Bullet or field point

[DavidH]

Amazing what a simple question produces

There's three of us who currently shoot longbow indoors. We all have very different poundages so it would be impossible to make any comparison. None of us are currently grouping so close that we will be creating a polo mint. The guy who shoots most consistently has the lightest poundage so even though he has field points (I think) he wont be penetrating so hard.

At our indoor distance it would be the recurve and the odd ( I dont mean it that way) compound guys who are causing the most straw because they group so close.

Overall, I suspect that longbows cause less damage because of inconsistent grouping. Before someone says I'm having a pop at close grouping archers there would be little point in anyone not trying to hit the middle especially if its competition night. There's always going to be damage to a boss whatever you shoot but bosses are a consumable item. Indoor targets tend to be moved around a lot so the damage is evenly distributed

I just want to ensure that I shoot arrows from my particular bow that cause the least damage overall

[Schme1440]

This topic has turned into one of those annoying threads where there is no definitive proof of opinions. I guess what we have all said is right to some extent.

[BowSurfer]

[quote=gwynn;96946]

Originally Posted by Schme1440

snip......... the field points seem to damage targets anywhere upto around twice as much as standard target points. QUOTE]

How does this happen? I can't visualise this at all, surely if the diameter of the pile is the same as that of the shaft, you're just going to get a hole the diameter of the shaft? It's the thickness of the shaft (ooh missus!) surely.
Agreed, if you're using broadheads or true bodkins with a shoulder wider than the shaft you'll get a bigger hole but that's for a reason.
On targets I've used target points, 3d piles, modbods and bullet piles and the hole appears to be the same in every case!

I think that the problem lies in the way that the arrow penetrates. A pile that pushes the strands of straw out of the way as it enters will cause less damage than a pile that cuts or breaks the strands.

[Schme1440]

Originally Posted by gwynn

I think that the problem lies in the way that the arrow penetrates. A pile that pushes the strands of straw out of the way as it enters will cause less damage than a pile that cuts or breaks the strands.

Thats my train of thought as well. The strange shape of the fiield points seems to me that they would punch through the straw and not move it out of the way. I may be talking crap but it makes sense to me.

[robtattoo]

Cobblers. Gwynn is 100% right. It doesn't make one iota of difference which pile you use. As long as it's a straight sided, cylindrical point with a matching diameter to the shaft it's glued to, there is no difference at all. You'llonly see excessive damage with any point if the point is of a smaller diameter than the shaft, causing a step in the arrow. This will only ever apply to screw in piles in either ally or carbon arrows.
Field piles will penetrate slightly better than target piles, but certainly won't cause any more 'damage'

[BowSurfer]

I have certainly seen a discussion that stated that blunt nosed bullets will penetrate a boss better than sharp pointed bullets, because the latter are doing extra work in cutting the straws rather than simply displacing them. Whther the shoulders of a field point make this effect better or worse I wouldn't like to say, and it maybe that it is the details of the tip that is more important than the overall shape.
In the wider scheme of things tight groups are probably much more responsible for having to retire a boss than the effect of any particular arrow type.

[Matt Easton]

Bodkins definitely chew up targets..
Still, it is my target, I I'll chew up my own targets if I want to.

Matt