Standard, small or micro diameter arrows for hunting — which option is best for your next hunt?
Shopping for new arrows — whether you are new or experienced — can be a daunting and intimidating task. While looking, you will be bombarded with options ranging from spine and grains per inch to fletching options and arrow materials. Another large area of choice you will be presented with is the diameter of the arrow. This refers to how skinny or fat the shaft is. The point is that it can be hard to find the “one,” but the good news is that with today’s technologies, you really can’t make a bad decision. Still, some research and thought into your selection could take you from an arrow that works to one that actually works with your bow and squeezes all of the efficiency that it can out of your setup.
In general, you will see three primary size groups for arrows although there will sometimes still be variations within these. This will include a standard diameter arrow (6.5mm or .245/.246”), a small diameter (5mm or .204”) and a micro diameter (4mm or .166”). The standard diameter is likely what you will be used to as this is considered the old stand-by.
Really, at the baseline, any of the three primary arrow diameter options fired out of any modern well-tuned bow will be deadly. However, you do get some perks with each. In general, the skinnier the shaft you can shoot, the less effect you will see from crosswinds. Additionally, a smaller diameter shaft tends to penetrate better than a larger shaft due to the reduced surface area. These factors alone tend to lend themselves to a more forgiving and consistent shooting arrow, which is something we are all striving towards in a hunting setup. For the most part, standard diameter arrows will be more readily available, somewhat cheaper and are typically easier to set up. Small and micro-diameter arrows tend to be slightly more expensive and take a little more attention to detail to set up. Having a good and knowledgeable place to build these arrows, such as the GOHUNT arrow shop, can be a big help.
Now, the big question: Which shaft is right for me? Really, any of them would work and the one you select is going to boil down to how in-depth you want to get with your setup. As we said before, a standard diameter shaft shot out of a well-tuned bow is going to be deadly and will work in all hunting conditions. However, focusing on a small or micro-diameter arrow will generally net you better performance out of your bow in terms of efficiency, penetration, and potential wind drift. I spend all year continually dialing my bow and tweaking stuff to make things as forgiving as possible, and my arrows are one area where I can make some huge impacts right from the start. For me, the performance gains from a small shaft outweigh the potential cost differences tenfold.
