Arrow choices for traditional shooters.

Part of the allure of traditional archery is the fact that it allows for so much personal choice as far as equipment and accessories. Unlike compound shooters, the traditional archery world isn't constantly bombarded by hundreds of new sights, stabilizers, arrow rests or release aids. Traditional archery is a simple sport and requires no such accoutrements. Traditional shooters are also very tolerant of other traditionalists' equipment, even though there are some very strong opinions out there about carbon or aluminum arrows not being traditional. Well, if you shoot a selfbow with a bear-grease finish and a sinew string, you might have room to say that. However, if you have a modern recurve or longbow like the rest of us, one that has fiberglass or carbon laminations in the limbs, then shame on you for being so narrow-minded!

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The three types of arrow shaft materials are no secret. The bottom line is that every arrow shaft material will shoot very well from any hunting weight traditional bow, provided it is properly tuned to shoot from that bow. All that remains is for the archer to decide what he or she wants to shoot and put forth the time and effort required to tune his or her bow and arrow combination.

Wood Shafts: Wood arrows of one type or another have been used since man first learned that you could tie both ends of a long stick together and shoot a shorter stick from it. Woods of all types have been used ranging from dogwood shoots to river cane. Today's wood shafts are more evenly matched and of much better quality due to the manufacturing process used. The most common wood used for arrow shaft material is cedar, which offers a balance of strength, weight and toughness. Shafts are also made from other coniferous trees such as Douglas fir or larch. Hardwood shafting is available in hickory, oak, birch and a few others. Hardwood shafts offer a little more durability and weight than their cedar alternatives.

Pros: For some traditional archers, wood is the only true arrow shaft material. There is something nostalgic about the smell of a broken cedar shaft as you follow up on a short blood trail. Several different types of wood are available to meet most weight and spine requirements from a lighter-weight target arrow to a heavy-weight hunting arrow for big game. They are available in all stages from raw shafts to finished arrows covering a wide range of prices. There are footed shafts that consist of a heavier hardwood section spliced to the end of a cedar arrow providing more strength in the business end. There are also tapered shafts that allow greater fletching clearance and superb arrow flight. Wood shafts, being solid, are also quiet when carried in a back quiver, the arrow-carrying choice of many traditional bowhunters.

Cons: Wood shafts are notorious for requiring hand straightening. Maybe two out of a dozen will be straight enough to shoot "as is" and they may vary quite a bit in weight from shaft to shaft, even among shafts in the same batch. Hand-straightening wood shafting is an art, and there are special tools available to make it easier. Wood arrows must be properly sealed to protect them from moisture or they will surely warp, and even a good coat of sealant won't guarantee against warping. Taper tools, which look like pencil sharpeners, are required to taper each end of the shaft to an exact angle in order to accept nocks and points, and there is also a tabletop grinder made specifically for that purpose. Wood is more fragile than any other shaft material, and care must be taken to thoroughly examine each shaft to make sure no hairline cracks have developed. I had a nasty experience one time when a cedar shaft broke just as I shot it, resulting in the back end of the arrow sticking in the back of my bow hand. Re-fletching wood shafts is more difficult than re-fletching carbon or aluminum shafts as great care must be taken when removing old feathers to not damage the wood underneath.

Aluminum Shafts: Some claim they are as heartless as a compound bow, having no "life" in them, unlike cedar shafts. Aluminum arrows offer a straight, uniform shaft. The spine of an aluminum arrow is determined by the thickness of the wall of the shaft as well as the diameter of the shaft.

Pros: Aluminum is inherently straight right out of the box--no hand straightening necessary--and has no variance in weight between shafts of the same size. Aluminum shafts are easy to turn into finished arrows, can easily be cut to length and have a wide variety of nocks and inserts available. They're available in a wide variety of sizes and are fairly inexpensive. With the availability of special inserts that allow the archer to add weight to the point end of the arrow, fine-tuning is easily achieved.

Cons: Aluminum arrows are durable to a certain point. If a shaft gets bent or takes a ding, it's almost useless to try to repair it. Aluminum arrows are hollow and in certain circumstances can be noisy, such as when several are carried in a back quiver or when an improperly tuned arrow strikes the riser of the bow as it passes.

Carbon Shafts: By far the most controversial in the traditional arena, carbon arrows often get a bad rap as being untraditional. Like I said, if you've got fiberglass or carbon laminations in your bow, you shouldn't bad-mouth carbon arrows. There are several different styles on the market. The best for traditional applications are the larger-diameter shafts without the pultruded aluminum inserts.

Pros: Most carbon shafts can be perfectly weight-tuned to make them fly from any bow. Carbon is by far the most durable shaft material on the market and is even more consistent in shaft-to-shaft weight than aluminum. The old problem of a carbon arrow splintering inside a game animal has been eliminated, and should a carbon arrow break off as an animal flees through the woods, it generally breaks clean. Carbon arrows are now available in larger diameters, and some are even tapered! I have some tapered carbon arrows myself and have found them to be the best-flying arrows I've ever shot from my traditional bows. Carbons are available in spine weights to fit bows from 35 pounds up to and over 100-pound draw weights.

Cons: Carbon has to be cut with a high-speed shaft-cutting device. Weight must be added by some means to get them up to specs for a traditional hunting weight bow as carbon is a very light material. The use of hot melt glue is discouraged due to the fact that high temps will damage the epoxy in the shaft. Liquid adhesives such as Bohning's Powerbond work best for gluing inserts into carbon shafts, but if you like to line your broadheads up a certain way, make sure you do it before the glue dries!

It's been said many times that the arrow is the most important factor in the archery equation. I have never heard a truer statement. Just think about this; you can have the best custom bow ever made, but you'll never get it to shoot accurately with anything other than the right arrow. On the other hand, you can make a bow from a sapling, and with the right arrow, you can enjoy excellent shooting! The common factor in both of these scenarios is using the correct arrow. As you can see, there are a lot of choices available to the traditional archer. Decide which shaft material best suits your needs and take the time to tune the shafts to shoot properly from your bow. Accuracy and perfect arrow flight should be the goal of every stickbow shooter, and with all the options out there, it's easier than ever!