Best Hunting Arrows

The short answer on hunting arrows

There's no single best hunting arrow. There's the right spine for your bow, and then there's how straight the shaft is built. This list handles the second part. It only includes arrows sold for hunting whose maker or Amazon listing states a straightness tolerance of ±.003 inch or tighter.

Straightness is a promise in thousandths of an inch. A ±.001 arrow is allowed to be off true by one thousandth, a ±.003 by three. Smaller is straighter. Easton's tuning guide recommends straightness within 0.004 inch for best grouping, so every arrow on this page sits inside that line by its stated grade.

The table above sorts them straightest first. Inside a tie, the order isn't a ranking. Right now all ten state ±.001, so the whole list is one tie.

What sets each hunting arrow apart

These labels describe what each pack is, by its specs. They don't say one is better.

Barnett Bloodsport Justice: a fletched 350 spine at .204 inch

The Barnett Bloodsport Justice is one of four arrows here whose listing gives a diameter: .204 inch. It's a carbon hunting arrow at 350 spine and ±.001 inch straightness, sold 6 to a pack. The title says it comes fletched and 31 inches long, for compound bows. That diameter tells you which nocks fit before you order them. On Feradyne's Nockturnal size chart, for example, the X size is listed for a .204 inside diameter, so check your shaft's inside size against the nock maker's chart. The trade-off is the pack size: 6 arrows, not 12.

Carbon Express Maxima RED Drab 350: a 350 spine with the maker's own figures

This Maxima RED Drab is the 350-spine version. It and the Barnett are the two stated 350s, and it's the one whose values come from the maker: carbon, vanes, hunting use and ±.001 inch straightness. A stiffer spine suits heavier draw weights, longer arrows or heavier points, depending on the chart. The listing shows 6 arrows to a pack. If your chart says 350 and you want fletched carbon, this and the Barnett are the two entries with that spine stated.

Carbon Express Maxima RED Drab 400: a 400 spine with the maker's own figures

The other Maxima RED Drab is the 400-spine version on this list. As with the 350, the maker states carbon, vanes, hunting use and ±.001 inch. It and the Gold Tip bare shafts are the two 400s here, and the Drab is the one that comes fletched. The listing shows 6 per pack.

Gold Tip Hunter Pro shafts: a dozen bare 400-spine shafts

The Gold Tip Hunter Pro in this listing is a dozen bare shafts at 400 spine and a listed ±.001 inch. Bare means no fletching. Bowhunter's arrow-building guide lists what a bare shaft still needs: vanes glued in a fletching jig, cutting to length with an arrow saw, squaring the ends and gluing in inserts. If you already own the tools, bare shafts let you choose your own vanes and colors.

Gold Tip Hunter PRO with Raptor vanes: the weakest spine on this list

The fletched Gold Tip Hunter PRO is a 500 spine, the weakest on the page, sold 12 to a pack at a listed ±.001 inch. The title says it comes with 2-inch Raptor vanes. A weaker spine suits lighter draw weights, shorter arrows or lighter points, chart depending. It and the Linkboy are the two fletched dozens on the list.

Linkboy 30-inch carbon: the only feather-fletched arrow here

The Linkboy is a 30-inch carbon hunting arrow, per its title, with a listed ±.001 inch straightness and 12 to a pack. It's the only arrow on this list fletched with feathers, and its .244-inch diameter is the largest stated here. The trade-off is a blank in the data: the listing doesn't state a spine. You'll need that number from the maker before it means anything for your bow.

sanlida Dragon 10: the 48-arrow packs

Two sanlida Dragon 10 packs are here, named for 300 and 310 spine and for 350 and 360 spine. Both listings state carbon shafts, ±.001 inch and 48 arrows to a pack, the largest packs on this list by a wide margin. The listings don't fill in a fletching type. Quick math: 48 arrows is four dozen, which is a lot of arrows to own in the wrong spine. Confirm the spine on a chart first.

Victory VAP TKO and RIP XV: the 300 spines, the stiffest here

Both Victory entries list a 300 spine, the stiffest on the page, carbon and ±.001 inch. The VAP TKO comes fletched, 6 to a pack, and its .166-inch diameter is the smallest stated here. The RIP XV is a dozen bare shafts at .204 inch, so it needs the full build: vanes, cutting and inserts.

How to choose the best arrows for deer hunting

Here's what actually changes from one pack to the next. The rule's field comes first, then the ones that decide whether an arrow flies from your bow at all.

Straightness: tighter is fine, past .004 it's a small gap

Straightness is the field this list is built on, so let's be honest about it. Victory Archery sells one shaft line in three grades: ±.001, ±.003 and ±.006 inch. That's how most makers use the number, as a grade within a model.

Easton's .004 recommendation is the useful line. Every arrow here clears it. Between .001 and .003, the difference is real on paper. In practice, a crooked nock or a wrong spine moves an arrow more than two thousandths ever will. (Walt claims he can see a thousandth of an inch. He also claims his truck still gets 20 miles to the gallon.)

You can check your own set. Archery 360's inspection guide says to balance the point in your upturned palm, nock up, and spin the arrow. A slow wobble suggests a bent shaft; a fast one suggests a bent point. Easton's guide also suggests rolling the shaft on a clean, flat table to spot a crooked nock or insert.

