I need help buying archery arrows as a gift

Question

I want to buy my BIL arrows as a b-day gift. He got a bow last year and my sis says he needs some new arrows. He is very novice - purely recreational shooting at targets set um in the yard. Neither of us knows anything about arrows. She found one of his old ones and measured it - it is 83cm long and 6mm wide. Does anyone know if I need to get exactly the same thing for them to work with his bow? I know they can be made out of different material wood/aluminum right?

As he is a novice she thought he would probably prefer more cheaper ones than few higher end ones - Anyone got any advice? I want to make sure I give him something he can use.

Thanks!

Answer 1

I would suggest getting aluminum arrows, carbon is usually a bit more expensive than aluminum.  Aluminums can be durable depending on how thick the wall is.  Here's what to look for when buying aluminum.  The arrows have a size on them, something like 1616, 1416, 1812, 1714 etc.  The first two digits is the diameter of the shaft in 64th of an inch, the second two digits are the thickness of the wall in 1000th of an inch.  Generally the bigger the number the stiffer the arrow.  But say you have a choice of 1812 and 1716 for instance, they might be the same spine but the 1716 will last longer due to the thicker wall.  General rule of thumb, if you want durable arrows, never get anything under 14 on the second two digits.

Few things you need to find out, if his old arrow still has the size on it it'll be best.  But if they've rubbed off the shaft, then you need to find one that is suited for the bow and to his style of shooting.  So, to buy the new set, you need to find out his draw length and the draw weight of his bow at that draw length.  As you can see it can get tricky.  Arrows are very personal for archers, I spent 2 years tweaking mine so that they fly just right.  So a new set need to be an exact match to the old one, assuming he's not going to change anything on his bow.

Answer 2

Graphite is a good choice for target shooting. Just make sure that you get field points - not broad heads.

Answer 3

You're best off to get the exact lenght, because they were likely cut to fit him and his bow.  You shouldn't be able to find wooden ones, but if you do, stay away from them.  They are for low powered bows.

No need to get two kinds, really, as they would shoot differently, and he needs consistent performance to get good at this.  Just get some high quality aluminum ones, and don't spend the extra money on the carbon fiber type.