[Bayou Excalibur]

Ok guys, I must rely on yall's expertise again. I have been reading a lot on the web about the proper balance for a crossbow bolt while hunting. A good portion of the information I have read state that a 150 grain broadhead is needed to have enough kinetic energy for good penetration at longer ranges such as 40 and 50 yards. I read where the crossbow bolt starts to lose it's KE at about 25 yards using a 100 grain head.

I scoured these threads and see the majority, heck if not all, use 100 to 125 grains. So what is the deal, yall fill me in please.

 

[recurveman]

Part of that is based upon what xbow you are shooting. If you are shooting an Excalibur, the need the extra upfront weight to make up for the slower speed. For instance. A Desert Stryker with 155# produces measured 350 fps speed with a 425 gr 22" arrow including a 100 gr point. An Exomax produces 350 fps with a 350 gr arrow thats 20" and 225#s. So we can tell the compound way out produces the recure limbs so to give the slower arrow more punch down range a heavier point helps out. Think of it like rifles. A 308 shooting a 180 bullet at 2700 fps produces the same kind of killing penetration as a 45-70 shooting a 405 grain bullet at 1800 fps. To up penetion in a slower bow or gun you add mass to the projectile.

 

[SPECIALIZED]

A Lot of the information I see available per the web on Crossbow kinetic energy is dated,and based on many of the slower FPS bows.

 

[Bayou Excalibur]

Thank you guys.

 

[Cossack]

If your bow shoots at 300 fps or more you won't have any trouble with penetration (on deer) at 40 yards using 100 gr head, providing it's sharp. Importance of Kenetic energy in c bows, inside 50 yards, is overstated. Arrows kill by causing hemorrhage not shock per se.

 

[grndhntr]

Since you're from LA, I will assume that you are primarily hunting WT deer. For that, you won't need much KE...I don't like to use KE because it's a poor indicator of penetration (ie. a tuning fork has a bunch of KE, but it's hard to kill a deer with it). Let's use Momentum instead since it indicates a forward motion. The difference is that you can get high KE with a fast light arrow, but it doesn't have much Mo. A heavy slow arrow will outpenetrate a fast light one if bone is hit. For WT, you don't need much Mo. but if you want to hunt something bigger, I would consider a heavier bolt. I hunt elk with my crossbow and I use a 620 gr. bolt. I once center-punched an elk rib with a "light" 500 gr. bolt on a big cow elk, got very poor penetration and I lost her, so I then moved up to over 600 gr. The elk in my avatar was shot at about 45 yds. with the 620 gr. bolt and I got full penetration. I'm confident that it will break elk ribs and keep going. I also shoot a solid 2-blade BH for maximum penetration. So, if you are just hunting deer, go with a fast light bolt, but for bigger game, go heavy and slow.

 

[StoredEnergy]

Shoot the heaviest arrow that your xbow will accurately shoot. The speed is not as important. Even older "slower" xbows have over twice the minimum recommended KE for WT Deer.

Heavier broadheads, per se, are not as important as the overall weight of the arrow and the effectiveness of the broadhead.

Accuracy is final.

 

[oldbhtrnewequip]

Unless your broadhead becomes separated from the arrow, the momentum and KE (take your pick) of everything in flight will determine how much penetration you get.

The weight of your broadhead defines overall weight of the 'package' and FOC.

Is your question about FOC or KE?

If you're shooting white tails at 45 yards...I think accuracy AND KE or momentum AND speed all make a difference and all have to be considered.

I will respectfully agee and disagree with Storedenergy. If you're not accurate at 45 yards, it is either the equipment of the indian. Either one you can fix if you can figure it out. The question becomes figuring out which it is.

"Shoot the heaviest arrow that your xbow will accurately shoot. The speed is not as important. Even older "slower" xbows have over twice the minimum recommended KE for WT Deer."

I disagree with your recommendation because you are comparing apples
and oranges. If there is already twice the minimum recommended KE for WT deer, improving momentum by using a heavier setup does zippo for you.

 

[StoredEnergy]

Oldbhtrnewequip,

Let me put this a bit simpler.

Shoot the heaviest arrow that your xbow will accurately shoot.

Heavier arrows shoot quieter than light arrows. Heavier arrows do less wear and tear on the crossbow. Heavier arrows are often more damage tolerant. There are other advantages to heavier arrows as well.

Accuracy is final.

 

[oldbhtrnewequip]

Oldbhtrnewequip,

Let me put this a bit simpler.

Shoot the heaviest arrow that your xbow will accurately shoot.

Heavier arrows shoot quieter than light arrows. Heavier arrows do less wear and tear on the crossbow. Heavier arrows are often more damage tolerant. There are other advantages to heavier arrows as well.

Accuracy is final.

Whatever works for you is great

I think there are three reasons folks go for speed.
1.) string jump
2.) increased accuracy due to errors in range estimation.
3.) because they can

I agree that reducing noise is a good thing.

I think few, if any, folks worry about long term damage to their bow as long as they're shooting minimum weights recommended by the manufacturers.

I have 390 grain setups that I've been using for 3 years with no damage whatsoever. I've lost 2 arrows (maybe 3...I forget...but the number is low) to breakage in hunting situations and I think I've taken about 10 deer.

I will tell you that carbon arrows have lasted me a LOT longer than the aluminums, which were a lot heavier.