Dead Straight – The Best Hunting Arrows

There’s a lot of buzz around the Carbon Express Maxima Reds. It’s one of their flagship products. Maximas are supposed to help control dynamic spine. This is the flex of the arrow introduced in flight. With a broadhead fitted this is dynamism is exaggerated and the dynamic spine management of these arrows helps to get it back under control.

Carbon Express Maxima Reds come in 250 or 350 sizes, apparently that’s all you need with these arrows, 350 covers everything right up to 29” 92 lbs draw. These are fletched with 3x Blazer vanes, which are reckoned to be one of the best vanes on the market. All these arrows come in a matched set (minimum 6) and these sets are matched with a weight tolerance of +/- 1 grain. You can be sure they are straight because they’re laser checked to within 1/10,000 of an inch. The nocks on these come with proprietary collars called ‘Bulldog’ collars that help to protect the arrow against impacts and feature ‘Launchpad’ nocks that are self centering on the shaft.

The Gold Tip XY Hunter arrow is designed for archers and bowhunters that marvel at precision and ingenuity. These carbon hunting arrows are laser inspected for straightness and then hand-sorted to ensure every arrow shipped from the manufacturer are within a straightness tolerance of +/- .003” and weight tolerance of +/- 2 grains per dozen arrows. 

This type of precision increases accuracy and consistency. This accuracy and precision have been favored by hunters since 1997. Each arrow includes the Accu-lite insert, a GT series nock, and 2” vanes. Find the Gold Tip XT Hunter arrow at Cabela’s sold by the dozen at the 32” shaft length and the weights of 300, 340, and 400 grains. 

If you are the type of hunter who finds themselves in the woods every free moment that they have, then the Gold Tip XT Hunter arrow is your match. These arrows will last the entire deer hunting season, even if you hunt every day while shooting the arrows hundreds and hundreds of times for target practice. Even after all that use, these arrows will still provide the same accuracy as when they came out of the box.

The BlackOut X5 Envy Carbon arrow is designed for bowhunters who are often shooting in heavily wooded areas and that need an arrow that is indestructible. These 100% carbon arrows are constructed to be extremely tough, to weather a beating, and to keep on performing like they did when they were brand new.

You can depend on these BlackOut X5 Envy Carbon arrows to deliver tight groups, to last a long time, and to maintain a straightness factor of +/- .005”. These arrows come in shaft sizes ranging from 26” to 31” and weights of 340, 400, and 500 grain. 

A few other important factors to consider that make the BlackOut X5 Envy Carbon arrow a top choice for hardcore hunters is not only do these arrows last a long time, but they are an affordable arrow. Purchase in quantities of half a dozen or a full dozen for an incredibly reasonable price at Cabela’s and they will install the GT nocks on each arrow for you. Also included are inserts and 2” vanes.

This is one of the most popular arrows Carbon express have made to date. They have designed this arrow with build in ‘weight-forward’ technology. In simple terms that means that the balance point of the arrow is forward of center and the back end of the arrow is light and stiff. This improves recovery out of the bow and increases speed. These are claimed to have the ultimate combination of speed, accuracy and penetration all in one arrow package.

Mayhems come in 250 or 350 size and are fletched with 3x Blazer vanes. Available in a matched set (minimum 6) with a weight tolerance of +/- 1 grain. Laser checked to within 1/10,000 of an inch for straightness. The nocks on these come with proprietary collars called ‘Bulldog’ collars that help to protect the arrow against impacts and feature ‘Launchpad’ nocks that are self centering on the shaft.

Gold Tip are a respected and popular arrow manufacturer and just in case you didn’t know ‘Ted Nugent’ is a bit of a ‘ledge’ (legend to anyone over 40) in the world of rock and roll, everyone’s favorite uncle and a strong supporter of preserving outdoor heritage. Ted asked Gold Tip to create these signature series arrows for him. Love him or hate him, the result is a great arrow, good for both hunting or 3D.