Spine first: a straight arrow in the wrong spine still flies wrong

Spine is how much an arrow flexes. Archery 360's arrow guide says it's printed as a number such as 350, 400 or 500, and a higher number means more flex. A heavier draw weight needs a stiffer arrow. Arrow length and point weight move it too.

This list runs from 300 to 500. That's the widest gap on the page, and the most important. Find your spine on the shaft maker's chart using your peak draw weight, your arrow length and your point weight. Then look at this list. If your number isn't here, the right arrow for you isn't either.

Easton's bare shaft planing test is one way to confirm the chart's answer. Shoot a few fletched arrows, then two identically aimed unfletched shafts at 15 to 20 yards. If the bare shafts don't group with or near the fletched ones after adjustment, Easton says to pick a weaker or stiffer shaft based on where they hit. Do that test with field points only.

Arrow length comes from your draw, and it changes spine

Arrow length isn't draw length. Easton's guide measures it from the bottom of the nock groove to the end of the shaft, without the point. To find it, draw an extra-long arrow and have a friend mark it at the place Easton's guide describes for your bow and rest.

Archery 360 says to set draw length before buying arrows, since it decides arrow length and can change the spine you need. Cutting a shaft shorter makes it act stiffer. So pick spine for the length you'll shoot, not the length in the box.

Carbon or aluminum, and what happens when they hit something hard

Eight of these packs state carbon, none is aluminum, and the two Gold Tip listings don't state a material. Archery 360 says carbon returns to its shape when bent but can crack from hard impacts. Aluminum is as straight and consistent as carbon, often cheaper, and less durable; it can bend from a hard hit or rough handling.

Both fail in ways you can check. Archery 360's inspection guide says to discard bent arrows, cracked shafts and carbon arrows that creak when flexed. On aluminum, a noticeably thinner front end or discolored finish is a sign of wear. Walt's take: "Aluminum tells you when it's hurt. Carbon keeps it to itself." That's the most diplomatic thing he's said about carbon since 1987.

Bare shafts or fletched: count your tools

Two packs on this list are bare shafts, the Gold Tip Hunter Pro and the Victory RIP XV. Four come with vanes or feathers per the maker or listing, two more are fletched per the title, and the sanlida listings don't say. Fletched arrows still need cutting to length if they're full length, and they still need tuning. Bare shafts need everything in Bowhunter's 10-step list, from cleaning the shaft with alcohol to squaring the inserts.

Quick math on time: one dozen shafts, three vanes each, is 36 vanes glued one at a time on a single-vane jig. That's an evening and a pot of coffee, not a lunch break.

Diameter and inside size decide which parts fit

Four listings state a diameter here: .166 inch for the Victory VAP TKO, .204 for the Barnett and Victory RIP XV, and .244 for the Linkboy. Whatever the outside, the inside diameter matters more than you'd think, because it sets which inserts, nocks and lighted nocks fit. Feradyne's Nockturnal chart lists sizes by inside diameter, from .165 for G to .246 for GT. Look up your shaft on the nock maker's chart before you order. Lighted nocks are on the lighted nocks page.

Pack count: buy the same model in one go

Packs here come in 6, 12 or 48. Archery 360's budget guide suggests starting with a half dozen to a dozen arrows for consistency and safety. Buying them in one order from one model keeps spine and straightness matched across your set.

Finished arrow weight has a floor

Arrow weight isn't on this table because it depends on your cut length, insert and point. It still matters. Bear's owner's manual says the IBO allows a minimum of 5 grains of arrow weight per pound of peak draw weight (437.5 grains make an ounce). Quick math: a 60-lb bow needs at least 300 grains. Underweight arrows, the manual says, have the same effect as dry-firing a bow.

Safety with hunting arrows

Never shoot a broadhead on an unfletched shaft; Easton's guide calls that flight extremely erratic and dangerous. Flex-check carbon arrows for cracks after each shot, as Easton advises, and discard any that creak or crack. Keep broadheads covered when you're not shooting.

Who should skip this list

If you shoot a crossbow, skip it. Crossbows use bolts, and those are on the crossbow bolts page. If you shoot a traditional recurve off the shelf with feathers or wood, the recurve arrows page fits your setup better.

And if you haven't settled your draw length and draw weight yet, wait. Buying a dozen straight arrows in the wrong spine is the most expensive way to learn what spine is. The hunting arrows page walks through spine, weight and FOC in more detail.

How this list is built

The rule is in the box above: hunting arrows with a stated straightness of ±.003 inch or tighter, straightest first. An arrow has to be sold for hunting by its maker or listing, and its straightness has to be written down. Arrows that don't state a straightness aren't left off because they're crooked. They're left off because nobody said.

Values come from the maker's page where one exists; the Carbon Express entries do. Where the maker is silent, the value comes from the Amazon listing, and the table marks it. A missing value is a dash, not a guess. Nobody at Hemlock Run shot these arrows for this page.

The list is re-checked every week. New packs that meet the rule can appear and others can drop off, so the picks can change.

Spine first, straightness second, and write the spine on the box in marker. Future you will thank present you in October.