Roskoe

I think almost the opposite would be true. Two arrows, leaving the bow at the same speed . . . the heavier arrow would hold its speed better over distance, provided the heavier arrow didn't have more air resistance.

NY/Al

AAHH this is baffling my mind again, my head hurt from thinking about it and since i really have no actual knowledge on the topic i will be exiting this conversation. Lol have a nice day ya'll!

Roskoe

Just think of it as a plastic bullet vs. a lead bullet. Both have the exact same shape. And assume both are launched at the same speed. The density of the lead bullet is a lot higher - and so is the weight. Which one is going to fly further and drop less?

GMMAT

Roskoe:

I'm no expert....but if we're talking about arrows.....I think we need look no further than Fran's setup vs. mine. If I stuck his arrow in my bow....we'd get VERY similar arrow speeds.

I always thought a lighter arrow = a flatter trajectory.

mobow

There are some other factors to be figured in that too. Fletching being a MAJOR one. Each fletching style creates different drag on the arrow, dictating how fast it slows down, thus effecting drop. Yes?

And Jeff, a lighter arrow does mean flatter trajectory, to a certain yardage. It's flatter because it's faster. The actual rate of drop is the same regardless of how much the arrow weighs, but the faster one covers more ground before it drops the same amount.

But the light arrow wins only to a point. A heavy arrow will retain it's speed longer, thus not dropping as much as a light arrow, at farther yardage. But in the case of an archer, you won't be shooting that far anyway, so it's a moot point.

Don't look at it in terms of weight, speed, or inches of drop. Look at it in TIME. In .25 seconds an arrow weighing 200 grains will drop as much as an arrow weighing 400 grains. The difference is the distance traveled in that .25 seconds.

Rick James

After spending hours of time behind arrow trajectory software plotting out what I have journaled during yardage practice for 3D, as well as shooting the same bows setup for IBO at 315ish fps and then backing them down for ASA at 280ish fps, I can say that graph isVERY inaccurate.

The differencebetween a 275fps arrow and a 315fps arrow is less than an inch at 40 yards. This is such a small amount, that 99.999999999% of archersdo not shoot well enough to take advantage of this difference at all. There are also many other factors that contribute to the trajectoryas well such as shaft diameter, fletching size and type, FOC, etc.........

With that said, there will certainly be differences between shooting 275fps and 350+, but still most hunters aren't shooting out past 30 yards anyhow at live game, and those that are shooting out past those distances are hopefully smart enough to be using a range finder every time at those distances. If you don't have time for it, should you really be shooting at that animal?

Rick James

I wanted to add, that the only place that good speed is really beneficial is if your shooting 3D from the big boy stakes with targets out to 50ish yards at unknown distances. Example..........41 yardguess on a 45 yard targetwould barely producean 8 ring @ 290fps, or a high 8/low 10 ringif your shooting 330fps. This is where it counts. Both arrows kill a real live deer though........

burniegoeasily

All I know is my slow trad bows kill animals just as dead as my lightning fast compounds.

quiksilver

No way.The only way you could get those results would be to play games with the sights/arrows. I.E. Set up the slow bow "just a touch" hot at 20, and the fast bow just a tad bit low... Maybe put feathers and an ultralight arrow on the fast bow, blazers and a heavy arrow on the slow one. Playing games with the trajectory andspeed retention- Cheating. You could come close. But no way is there 1" of difference between those two bows, as described.

The Physics: 2 objects traveling 120 feet, with one at 315 and the second at 275...
(I'm horrible at math, so if I'm wrong - just show me what I did wrong)

Object 1 will be in the air for .38 seconds, while Object 2 will be in the air for .44 seconds, a difference of .06 seconds.

275/1 = 120/.44 and 315/1 = 120/.38

In .38 seconds, a falling body will fall 27"

In .44 seconds, falling body #2 will fall 37"

d(meters1)=1/2(9.8)(.38)(.38)
d(meters1)=.70756
d(inches1)= .70756 x 39
d(inches1)= 27

d(meters2)=1/2(9.8)(.44)(.44)
d(meters2)=.94864
d(inches2)=.94864 x 39
d(inches2)= 37

KodiakArcher

I agree with you Quik about the drop difference (the math doesn't lie) but what Matt (Rick James) said in his second post is right on. That's why my 3D rig shoots a 360 grain arrow at 320 fps and my hunting rig shoots a 505 grain arrow at 265. There are things in hunting more important than arrow speed.