Bow ProShop
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Arrow Speed
Arrow Speed
In today's world it seems as if every archer out there talks about one thing when speaking of
bows. "How fast is it?" is a question echoed across shops and ranges everywhere. However,
speed shouldn’t be your top criterion in selecting or setting up a bow. There are a few things
that are factors in determining arrow speed.
Bow Design: This is a really broad category with a number of major and minor effects. A
deflex riser is the slowest type and as the riser becomes more and more reflexed the faster the
bow gets (due to a lower brace height and, therefore, a longer power stroke), but the bow also
becomes more sensitive to bow hand torque (more or less). A shorter bow is usually faster
than a longer one. A lower brace height is usually faster and the cam type can have an effect on
compound speed. Increasing draw weight also will increase arrow speed. A longer draw might
find more speed, but as suggested by many experts, most folks would probably benefit from a
shorter draw.
Arrows: The lighter your arrows are, the faster they will be. And shorter means lighter and
therefore faster. Pretty simple here. Within reason, longer fletches make for slower arrows (due
to increased drag).
Arrow Weight vs. Speed: The rule is—a six grain change in arrow weight will equal about one
foot per second of arrow speed. This means that if your chosen shaft weighs nine grains per
inch trimming an inch off will make about a 11¼2 feet per second difference in arrow speed. In
fact switching from a 100 grain point to a 70 grain point will increase speed about 5 feet per
second. What this means is once you select a particular arrow shaft you will have to make
some pretty drastic changes to that arrow to affect the speed, with all other factors being equal.
The original shaft choice has the greatest bearing on an arrow's potential speed with a given
bow.
Draw Weight vs. Speed: The rule is—one pound of draw weight will equal two feet per
second. This has a greater effect than changing arrow weight, but means that a 10 pound
increase in draw weight will move the arrow speed up approximately 20 feet per second. What
does all this add up to? Well, with speed comes a price and you need to decide if the price is
worth paying. With bow design shorter bows are faster but can be more uncomfortable to
shoot. If you have a 30 inch draw, a 66 inch recurve might be the fastest option but your fingers
might suffer from the added "pinch" at the nock. A more reflexed riser might be faster but you
might find it more difficult to control bow hand torque and your groups might open up left and
right.
A harder cam might be faster, but how much extra work are you going to have to put into
drawing the bow. The same can be said of increased draw weight. Suffice it to say that all the
positives in terms of increased speed can add up to accuracy suffering. If you are shooting
"sub X-ring–sized groups" you can probably afford a drop in accuracy, but if you spend a lot of
time examining arrows leaning against lines you might want to gravitate towards a more
accurate rather than a faster setup.
We all know the old arguments of just how important speed is. Proponents of speed say that
with more speed comes less arrow drift in a cross wind, and the reduced need to accurately
estimate distances on an unmarked 3-D or on the hunt. All true. However, this is true only to a
degree. A faster arrow is in the wind less time, but Easton`s X10s proved that increasing arrow
weight and decreasing cross section of the shaft actually resulted in less drift, especially at
longer distances (due to less surface area on which the wind can act). X10s weigh the same as
ACCs, but X10s don’t suffer much in a crosswind. A faster arrow will actually lose speed at a
higher rate than a heavier one and this is more apparent at longer distances. (Do you
remember your physics . . . conservation of momentum and all that?) The laws of physics say
that an object traveling in a straight line will be harder to divert from that line as the weight of the
object increases. (One of Newton`s laws applies here.) As you can see there are lots of factors
that go into wind drift that have nothing to do with speed.
The other common argument is about distance and errors that might be incurred as you change
distances. This argument has some validity on unmarked field rounds and 3-D rounds. As for
known distances, practice is what ensures that your sight marks are all correct. If you know the
distances, then trying to eke out more speed is just trying to find a crutch.
A lot of guys spend countless hours and dollars trying to eke out 10 more feet per second out
of their bow? Unless you are talking about a pretty major speed increase (20+ fps) there is little
to be gained. And since the idea of target shooting is to shoot as accurately as possible a
good shooter would be remiss if he or she were to ignore the factors other than speed.
Speed is not all that matters. Given a particular bow and arrow combination, tinkering might get
you a 10 percent increase in speed. A 10 percent increase in speed just isn’t worth taking a
good setup and tearing it apart. In fact it might be worth taking a speed setup and slowing it
down to help find some accuracy. There is no shame in having a slow bow (especially if you
are winning trophies with it!).
bows. "How fast is it?" is a question echoed across shops and ranges everywhere. However,
speed shouldn’t be your top criterion in selecting or setting up a bow. There are a few things
that are factors in determining arrow speed.
