Arrow Banishing

[LPJR]

Read an interesting article tonight called arrow banishing which describes something we all have done preparing with our bows....Other than taking "bad" arrows out of the quiver (due to normal and obvious damage) we have taken a specific arrow or two that doesn't group well and placed it aside....A suggestion was made to rotate nocks to align the vanes when the arrow is nocked...

 

Watching my son shoot in the yard earlier today, he would get some "flyers" not bad but ones that didn't group with the others. His Infinite Edge setup is squared away and I was dismissing this as him making a poor shot, which may not be the truth after reading this.... I will make a point now to put these arrows aside and to align the nocks instead of banishing them... I will definitely try this this week and next with him to see if it makes a difference. In a couple of weeks I am having him shoot his thunderheads only for practice in preparation for the final countdown..... 

 

Anyone have experience with a similar situation with regard to the compound? 

[JHbowhunter]

Read an interesting article tonight called arrow banishing which describes something we all have done preparing with our bows....Other than taking "bad" arrows out of the quiver (due to normal and obvious damage) we have taken a specific arrow or two that doesn't group well and placed it aside....A suggestion was made to rotate nocks to align the vanes when the arrow is nocked...

 

Watching my son shoot in the yard earlier today, he would get some "flyers" not bad but ones that didn't group with the others. His Infinite Edge setup is squared away and I was dismissing this as him making a poor shot, which may not be the truth after reading this.... I will make a point now to put these arrows aside and to align the nocks instead of banishing them... I will definitely try this this week and next with him to see if it makes a difference. In a couple of weeks I am having him shoot his thunderheads only for practice in preparation for the final countdown..... 

 

Anyone have experience with a similar situation with regard to the compound? 

 

Don't stop with arrow banishment.  Yes - the arrow itself could be structurally flawed, but more likely is the insert isn't square (they make a filing tool to square it off) or a bent ferrule in the field point or BH. Could even be something going on with the fletching.    Best way to prove if it's arrow is to remove tip from a "good arrow" and shoot it on the bad arrow.  This is why I love my VPA BH's - I carry 5 in the quiver, and all get spun, shot, and sharpened (right on the shaft). I make sure they all group identically and have optimal flight. I shoot my lead arrow often during the season with just that "one shot" philosophy in mind, to make sure both me and the bow are still in tune. In less than a minute, I can put a scary razor sharp edge right back on that BH.

 

   Just the slightest bend in a ferrule is enough to be off 4" at 20 yards...  

Edited August 9, 2017 by JHbowhunter

[Haskell_Hunter]

I've thought the same thing at times, but every time it boils down to my shot, not the arrow.

 

I'll practice with whatever arrows I have, and some are pretty beaten on.  They're safe, just well-loved.  So I expected the ones with partial fletching and loose nocks to fly like crap, but they were mostly true.  Deviation on the target was nearly always due to inconsistency in my own shot.  You know the feeling when you're holding a shot and just don't feel that it's going to release and flight right?  It's those no-confidence shots that consistently miss the spot on the target.

 

I don't shoot with the best gear, probably far from it.  But I can get a good shot with a beater arrow.  Deviation and inconsistency in my case is all about the shooter, not the gear.

[3Blade]

That's interesting. I have never banished an arrow if it was a "flyer" I always assume it is me if I do not see any visual damage. I will try this also.

[Pathman]

I do this with crossbow arrows as well. Best thing is to number all your arrows. You will quickly see if a particular arrow patterns differently then the rest. You can then try to tune it, or "banish" it.

[LPJR]

Don't stop with arrow banishment.  Yes - the arrow itself could be structurally flawed, but more likely is the insert isn't square (they make a filing tool to square it off) or a bent ferrule in the field point or BH. Could even be something going on with the fletching.    Best way to prove if it's arrow is to remove tip from a "good arrow" and shoot it on the bad arrow.  This is why I love my VPA BH's - I carry 5 in the quiver, and all get spun, shot, and sharpened (right on the shaft). I make sure they all group identically and have optimal flight. I shoot my lead arrow often during the season with just that "one shot" philosophy in mind, to make sure both me and the bow are still in tune. In less than a minute, I can put a scary razor sharp edge right back on that BH.

