Arrows and Bolts: Choosing the Right Fit
Selecting the appropriate arrows or bolts is crucial for both performance and safety. Here's what you need to know:
Importance of Choosing the Right Arrows/Bolts
Using the correct type of arrows or bolts is essential to prevent damage to your equipment and ensure your safety. An incompatible bolt can lead to a dangerous situation known as dryfire, which can damage your crossbow and potentially cause injury. When selecting arrows / bolts, always make sure to verify which type of arrows / bolts are recommended by the manufacturer.
Key Considerations
When selecting arrows or bolts, consider the following:
- Length: Ensure the length is suitable for your crossbow or bow.
- Weight: Choose the right weight to match your equipment's specifications.
- Core Compatibility: Verify that the core matches your crossbow or bow requirements.
- Diameter: Make sure the diameter of the arrow / bolt fits your device.
Matching Arrows/Bolts
If you're looking for arrows/bolts matching a specific model, we recommend looking at the product page of that archery bow/crossbow and scrolling down. Below the product specifications there's a link to a page with the compatible accessories. In most cases, the matching arrows/bolts are shown on this page too.
For more on matching accessories for your product, have a look at: What accessories fit my bow / crossbow?
Maintenance and Replacement
Regular inspection and maintenance of your arrows and bolts are vital. Look out for:
- Signs of Wear: Warped, damaged, or missing vanes; scuffed, split, or bent bodies; broken points.
- Repair or Replace: Points, nocks, inserts, and vanes can be replaced. We sell those parts too. However, if the body is compromised, a complete replacement is necessary.
Examples of damage:
The vanes of these arrows are warped and damaged. The upper one is a warning that the vanes need to be replaced soon, and the lower one shouldn't be used anymore. The vanes need to be replaced with new ones, or the arrows themselves need to be replaced entirely. When deciding on what to do, take in account the overall state of the arrow and check it for any other safety concerns: Is the arrow still straight? Is the point intact? Does the body of the arrow have signs of splitting?
On this broken limb the splitting of the material is clearly visible: see how the deep groove moves along with the broken limb. Sometimes these types of grooves are visible before your bolt/arrow breaks. If your bolt / arrow has any visible lines in it like the broken limb shown, or if you can clearly feel a deep groove running along it, stop using it and replace it.
The body of this bolt is clearly bent. With a shape like this, the whole bolt needs to be replaced. Sometimes the point and vanes of an arrow / bolt can be saved even if the body is broken, but we recommend inspecting them closely before applying them to another arrow/bolt.
Retrieving Arrows & Bolts from Targets
We recommend using an arrow puller such as the FlexPull 2.0 Arrow Puller to retrieve your bolts and arrows from targets, as this makes it easier to remove them without bending or breaking.
Safety Note
Not all damage necessitates a full replacement, but when in doubt, prioritize safety. Damaged arrows or bolts can lead to dryfire, and in severe cases, may cause the arrow or bolt to break or split mid-action, posing a significant risk. Dryfire itself can cause a lot of damage to your (cross)bow, but more importantly, you or those around you can get harmed as well. Err on the side of caution. If you feel any doubts about the state of your equipment, replace it or contact us for advice.