Speed Vs Weight: Which Arrow Set Up Is More DEADLY?

In today's video, we are pulling a snippet from a conversation the Cameron had with chad on the Deer Gear Podcast talking about arrow builds. Is a faster arrow more deadly? Or does a heavier arrow pack more killing power? Tune in to find out!

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[JA-hnto]

People have been harvesting animals for years with less technology than we have in today's bows. Sometime it seems like we overthink and complicate thing. Bows get faster and I do not think the reaction time of animals got faster. We always THINK we need bigger, better, faster, heavier, shinier what ever it mite be. When we just need to hone are hunting and shooting skills. In my opinion!

[cjr]

Tools for the job. If you encounter a lot of large hogs, especially boars, then you need an extremely heavy arrow with a cut on contact fixed head. You have to sacrifice in other areas to get that. Too many people take what the RF says on a wild ride. That is on them, not the Rach Fairy. Just like with guns you wouldn't take a 45/70 with a 400 grain bullets to hunt where your shots will be over 200 yds nor would you take a 300 mag in the woods where you can see less than 100. The happy medium would be a .280 or 30-06. With each their are sacrifices and benefits. Think about it like this: How much has the Ranch Fairy forced archers to learn? He is a net benefit to the industry. You two hosting the show know more now than you ever would have if the fairy hadn't challenged the status quo.

[chuckwwillingham]

60lb BowTech solution, 29 inch draw, 375 gr total weight, 4 blade G5 gets full pass through on southeastern whitetails...

[bobbylewis]

The difference between 300fps and 270fps is .1 of a second not 1 whole second. @ 100yds the arrow is .1 slower. .05 fps @ 50yds. There is still movement from animals in .1 of a second but not enough to miss vitals with a well placed shot, plus we’re probably under 50yds when taking animals. Good discussion though and good reviews on equipment. Thanks for creating content to help better all us hunters👍🏽

[o.n.e.wayhunting]

Best conversation about it I’ve heard. Have been in that same mind and path for the last several years!

[woodsdog]

Like most things in life, somewhere in the middle is usually the best place to be. Interesting point Chad brought up about speaking in terms of yardage instead of FPS. Very important. The comment was made that speed is important to an extent due to the amount of time it takes to reach the animal and the arrow loses velocity at further but heavier arrows retain more of the velocity at those longer distances too so there is that point which wasn't really addressed. I was shooting 532gr. last year and I'm likely dropping 50-75gr. this year to flatten my trajectory but I will never go superlight. Its loud, its rough on your bow and equipment, and you never can control what that animal is going to having the assurance of hard hitting momentum with a medium to medium heavy weight arrow is that insurance for what the animal may do that none of us have much control over whatsoever.

[jimmybuttcheeks]

Your math on the 270 vs 300 FPS being a whole second different is completely wrong. Like just think about an arrow taking 1 second to go ten yards. You can even throw an arrow that slow.

[quintinkale]

Chad said it sharp broadhead well placed shot, my general rule of thumb 25-28 in draw 70 lb 390-420 28-30 draw 70lb 425-480 and 30+ 440-510 is general arrow weights that should be pretty much sweet spots in my experiences. I hunt with a 29 draw 68 lb bow shooting a 442 grain arrow. My elk build is 72 lb 29 draw 478 grain. Sharp durable broadheads are a key. This whole 2+ in cut getting 54-8 in penetration is a joke and half the outdoor channel pushes is. I’m sorry I just don’t see a need for that 1-1/2 expandable is plenty and a bit more stout. I’m a fixed guy personally. Shoot straight guys and god bless. Thanks for the video you guys rock

[denniskeys]

Back in the late 80’s early 90’s we were killing deer shooting 245 fps with a 500 grain arrow the bow was so quiet deer never knew what hit them

[tonyviers-deqi]

Here’s something else i was thinking about. I think guys chasing weight…..are chasing something that doesn’t exist ( at least to the degree they think) as far as momentum, you’re talking about how hard is it to stop weight A compared to stopping weight B. Is it significant enough to justify the difference in drop per yard( speed). Ok, think about weight and momentum…. Is 1.25 ounces going to hit significantly harder than 1 ounce? We’re talking about 1/4 ounce!!!! OUNCE!!!! I believe the more important factor is accuracy. There is a way big difference in drop of the arrow in a given distance then there is difference in penetration. Give me accuracy, good flying arrow, and good broadhead. Ive never hunted with anything over 460 grains . I believe not only is it not necessary, but 90% of hunter’s that do, aren’t qualified to shoot that arrow because it is so much more critical to get yardage correct. You guess couple yards off and you have a long chase for rhat animal or you never recover it. Im shooting a 360 grain set up right now. If i mis guess by 5 yards im still well in the lungs. You should never plan for a bad shot. EVER! Anyway, thats my thoughts on speed versus weight. Go for speed. Benefits are better

[jonesoutdoors]

I agree with the happy medium statement. Also perfect arrow flight is paramount for penetration. A really heavy arrow is not going to penetrate as well if it is not flying straight and neither will a lighter one.