Bow Design: This is a really broad category with a number of major and minor effects. A
deflex riser is the slowest type and as the riser becomes more and more reflexed the faster the
bow gets (due to a lower brace height and, therefore, a longer power stroke), but the bow also
becomes more sensitive to bow hand torque (more or less). A shorter bow is usually faster
than a longer one. A lower brace height is usually faster and the cam type can have an effect on
compound speed. Increasing draw weight also will increase arrow speed. A longer draw might
find more speed, but as suggested by many experts, most folks would probably benefit from a
shorter draw.
Arrows: The lighter your arrows are, the faster they will be. And shorter means lighter and
therefore faster. Pretty simple here. Within reason, longer fletches make for slower arrows (due
to increased drag).
Arrow Weight vs. Speed: The rule is—a six grain change in arrow weight will equal about one
foot per second of arrow speed. This means that if your chosen shaft weighs nine grains per
inch trimming an inch off will make about a 11¼2 feet per second difference in arrow speed. In
fact switching from a 100 grain point to a 70 grain point will increase speed about 5 feet per
second. What this means is once you select a particular arrow shaft you will have to make
some pretty drastic changes to that arrow to affect the speed, with all other factors being equal.
The original shaft choice has the greatest bearing on an arrow's potential speed with a given
bow.
Draw Weight vs. Speed: The rule is—one pound of draw weight will equal two feet per
second. This has a greater effect than changing arrow weight, but means that a 10 pound
increase in draw weight will move the arrow speed up approximately 20 feet per second. What
does all this add up to? Well, with speed comes a price and you need to decide if the price is
worth paying. With bow design shorter bows are faster but can be more uncomfortable to
shoot. If you have a 30 inch draw, a 66 inch recurve might be the fastest option but your fingers
might suffer from the added "pinch" at the nock. A more reflexed riser might be faster but you
might find it more difficult to control bow hand torque and your groups might open up left and
right.
A harder cam might be faster, but how much extra work are you going to have to put into
drawing the bow. The same can be said of increased draw weight. Suffice it to say that all the
positives in terms of increased speed can add up to accuracy suffering. If you are shooting
"sub X-ring–sized groups" you can probably afford a drop in accuracy, but if you spend a lot of
time examining arrows leaning against lines you might want to gravitate towards a more
accurate rather than a faster setup.
We all know the old arguments of just how important speed is. Proponents of speed say that
with more speed comes less arrow drift in a cross wind, and the reduced need to accurately
estimate distances on an unmarked 3-D or on the hunt. All true. However, this is true only to a
degree. A faster arrow is in the wind less time, but Easton`s X10s proved that increasing arrow
weight and decreasing cross section of the shaft actually resulted in less drift, especially at
longer distances (due to less surface area on which the wind can act). X10s weigh the same as
ACCs, but X10s don’t suffer much in a crosswind. A faster arrow will actually lose speed at a
higher rate than a heavier one and this is more apparent at longer distances. (Do you
remember your physics . . . conservation of momentum and all that?) The laws of physics say
that an object traveling in a straight line will be harder to divert from that line as the weight of the
object increases. (One of Newton`s laws applies here.) As you can see there are lots of factors
that go into wind drift that have nothing to do with speed.
The other common argument is about distance and errors that might be incurred as you change
distances. This argument has some validity on unmarked field rounds and 3-D rounds. As for
known distances, practice is what ensures that your sight marks are all correct. If you know the
distances, then trying to eke out more speed is just trying to find a crutch.
A lot of guys spend countless hours and dollars trying to eke out 10 more feet per second out
of their bow? Unless you are talking about a pretty major speed increase (20+ fps) there is little
to be gained. And since the idea of target shooting is to shoot as accurately as possible a
good shooter would be remiss if he or she were to ignore the factors other than speed.
Speed is not all that matters. Given a particular bow and arrow combination, tinkering might get
you a 10 percent increase in speed. A 10 percent increase in speed just isn’t worth taking a
good setup and tearing it apart. In fact it might be worth taking a speed setup and slowing it
down to help find some accuracy. There is no shame in having a slow bow (especially if you
are winning trophies with it!).
Copyright @2006 Bow ProShop.com
Archery Library:
Correct Arrow Length
Discusion on Arrow Length
Arrow Speed
Measuring Draw Length
Discusion on Draw Length
Selecting Draw Weight
Eye Dominance
Tuning LongBows/Recurves
Correct Arrow Length
Discusion on Arrow Length
Arrow Speed
Measuring Draw Length
Discusion on Draw Length
Selecting Draw Weight
Eye Dominance
Tuning LongBows/Recurves
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