arrow weight questions

[osage outlaw]

I'm working on some cane arrows and was wondering what is a good arrow weight for a 50 lb selfbow?  I will be using duplex nails for the points and I was thinking I could vary the length of the nail to help even out the weights.  And, how big of a range in arrow weight can you go?  Thanks for any help.

[Ryan_Gill_HuntPrimitive]

are they just for shooting and having fun?    i can shoot arrows with 150+ grain different without seeing a whole lot of difference in impact.  if you plan later on using them for deer hunting, id suggest getting them in the 450-500 grain range.   variance in weight just depends mostly on how far you want to shoot.  out to 20y  you can get away with a lot, I notice when making my tournament arrows or pronghorn antelope arrows where i practice out to 50yards, i like them to be 25gr variance.     problem with weighing them is, for me, it takes a lot of the primitive aspect out of it.     typically what i do is make a bunch of arrows and set aside the ones that all fly about the same and impact the same height at 35 yards and use them for my far arrows, and save the other ones for my deer hunting 10-15yard shots.           then im guilty....  after that i weight them..mostly so i can learn from what I am doing..lol
              so to really answer your question, if its for shooting for fun or close range small game......i wouldn't even worry about the weights,   if you want to get em close for fun, go for it!  nothing wrong with a 300 grain target or small game arrow!  i even killed a deer with a 320 grain cane arrow, didnt weigh it til after,  It killed it dead tooooooo.  but it was at like 9y.

[Pappy]

I don't notice much difference with 50 grain difference at 20 yards and less,for hunting arrows I use 550 to no more than 600 and shoot about the weight you are talking about,I like to shoot hunting weight most all the time unless I have a lighter bow and are just playing around. Don't do that much,I mostly shoot and play with what I hunt with.
   Pappy

[crooketarrow]

  I'm like pappy I've always shot with what I hunt with all the time. I mainly shoot dog wood with my trade points added and a 27" arrow with the 56 pound bow I'm shooting now I get between 500 to 600 grain. I only know this though keeping track years ago. I hav'nt weighed arrow in years. All my buck set ups are 15 and under sos a few grains don't matter. Can you just see a group on indains setting a round the camp fire passing the dititals around. If it shoot good out of my bow. I use it. Useing dog wood I don't have to worry about it being to light. THEY ALWAYS SHOOT ON THE HEAVY SIDE.

[osage outlaw]

Thanks for the help.  I will be target shooting with these arrows.  I don't like to shoot over 20 yards at anything, even a target.  I guess I'll make some heavier ones for hunting season.

[H Rhodes]

I feel like the other guys in that I don't weigh my cane arrows.  They are naturally "weight forward" and seem to be a very forgiving shaft material.   At hunting ranges I don't think it matters much unless you try a piece of cane that is just grossly too thin or thick.  I still have some other wood arrows and even a few aluminums....  (gasp!) laying around the shop, but I find myself using cane most of the time.  I have found them to be more durable than just about anything I have tried and the stuff grows all over the place here.  I talked to a landowner the other day that has been spraying canebrakes with an herbicide and complaining that he just can't seem to get rid of it.     

[rmcpb]

Like the rest I don't find much difference at hunting ranges but get a bit fussy at the longer sniping ranges on the targets. Up close I tend to use a heavier spine than my centre cut bow needs and add heavy broadheads. I was surprised when they hit about the same as my lighter arrows at sub 20 metres but, as expected, they drop off much quicker as the range lengthens. then again for hunting weight and a sharp point is more important than speed.

[Pat B]

I like arrows to be at least 500gr and 11% to 12% over that GPP is fine with me for hunting situations.        Recently I've been playing with some poplar shafts. The finished arrows are coming out less physical weight than I'm used to but they sure shoot flat. 

[Youngboyer2(billyf)]

Using a lighter tip will make your arrow stiffer, for lighter cane heads just insert BBQ bamboo skewers pushed into the foamy part with gorilla glue and then treat like a regular arrow

[PeteC]

Outlaw,I also do the majority of my shootin' with 50#self-bows and switchcane arrows with razor sharp trade points. I try to get all of my cane arrows near, or ,just over 600 grains. This often includes adding extra paint or spar varnish to increase weight. In my experience,with that weight,decent penetration can be had in big game such as deer and hogs(with cane).I would'nt use anything lighter myself(in cane),and have taken these animals with 700 grains with good results.The reason I keep saying,"in cane",is because I also shoot privet shoot shafts,and,even with lighter weights(under 600 grs.),have gotten complete pass-throughs, something which I've never done with cane. The cane will kill them just as dead,it just does'nt penetrate as well.This is just what works for me,my humble opinion. God bless