The downside to shorter arrows is if you shoot at long distances, because shorter arrows will lose their velocity faster. Shorter arrows will have better acceleration too as they leave the crossbow faster. The best crossbow bolts are roughly 20-inches long (anywhere from 16″-22″).Ī shorter shaft will also be stiffer and less flexible, and therefore achieve more penetration. Effect on your scopeįinally, it’s also worth remembering that changing significantly your FOC and mass with different inserts or broadheads will ultimately affect how well your scope works, particularly with a ballistic reticle. Aluminium may be lighter, around 30 grains. You glue your insert into the top of the bolt.Ī heavy brass insert of 100-120 grains will add to FOC weight. An insert is the small brass, aluminium or sometimes plastic sleeve where you screw in your field-tip or broadhead. When talking about FOC and bolt mass you have to consider inserts. Remember that for high arrow mass you will need significantly more control from a bigger fletching, and a longer arrow. This is bigger than most crossbows are used to, but it does show that a heavier mass is critical for penetration, and accuracy over distance. Arrow massĪ light arrow has greater acceleration but will quickly lose energy and velocity at distance.Īn extremely interesting study by Dr Ed Ashby concluded that the frequency of heavy bone penetration significantly increases somewhere around a mass of 650 grains. That’s a lot! When you purchase your broadheads, remember to take this into account. According to testing, if it’s wider it can lose up to 30% of penetration. The important thing to remember about shaft diameter is it must be thinner than the broadhead ferrule. Less resistance is found as the FOC reduces the shaft flexibility. Testing has also proven that higher FOC provides greater penetration as it encounters less resistance. A higher FOC gives more control to the fletching at the back in order to override the broadhead. For hunting they also recommend a significant FOC of between 10-15%.Ī broadhead is far bigger than a field-tip and makes the arrow liable to wind-plane. Why is this important? The further forward the FOC, the more of the arrow you allow to be ‘guided’ and stabilized by the fletching at the back.įor long distance competition shooting a higher FOC of between 11-16% is recommended.

Weight forward of center simply refers to the arrows balance point, and how far past the very middle of the shaft it is. To counteract the drag on the fletching, we rely on the concept of ‘FOC’. The bigger the fletching however, the more drag occurs which might alter the course of the bolt. A big fletching is better for guiding the arrow over longer distances to its target. What will make a difference is the size of the fletching. In practice I don’t believe it makes much or even any difference, and that’s after having read related reports and tests. In reality, I wouldn’t base my choice of best bolt on this. The argument is that straight vanes will fly faster with less drag, while offset and helical designs will improve bolt centricity and stability in flight. There are three vane shapes: straight, offset and helical. A single vane might weigh in anywhere from 5-10 grains, so that’d be 15 grains between three vanes. The vanes or fletching are the traditional ‘feathers’ at the back of the bolt. Let’s take a look at what they tweak: Vanes/Fletching For a bolt to be as accurate as possible it needs three things: weight at the front, perfect rotation of the shaft, and drag from the rear.īolt manufacturers are well aware of this, and constantly tweak their arrows to find the best balance and consistency. Best crossbow bolts: understanding your boltĪ good bolt is a consistently accurate bolt. Barnett Outdoors Carbon Crossbow Arrowsīefore skipping to the best crossbow bolts reviews, let’s first dig into what makes a great crossbow bolt.To find the best crossbow bolts, I selected a wide range of bolts based on their sustained popularity and high-quality reviews across the web.Īll interesting questions and feedback has then been aggregated into these reviews to provide a comprehensive list.Īfter filtering the best crossbow bolts, I was left with the following: If you’re interested in reading about the best crossbow broadheads click here.

Crossbow arrows