# Minimum arrow weight for longbow & horsebow?



## JBX (Jan 17, 2007)

I've been shooting compound bow for about 4 years now, i know minimum arrow weight for compound is 5gr / 1# draw weight.
But what about longbow, horsebow or traditional bow in general? 
Does the 5:1 arrow:draw weight ratio still applies?
I'm currently shooting a 60# traditional (D-shape) longbow, using 360+gr carbon arrows. 
I would like to build an even lighter arrow around 300gr. Will that be too light for the bow & causes partial dry fire?
If so, what is the minimum arrow weight for a 60# longbow?


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## Night Wing (Feb 4, 2009)

Shooting a 5 GPP arrow is a good way to damage a trad bows limbs in my opinion. The best answer for what GPP arrow to shoot for what model of bow is best answered by the bowyer who built the bow.


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## benofthehood (May 18, 2011)

I would think that 300gns out of a 60lb D shape longbow is too light . 
I would say that 8- 9gns pp is a safer bet but of course the bowyers warranty will likely have a better idea as to what is safe for your bow . Personally I shoot 9-10.
I have shot 7gpp out of a d shape longbow whilst flight shooting ... and it let me know about it with a fair old whack of recoil .


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## JBX (Jan 17, 2007)

I'm not sure what is safe for my bow, as i bought the longbow cheap from ebay. 
So, lighter arrows will cause more recoil on the bow?
I do felt the recoil & vibration is quite horrible shooting 360gr arrows, my longbow jumps in my hands after each shot.
I once tried shooting 60+ shots, after which the skin on my bow hand got ripped open.
So its best to shoot 8-10gpp? So 60# should be 480gr-600gr arrow?
Thanks for the tip guys, guess i'm not gonna build a lighter but rather a heavier arrow.


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## Viper1 (Aug 21, 2003)

JBX - 

Classic or "D" style longbows have hand shock - period. You can minimize it with heavier arrow and better tuning. People who favor those types of bows just get used to it, it a literal sense. It take most people a few weeks to adapt to it, provided they shoot with the longbow exclusively.

If you're not sure of the bows manufacture, the 8 gr/lb is bare minimum and 9 or more safer. A 60# D-LB,such as a Hill style bow will take to a 500 grain arrow (+/-) quite nicely and a 2016 + 125 gr head may fit the bill. Since Hill style "D" bows are somewhat inefficient compared to modern recurves, they tend to like softer spined arrows than expected. Only way to know for sure is to tune them.

Unless you KNOW the bow is fast flight capable, stay with Dacron strings even though some folks claim less hand shock with low weight / stretch materials. 

Viper1 out.


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## Hank D Thoreau (Dec 9, 2008)

Viper1,

I shoot light longbows and do not experience hand shock. My 30 lb D shaped Samick SLB shoots very smooth at about 38 lbs at my draw length. It seems most folks like these big heavy longbows. I just got a 35 lb version of the same bow. It feels quite a bit heavier and may have a bit of shock. I have not shot it much so the jury is still out. My arrows are 611 gr so that helps as well...though I just got some lighter arrows that I will weigh shortly (since I got my warranty replacement arrow scale in the mail a couple of days ago). I really like the longbow but I do not think I would like it as much if I shot a heavy bow with a lot of shock. The 35 lb bow gives me a good sight point at 60 yards which is all I was looking for.


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## BowmanJay (Jan 1, 2007)

I prefer heavier longbows, they just feel better in my hand and I think they do reduce the amount of hand shock transmitted to your hand. I agree with Viper that almost all D style longbows have some sort of hand shock. It is also one of the reasons I switched to a TD reflex / deflex longbow. My howard hill big 5 that was all bamboo was so bad that my hand would almost go numb at the end of a day of shooting. A beautiful bow, but almost impossible to shoot all day long.


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## Viper1 (Aug 21, 2003)

Hank -



> I shoot light longbows and do not experience hand shock.


That's probably true, but because you don't experience it, doesn't mean it's not there. (To be honest, I've shot that bow in 30 and 40# weights, and there is hand shock, at least compared to a bow with heavier mass.) When most recurve guys, especially guys shooting heavy Oly / ILF rigs, first pick up a LB, the hand shock is quite noticeable, but after getting used to it, it does seem to resolve. The reasoning is pretty simple. After a while you expect the increased vibration so it's no longer a "shock". It's just a function of the bow design. 

Viper1 out.


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## Hank D Thoreau (Dec 9, 2008)

Viper1

You are certainly right about the affect of the lower weight of the longbow. When I first went to a longbow I could hardly keep arrows on my target. There was little weight to resist all my little form breaks. Barebow guys tend to weigh down their bows...which provides some level of stabilization to help mitigate the impact of these form breaks. I use the longbow to help improve my overall form since I must shoot it cleaner to achieve the desired outcome. I like your twist on the use of the word "shock". I am being somewhat cautious with my 35 pound longbow and lighter wood arrows. I have suffered from years of elbow tendonitis from rock climbing, where tennis elbow is epidemic. I do not need to go down that road again. I am hoping that getting used to the shock is the only obstacle that needs to be overcome. I do not need the "shock" of having to stop shooting due to bow arm ailments.


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