Arrows are designed for specific uses. Competition shooters require different characteristics from their arrows than hunters, and traditionalists value the primitive look and feel of wood over modern materials. Wherever your sport, shooting style and aesthetic tastes lie, you'll find a specific arrow type to fit your needs.
Target
The cheapest and most plentiful arrows are used for range practice. They can be made of wood, fiberglass, aluminum or even carbon fiber, but these types of arrows are not designed for high velocity or impact force. Instead, target arrows are used to hone form and shooting skills without the worry of losing or damaging your expensive set of arrows.
Competition
Arrows designed for target competition are designed first for accuracy. They are made of such modern materials as aluminum or carbon fiber, allowing them to be spined for a quick snap to straight flight. Because of this, they are used almost exclusively for center-shot bow risers, such as modern compounds and recurves. A delicate fletching design rounds out this type of arrow, which is generally tipped with a field point or other target point.
Hunting
Hunting arrows are typically chosen either for velocity or for force of impact. Lightweight, stiff arrows are generally chosen for speed, which in turn yields penetration and killing ability. Heavy arrows allow for heavy impacts, which sacrifices speed for the ability to push through tough hide and bone. Wood arrows are often chosen by recurve and longbow hunters, whose bows are more effective at throwing heavy arrows with more inertia. Lightweight aluminum and carbon arrows, on the other hand, benefit modern hunters shooting compound bows, which shoot at very high velocities and can be used effectively at long ranges.
Traditional
The traditional arrow material is wood, chosen both for its commonness as well as for its romantic appeal. Cedar is typically used for traditional hunting arrows, although birch, oak and even osage orange arrows can be found. Fletching for these arrows is almost exclusively feathers, which compress easily and can pass over a longbow or traditional recurve riser without throwing the arrow off course. Many archers also choose to make their own arrows, allowing for custom spine, length, weight, fletch design and color combinations. Some shooters appease their romantic sides and make arrows with only hand tools and whole materials, yielding the rustic arrow designs commonly associated with Native American archery.
Flu-flu
Some arrows have special fletching designed to produce drag and limit the distance of the shot. These arrows, sometimes called flu-flus, are used for aerial target practice and fowl hunting. The look of flu-flu fletching can vary from five or six traditional feathers to odd-looking spiral designs. Points for these arrows are strange, as well, often incorporating large pieces of wire meant to snare birds’ wings in flight.
References
- Bowhunting Magazine: 2009 Arrow Guide
- "Bows and Arrows of the Native Americans": Jimm Hamm, 1992
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