 

   Just the slightest bend in a ferrule is enough to be off 4" at 20 yards...  

 

Jack, just throwing this out there.....the kid is shooting darts at times, his setup is flying well with the heavier 125 grain heads you suggested last year....We will be shooting the end of the week as well as next...I will be on vacation and  if you want to stop by to throw some arrows. Maybe give him a pointer or two (separate from what DAD is always telling him to do the right way)....All good tips posted here.

[Cat]

Plant stakes when the plant is young.

[not on the rug]

It most certainly could be the arrow. For a couple bucks you could have them spine tested. You'd be surprised at how often that "flyer" is way outside of ghe manufacturer's tolerance. That can amount to several inches of miss downrange

[outdoorslife]

Glad you read up on that! Sometimes it only takes a slight tweak. I'd start off with making sure the insert is square to the shaft. You can spin it to see if there's any wobble. It could also be the straightness, or lack there of, the shaft. I buy .003 or .006 shafts and spin them. Then I see which end wobbles the worst and cut that end off to get to my length needed. SO MANY times I realized it was both ends, not just one, that needed cutting and some have a lot of wobble straight from factory. I started doing it myself because shops didn't want to and I'm fine with that. Don't think this is the prob but say it is, then nock tuning will get that arrow "back in play" for yas. Finding and cutting off the wobble first just helps eliminate mechanical error. Chances are, if your shooting bh's the insert is "off". Remove, square up the end and respin. If not, you should be able to do as mentioned and spin the nock a little at a time to get it to group. Also you could check for fletching contact if none of this works. Is jr shooting a drop away rest? Jusy curious. Could be slight form breakdown, could be pulling harder or softer into the wall, could be grabbing his bow or etc.

 

As long as he's having fun, that's what it's about. I bet those "fliers" would still hit the the vitals of a big buck!

 

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[thefirstndsecond]

I number my arrows and look to see if the same arrow flys different from the others.

[Pintail]

This is one reason why I went to hot gluing inserts years ago. If you come up with a rouge arrow that doesn't want to play with the others, just warming the point and rotating the insert 180 degrees will sometimes  solve the problem. Nock rotation to try a different cock feather works too. If all else fails, throw a bludgeon point on it and use it for a bear-be good arrow.

[outdoorslife]

This is one reason why I went to hot gluing inserts years ago. If you come up with a rouge arrow that doesn't want to play with the others, just warming the point and rotating the insert 180 degrees will sometimes  solve the problem. Nock rotation to try a different cock feather works too. If all else fails, throw a bludgeon point on it and use it for a bear-be good arrow.

Agree Pintail. I use the Ferr-L_Tite_Coolflex for carbon arrows specifically for this reason. Easy to fix, replace etc

[Livesintrees]

Number all your arrows. When you get flyers confirm the nicks are seated correctly and there's no dings in the rear. I know insert bushing that could have tweaked it. Next step is rotate each came to become your cock fletch and see if they fall into line. If they don't you can try refletchin the specific arrow. Check for contact with lipstick or spray on powder on the vanes: cables etc. After that just throw it away.

[Matty]

Everyone already mentioned the solutions.

 

Only thing I'll add about numbering is....at least for me. Number it discretely.

 

Noticing what number I'm shooting could give me a negative bias against a particular arrow. Until it's been proven a flier over several rounds of shooting, I don't want to know what number it is. Check them in the target and keep track. 

 

I like that you have him shooting his broadheads from here on out. Nothing gives more confidence than shooting the exact way you'll be shooting at game.

[LPJR]

. 

 

I like that you have him shooting his broadheads from here on out. Nothing gives more confidence than shooting the exact way you'll be shooting at game.

 

It's funny......took 4 arrows out of the equation and he is shooting darts at 15 yards now....His 1, 2, 3 arrows are touching with thunderheads attached which is very cool.....