[brettwelch]

100% agree with the happy medium. I've found, make the arrow around the distances you are going to shoot and the arc you want. I started with a mid 400 grain arrow with an expandable. hit a shoulder with 0 penetration. felt terrible, that deer would be in pain the rest of its life. then went to a 550 grain arrow and it wasn't forgiving enough for my skills. 500 grain with a fixed seems to be the sweet spot for me and my bow.

[davidhidalgo]

Best discussion yet. It is all about the individual bow and shooters set up. There will be an arrow weight that is perfect for each set up you just have to find it. It is up to the individual what they want. I drive a diesel pick up truck and wont ever own a sports car.

[jessenewsome]

I believe broadhead choices are more important than weight. The broadhead is the first thing that touches the animal. Most people will get a broadhead and never even sharpen the blades. Take a dull knife and cut a tomato. Take that same knife and sharpen it before cutting that tomato again. The dull knife will push its way through while the sharp knife will slice through. I personally prefer fixed blades over Mechanical broadheads. I also prefer a smaller cut size. Less force is needed to slice through the animal. The most important thing is patience and shot placement. That's easier to say than to do when it's the heat of the moment. I've had what seemed to be perfect shot placement with Mechanical and would still watch that animal run off with my arrow sticking out. Two holes are always better than one. Two unclog holes are better than two holes with a arrow in the middle of them. 450g max with a highly sharpened fixed blade broadhead is good for any game animal in North America. Slice your way through that animal and a lot of times, they don't even know they're hit. They'll jump, look back, and will slowly walk off before expiring. It's a lot easier tracking a animal that walks off versus one doing a death run.

[officerfoxtrot]

Respectfully, bows get more efficient the heavier you go. The arrow absorbs more energy, eliminating the energy bleed off through vibration and noise. A 2000 grain arrow is always more efficient than a 350 grain arrow when you are talking about bow energy.

Another thing about Pin Gaps. If you misjudge yardage, chances are the misjudgment is going to be under 5 yards. Anymore than 5 yards or so of misjudgment is going to more than likely either mean a complete miss or a miss outside of the vital zone and a non-lethal hit regardless of arrow setup. A heavier arrow slows down much slower than a fast arrow. So the difference between a 50 yard shot that was really 54 yards isn’t going to be nearly what everyone thinks it is. If a heavy setup slows down 10-14 fps at 60 while a light setup slows down around 30 fps, the light setup is going to miss lower when you misjudge yardage because the arrow slows down quicker and loses more speed compared to the intended yardage.

[jerrycox]

I agree shoot what works for you I shoot a 430 grain arrow around 285 ft ps good sharp broadheads in I been blessed to have pass threw on most of the Deer I've killed keep up the good work great videos

[simonaudet]

My perfect setup is right in the middle!!
26, 25” Rip Tko’s with 75gr Half out, 125 gr point, AAE max Stealth vanes and Nocturnal lighted nock for a total of 485 gr. Shooting 284 fps @ 70# and 28, 5” dl

[sinepari]

I like to use 3 different arrow setups (actually 4), which is exactly how many rifle calibers I use for certain situations. I have a 580gr, 505gr and 450gr. If I'm in a hunting situation where I know I'm ranging animals within 40 yds (elk, moose) in heavy timber with a single bevel heavy BH, I will use the 580's which are also day six brand and extremely durable. If I'm stretching out to 60yds+ the 505's are my sweet spot of speed/energy/trajectory. If I'm shooting TAC or some event I'll use the 450's. Of course all of this is dependent upon your bow, comfort etc.

[JFroMG_YT]

I got on the heavy arrow train and found out for my personal set up($1000 Mathew’s) after 550g I’m sacrificing to much speed. Arrow still hits hard. So I dropped down 50g and I’m sitting around 490g and I believe that is my bows sweet spot.
With my $300 bear bow can’t handle the 550g arrow. Dropped to a 450g arrow and I had it deflected of the back of the shoulder through the rib cage single lung liver and went almost through the ball joint of the femur on a 41/2 ND whitetail.

[projectredbeard]

I'm at a 29.5 draw, 80lb, 450gr total arrow weight, 306fps I feel like that is almost perfect. It's flat, still hit plenty hard, it's accurate and quiet.