# parallel shafts vs. barrelled your opinion



## lft_arw (Sep 11, 2002)

X-Cutter, 

This is a complex question and you will get many answers, so before this gets lost to thread hackers and other arrant replies I will offer my experiences from both shooter and coach. 

I have competed with both parallel and barreled shafts indoor and outdoor for many years. I have found competing in the pro-div shooting outdoors the larger percentage of shooters will have barreled shafts I find them more forgiving than parallels at the longer distances and when Mother Nature decides to show up. 

As an example at a 50 meter target and a steady 10 mph cross-wind (90 degrees from your shooting direction) I will hold in the yellow where as with parallels I have to hold off in the red, just my experience and set-up. 

I find tuning a snap with either shaft no different in complexities and one no more complex than the other. I tune my student’s arrows as well ending up with the same impression for both Compound and Recurve. 

Many find shooting a smaller shaft indoors unforgiving and believe it costs them points a larger shaft will give them when in reality it’s not the arrow shaft at all, center is center regardless of size!. I prefer my Recurve students to shoot the same set-up indoor as outdoor and most shoot the same or higher scores.


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## FtCPhill (Jun 24, 2005)

I would have to agree with lft on this one. In my experience, the benefit of the barreled shafts really seems to be at distance (70m+) and in the wind. Im not sure of the physics behind it, but I've seen it time and time again. As far as ease of tuning is concerned, I cant really say that one is easier than the other for tuning purposes. In that regard they seem to be nearly the same. 
This is based on recurve shooting btw.


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## x-cutter (May 20, 2003)

I know that the smaller diameter is better in the wind, but the info that I am looking for is about the physics behind it. I personally think that the parallel shafts theoretically speaking would have less up and down movement with a release and less of both up and down and left and right with a finger shot release with a plunger and a flipper.

Does a barrell shaped shaft correct faster or slower with a finger release?

Dynamically, does one need a softer or weaker spine when shooting a barrelled shaft vs parrallel? Aluminum carbon vs. all-carbon ?


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## rooster61 (Apr 1, 2003)

I've got a couple dozen x-10 450's and a couple dozen Navigator 480's. 

I'm shooting compound release, and there were zero tuning adjustments necessary between the two. 

I just recieved the x10's, and am shooting 330+ at 90m in calm conditions off of the same setup I'd tuned for the nav's.

As far as the wind, it has more impact on the archer than the arrow. 

Last year, I was practicing (Using the Navs)in an unshootable wind - 15+ mph, gusting and swirling. I decided to shoot from inside my garage (no wind on my body), through the wind to the target. The result was a 335 fita at 90m - not a bad score for me. (it was my personal best at that time)

The wind conditions were strong and varied heavily between shots, however, there was no noticible difference in the flight between shots. I was quite surprised. 


At times, it seems like the x10's group just a little better, but my judgement may be skewed because they look so cool. I'll need to shoot them a little more to be sure.

Fyi- I'm shooting between between 250 and 260 fps.


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## Leighton (Aug 24, 2004)

Straight from Easton's website.

"Easton’s exclusive barreled design produces a stiffer shaft with lighter ends that create a higher natural frequency of vibration for better clearance."


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## Christopher Lee (Apr 14, 2005)

The physics behind it would have something to do with tapered shafts offering a shape that is more 'slip-stream' in design.

Just like boat-tailed bullets used in target shooting and the highest levels of competition, a tapered shaft allows air to slip over its surface more easily, with cross-winds affecting the arrow less for reasons just mentioned.

If you would like to actually 'see' how different shapes are affected, look at wind-tunnel tests where you can see the air-flow. Obviously, the smoother the air flows over and off an object, the less the object would be likely to be adversely affected by the wind.

This is, my guess.


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## J-san (Oct 12, 2004)

I don't think the barrelling is meant to make the shaft more slipstream in shape, but alter the vibrational and weight properties of the shaft. I've examined ACEs and X10s and there is hardly any taper - at least from the naked eye.


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## engtee (Oct 2, 2003)

It has to be frequency and bending issues involved, rather than aerodynamics, because I have measured the shafts. I have found only .003" difference between the high and low point of the shaft, and that .003 is distributed over 4-5 inches. 
I have used both Navigators and ACEs and the ACE's clear the plunger better and faster. Other than that, I have found them marginally better at 70 and 90 meters. As for cross winds, I recently shot in one and had to lay-off with the ACE's because I'm only using 70gr points.


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## Christopher Lee (Apr 14, 2005)

You guys are probably correct.

I was only guessing.  

After reading your posts, it would make sense as the typical arrow speeds are so low that areodynamics would have lower priority.

Now, about vibrations, flexing and harmonics ... this is where is gets interesting.

Anyone have any clue about how different harmonic frequencies affect arrow behaviour ... without getting too mathematical or techinical?


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## J-san (Oct 12, 2004)

I've seen slow motion videos of arrows leaving the bow and there is a large amount of sideways motion. I presume the barrelling has something to with minimizing this flex or at least controlling it in a more consistent way to enhance accuracy. 

For wind-beating performance, a very thin, heavy shaft should be ideal. It makes me wonder why we don't shoot a solid shaft that is of similar diameter to a coat hanger wire.


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## bowbender7 (Jun 1, 2002)

One very obvious answer to me is this, if you make a really skinny arrow shaft you are left with the potential difficulty of making it stiff enough to be usable. Adding material to the center of the shaft will inherently make it react stiffer. The barreled design is very clever for several reasons.

X10 shafts for instance are "barreled" but do not have the same outside diameters on the nock and point ends. The point end is slightly larger (heavier) providing a built in foc balance. This could be considered beneficial to both release and finger shooters.

The smaller nock end is purported to allow for less critical reaction for finger shooters.

Some very old Turkish flight arrows were a barreled design and I believe this design was reached back then to accomodate the skinny as possible, but stiff enough to shoot shafts that were necessary to attain very long range.


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## SuperX (May 21, 2002)

J-san said:


> It makes me wonder why we don't shoot a solid shaft that is of similar diameter to a coat hanger wire.


There is probably some way to make a shaft like you suggest, but I think it would be hard to 1) fletch consistently, and 2) find target butts that would stand up to these needles, and 3) Pay for them $$


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## c3hammer (Sep 20, 2002)

Shafts can not practically be made any smaller as the tips become too small in diameter to get 100 - 125 grains, without them becoming susceptible to bending.

Barrelled shafts happen to be the most accurately made shafts you can buy. They, therefore tend to be easier to tune. The barrelling seems to have very little if anything to do with tuning, IMHO.

It appears that the barrelled shafts are superior in the wind. Simply for the reason that they are a tiny bit smaller on the ends than a parrallel shaft for the same spine.

IMHO, spine is the most important factor in arrow accuracy. Barrelling of the shaft comes quite a ways behind in importance.

Cheers,
Pete


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## Welshman (Oct 5, 2002)

I think barreled shafts are a waist of good money if you can't shoot at least a 1250 FITA (which I still can't).
I wince at the thought of how much money I would have blown on arrows trying to acheive that level. I still have another new dozen of McKinney's then I'll have to switch to Navigators or Triples if Rick dosen't get his new arrows out in time. :sad: 
When I get to 1250+, I'll buy some X10's. Well, maybe.


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