

last year I used Razorcaps. They grouped well but not with the field points. I was thinking about Magnus Stinger 4 blades, Montecs, or the Slick Tricks.

My personal choice of the three above mentioned heads would be the Magnus for what that is worth.

I know BT swears by the lighter arrows and read the post he put up the other day regarding K.E. and momentum. A guy on the other forum took pics of a group he shot at 40 yards. 350 gr arrows compared to 450gr. The heavier arrows group was two inches lower. Not bad for 100 gr more weight.

At times 2" can be the difference of a kill or a wound

In realistic terms a 100 grain difference equates to a 20fps difference in speed which also effectively equals a 2" difference in impact.

BUT! ..... the difference in speed is the flat flight trajectory
20fps means that your arrow gets another 2 yards with the same point of impact.
In the world of archery , 2 yards is alot!......I'll take the 2 yards

[deadeye]

Thanks for the response BT.

I personally would use the 125 on the heavier shaft and the 100 on the lighter.

That puts a whole new look on the situation. Going with that I have one arrow with a total weight of 450 compared with the other that comes in at 390.

Having said that...the heavier shaft offers you a variable outside of the perfect match when considering the 400 rule

OK, what is the 400 rule and is there really a perfect match? If I go with the heavy shaft and 125 gr head, I'll loose speed and some of that flat flight trajectory you referred to.

[My personal choice of the three above mentioned heads would be the Magnus for what that is worth.

/quote]

I was leaning to the Stinger for it's cut on contact ability AND they fly great. Any other suggestions for my set up?

marty, the tolerances are the same for both arrows. .0025 straightness and within 1 gr on weight. Good point on the 2" difference at 40 yards. He was probably shooting one of those 30/06 Bowtechs that BT shoots. ;D

[BT]

OK, what is the 400 rule and is there really a perfect match? If I go with the heavy shaft and 125 gr head, I'll loose speed and some of that flat flight trajectory you referred to.

I would have to look back and find the thread that 2chucks2 commented on but without doing that I can tell you that the charting of the 400 grain arrow was the best within a 200 grain spread for any given set up.

I re-checked his formula and found it to be dead on and so I adopted it.

That being said...I don't follow it for medium sized game since I am over bowed based on K.E. alone.

For quarry such as you are pursuing .... I would follow it.

[elk4me]

I use as 370 Gr finishied arrow with a 100 gr Bh (Sonic Pro). I have yet to shoot an Elk with them but have been close maybe this is gona be my yr!

[willcz]

For Elk I would try and get your arrow weight up over 425 and make sure your FOC is above 11.

That will really put the smack down on those big boys.

[smj]

I used to shoot a about a 640 grain arrow for elk... Now I shoot a faster bow and lighter arrow! That said, from what I have seen in the mountains hunting elk, and performance on elk, I like around a 450 grain arrow with an FOC of 11% to 13%. Any less on the FOC and you may have troubles with wind. I know that I did, and went back from just under a 400 grain arrow to between 450 and 475 grains with lots of FOC. True, the weight does slow you down a bit, but I like being able to hit what I want to hit when I want to hit it... I don't like playing the wind! Shoot a 100 grain or 125 grain broadhead - your choice - screw in a weight on the back of the insert to make the FOC right. Glue it all in place, and don't forget to allow for glue weight when doing this, it can make your arrows each a bit different if you don't watch it. This is for compounds of course, traditional rigs are different.

[michihunter]

Not sure I recall any 400gr formula either. But I will say that my own theory is that 6.2 gpp for ANY setup is the most efficient. Any more or less you begin to lose KE.