JeffB

Honestly I have never had the durability problems some folks speak of, and I've been shooting ACC's since 1993. They take nock end hits better than other IC carbons without a bushing. When I do shoot 3D’s these days I’m also careful to have em lubed up good, and pull them out carefully. I see people yanking them all over the place…bad move with any shaft: ACC’s may have a noticeable bend in that case, but IC carbons as often as not will develop spine problems as the layers inside shift and crack under pressure.

In addition, a cared for ACC won’t lose it’s spine over time as an IC carbon will.

Now that doesn’t mean that IC carbons suck or you cannot kill a deer with them, of course that is not true. They just cannot compare tolerance-wise with an ACC or aluminum arrow, and have their own set of problems that many are starting to find out about. They do bend, and the do degrade fairly quickly, some types more than others.

That being said, I like Carbon Express Terminator Selects, 3D Selects and Beman ICSH/Easton Evolutions (spine and weight is especially good on the Easton/Bemans), I just know that I’ll have to cull a 2-4 or so shafts that won’t group with the others from each dozen, spend an extra 12 bucks for uni-bushings and G-nocks to keep the back ends from splitting and to keep internal damage to a minimum, cut a few inches off from both ends to get the straightest part of the shaft and keep an eye out for flyers as the arrows wear.

On the other hand, ACC”s are much less trouble. Fletch ‘em and shoot. They all group. I don’t have to cut anything but one end. Uni-bushings are already installed. I just have to be a bit more careful getting them out of a 3D target. Since I shoot bag targets or live animals 99% of the time, it’s no big deal for me.

Pultruded shafts are a different matter. Later models from Beman, AFC, and CAE are/were very consistent, very durable, and other than the pain in the A$$ outserts, shoot great. With the new drop away rests, I see no real disadvantage to them, indeed, I expect them to make a comeback if the drop-aways continue to rise in popularity. You can shoot them with nibs for 3D, so target wear is no big deal. Penetration from a pultruded shaft is unequalled apples to apples with IC, AC or XX alum. The WASP Carbon Compression Lock broadheads for pultruded shafts make tuning a breeze, even at extreme speeds, and no outsert is needed. I shot them myself for 2 years on AFC Accell 230’s at 300 FPS, and straight fletch feathers with no problems. For practice I just used glue in nibs; Much easier to get out of 3D targets.