They come in 3 color choices, each with a zebra print design on the shaft. You can get them ‘fletched’ with 2” raptor vanes or shaft only. They need to be cut to size and inserts added. These have GT Nocks, which are Gold Tip push-in nocks and each weighs about 11.5 grains and also come with Accu-Lite inserts at 12.1 grains each.

Easton are a name you’ve probably heard of. Find a group of hunters and I’ll bet at least one of them has shot or is shooting Easton arrows at some point. The Easton 6mm FMJ (Full Metal Jacket) are a carbon core arrow encased in a 7075 alloy metal jacket. Manufacturers love to quote tech stuff at us… 7075 alloy…. It’s a an aluminium alloy with zinc as the primary element. Has a strength comparable to steel and high corrosion resistance. 7075 gets used in aviation and marine applications amongst other things. That full metal jacket adds arrow weight, and weight adds kinetic energy.

You can get FMJ’s in 4mm, 5mm and 6mm diameter. We’ve picked 6mm as it’s the newest of the 3 diameters and provides the heaviest arrow. These come with pre-installed H nocks.

The Easton Game Getter XX75 is a well known arrow. It’s an aluminium arrow. 7075-T9. T9 is a heat treated and cold worked alloy. Cold worked to improve strength. This arrow has been around for some time and is a tried and trusted bow hunting favorite. It’s also relatively well priced.

These arrows come with uni-bushings that allow you to adjust the nock alignment, nocks and inserts but they aren’t cut to size. They have a hard-anodized black finish.​

Great value arrows for target practice, beginners or hunting with a lower draw weight bow. ANTSIR don’t supply manufacturing tolerances or weights for these arrows so you aren’t getting the quality you’d get from the well known manufacturers. However, you can’t argue with the cost. These were on sale as a pack of 12 last time we looked and the cost per arrow is exceptionally good in comparison to the others listed here.

They come supplied with 5/16 screw in, nickel plated fields points. Fixed nocks (which can be rotated if you’re willing to get the pliers out). The vanes are plastic and depending on the packaging they may be bent out of shape. Apparently you can rectify any bent or out of shape vanes by simply using a hairdryer to warm them up.

These are, without doubt good value for money. Probably not for the professional hunter though.

Guide Gear did well when they created the Trophy Hunter arrows. If you are looking for an arrow that is versatile, dependable, and long-lasting, these Trophy Hunter arrows are perfect for both target shooting and hunting. 

The arrow itself is constructed from 100% standard modulus carbon and it comes equipped with 2” Bohning Blazer vanes and a Bohning Double-Lock Blazer nock. Each arrow is spine aligned and comes with a weight choice of 350, 400, or 500 grains. Also, the shaft length is 31”, however, you can always get custom arrow cutting to make the shaft whatever length you want.

Includes an 11-grain insert and are sold in packs of 12 at an incredibly affordable price. 

More target and practice arrows from M.A.K. These come with nickel plated field points and the last we looked they were also being supplied with 3 free broadheads. We wouldn’t however encourage you to hunt larger game with these. They aren’t designed for high poundage bows. Small game, you’ll be fine. These have nocks that are removable and adjustable and a colored or ‘cock’ feather so you know which way is up when nocking your bow.

Good value for money. Again probably not for the experienced or large game hunter, but great otherwise.​

The Gold Tip twister Flu-Flu is a feather fletched arrow that has been specially designed to minimize flight distance and ensure easy arrow recovery. These are best for hunting small game or shooting aerial targets. Times when you aren’t sure where your arrow will end up and bright colorations will help you find it. To quote the manufacturer they are designed to ‘put em down and still be found’. If you’re shooting aerial targets with these, they aren’t designed to fly further than about 100 yards, even when you fire them into the air. Again this means you can get them back.

They’re a durable arrow, well made, however the speciality nature of the feather means the price is higher than some other hunting arrows.