Cedar arrows..your opinion

[Fred Arnold]

Cedars are a great arrow shaft but as stated above  they aren't tough enough to withstand rough usage. Years ago I switched to aluminum's, then tried carbons for about a year. After returning to woods I tried sitka spruce, hex shafts, douglas fir, and settled on tapered poplar as the best shaft material for me. I still use the old barrel tapered poplar shafts made by Don Stokes, trade name "Superceders" that he marketed back in the 90's. If I'm not shooting them it's good bamboo or cane which is a tough shaft material for any occasion.

[adb]

What are you guys shooting your cedar shafts at?? I don't find them fragile at all, even for stumping. I rarely break an arrow... much more prone to losing them!

[killir duck]

What are you guys shooting your cedar shafts at?? I don't find them fragile at all, even for stumping. I rarely break an arrow... much more prone to losing them!

elk, deer, jackrabbits, cottontails, stumps, weeds, grass, sticks, pheasants, sharptail, geese, ducks, hay bales, bag targets and 3d targets

[mullet]

What are you guys shooting your cedar shafts at?? I don't find them fragile at all, even for stumping. I rarely break an arrow... much more prone to losing them!

  Adam; we hunt in a jungle down here. Hit a wrist size grape vine, then richocet off the oak next to it and then bounce off of the hickory tree and watch it explode. Hit a hog, watch him reach back and bite it off wile it is sticking in him or, fall over dead and you have another broke one. I can start a 3-D tournament with a dozen and on a bad day have six broke. That's why I shoot carbons and tonkin out of my glass bows and cane, tonkin mostly except for the cedars given to me out of my wood bows.

[tallpine]

It's hard to beat a well made bamboo arrow out of a self bow. There a PITA to build but well worth the time and effort. I rarely ever brake one, they are way more durable than Cedar

[Pappy]

I agree Cain is tougher but I have no real problem with POC as long as you get quality shafts,I have seen some that would break with just a mild hit ,but the good compressed ones hold up good for me, Eddie I do loose one on most deer but that goes for most shafts if they stay with the animal and he falls on it. :)I will trade a shaft for a deer any day.  That being said I do like Poplar and Hickory for the weight ,just more trouble to straighten and keep that way. Siska spruce is really shafting also that I really like.
 Pappy

[BowEd]

Douglas firs work for me along with the tonkin bamboo.The thing I like about surewood shafts is when you order from them directly they've given me hand selected douglas firs.Very little variance in the weight you order in spine and mass.Makes for a more consistent batch of arrows.

[mullet]

I've had real good results with Chudoo shafts. Some of the first,"custom"  shafts I bought from a man in Alabama, last name was Breed, Breeden? Don't remember it was about 15 years ago. Good weight, barrel tapered and I still shoot the last half dozen I have left.

[Tom Leemans]

I will second what JW said.

[PEARL DRUMS]

I got a hold of some old Acme POC shafts, they are definitely tougher and harder than the newer POC shafts.

 I have yet to find a more durable shaft than Hill Cane, stuff is incredible. I have had the same 4 arrows since March. I have bounced them off more targets and tree's than I care to remember, they still look new.

[Slackbunny]

I was turned off to cedar arrows very quickly. They were some of my very first arrows that I made myself, and I had put a lot of time into them. Then of course I broke nearly all of them within 24 hours of finishing them. It might have been poor craftsmanship, but most of the next set that I made from ash shafts is still around over a year later. They do need more straightening, but I enjoy that part so its no hassle for me.

[Robby101]

Hunter, back in the 70's I use to buy 100 POC a year from Acme wood products. What these fellows say is all to true, they break too easy. Usually, in my experience, they break right behind the tip, or field point. outfitting my kids with the shorter shafts was no problem, but after a few years I had boxes of like new arrows that were about an inch too short, so I started putting a hardwood footing on them. It not only gives them an extra life but they are more durable.
http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,9724.195.html
As my primal urges grew, I found that for me, ash was the better arrow, heavier, stronger, more durable, and as the English used to say,"it hits with good stripe"! These I would make right from the tree, insuring that I had straight grain from nock to fore tip with no grain run out. My son is not interested in the shaping of the shafting and buys ash shafting in dowel form, I think from a place called Allegheny mountain hardwoods, or something like that. They seem to be good stuff, but not as good as mine.
Robby

[Badger]

    I buy fine grained clear doug fir and find it stronger than POC. A little smaller average diameter for the spine I use (55#) they usually come in at 11/32. I like to finish mine at 500 grains with a 125 grain tip and don't have any problem hitting that. I also find the self nocks hold up much better than the plastic.

[BillBow]

I think POC shafts are the best, BUT I have started to "foot" them because just hitting a straw 'Target Archery' target can fracture the wood where the pile ends. ( the arrow looks ok but when you grasp it to remove it from the target it breaks off leaving the pile in the target.I have had none break since footing.

[mullet]

It seems like a few people have commented on them breaking behind the point, as mine have done. I'm wondering if it has to do with using hot melt glue sticks and getting the wood too hot?