175 lb compound crossbow update#

How Much Kinetic Energy Do You Need To Hunt Specific Game? Knowing the rough speed at which your arrow will fly, you can now use our kinetic energy calculator to quickly figure out your arrow’s initial kinetic energy. If you’re planning on using 450 grain arrows, the information above suggests that your arrow will leave the crossbow at a speed of around 380 FPS (95% of 400). Knowing how your arrow speed changes with the increase in arrow weight, you can now easily figure out the new kinetic energy:įor instance, if you know your crossbow shoots your current 400 grain arrows with a speed of 400 FPS, our chart above tells you to expect 124.8 ft-lb of kinetic energy at 30 yards. If you were to shoot a 600 grain arrow instead, your initial speed would be roughly 82.5% of 350, or around 290 FPS. If you were to shoot a 500 grain arrow from the exact same crossbow, its initial speed would be roughly 90% of 350, or around 315 FPS. Here is an example to demonstrate the use of the values above:Įxample: let’s say you know your 400 grain arrow will fly at 350 FPS. *I nitial speed = our base speed determined using a 400 grain arrow:Ĥ25 grain arrows will fly at ~97.5 of initial speedĤ50 grain arrows will fly at ~95% of initial speedĤ75 grain arrows will fly at ~92.3% of initial speedĥ00 grain arrows will fly at ~90% of initial speedĥ25 grain arrows will fly at ~87.8% of initial speedĥ50 grain arrows will fly at ~85.5% of initial speedĥ75 grain arrows will fly at ~84% of initial speedĦ00 grain arrows will fly at ~82.5% of initial speed Please keep in mind that the values below assume the crossbow configuration is not altered, and that the only change is in arrow weight.

175 lb compound crossbow update#

So the important question right now is: how much does initial arrow speed drop as its weight goes up? We have not done very precise tests to figure this out (we will update this post when we do), however a very close estimate would be to assume the following. The heavier your arrow, the slower its initial speed will be, and the lower its speed will be when it hits the target, resulting in lower kinetic energy. Your arrow’s kinetic energy will depend on its speed. What If I Use Arrows Heavier Than 400 Grain? How Do I Calculate My Kinetic Energy Then? As such we decided to use 400 grain arrows, as this was bound to yield results most closely resembling those that a new crossbow buyer will experience when shooting the arrows in their crossbow package. So when you see a certain crossbow rated at 350 FPS, for example, this was most likely calculated using a 400, maybe 425 grain arrow. Simply put, many of the best crossbows available on the market nowadays (2015) receive their speed ratings based on arrows weighing roughly 400 grain. Why Did We Use 400 Grain Arrows In Our Tests Above?

You are welcome to share it, as long as you mention as the original source of the data / research. The chart below, and the research conducted is copyrighted material and is the property of BestCrossbowSource. This is as close as it gets to what your arrows will deliver in the field, though keep in mind that our tests were conducted at an indoor range to avoid wind and weather fluctuations which can impact arrow behavior, so actual kinetic energy values in the field can and probably will vary slightly from what we arrived at in our tests. Finally, using our arrow ballistics calculator (which requires that both arrow speed and mass are known) we determined the values plotted in the chart below. Using multiple chronographs positioned at varying distances and heights, we calculated the drop in projectile speed at 10, 20, 30, 40 and 50 yards. We shot 400 grain arrows from 9 different crossbows, achieving nine different initial speeds ranging from 200 to 400 FPS in 25 FPS increments. – How far can you shoot a crossbow? Crossbow Arrow Kinetic Energy Chart: Ever wonder exactly how much kinetic energy is released by an arrow, based on its initial speed and distance traveled? Let’s find out.