Ashby studies ( and he did a great job doing them ) were from the early 80’s when he was mainly using a longbow to shoot big African game. The archery equivalent of a musket. Because speeds and KE were so low, you had to go super heavy to get penetration.

When your talking animals like that, you need specialized equipment….same reason we have buffalo and elephant rifles today like the .416, .458. 460, etc.

Advancements in technology today mean I can get the same terminal performance out of a 60# bow today that is better than a 70# bow from 10 years ago. You can get a 500 grain arrow to fly over 300 fps in today bows. You don’t have to shoot carbon logs anymore to get penetration, just like you don’t have to shoot a 300 grain bullet anymore in your deer rifle.


Nothing is absolute in hunting, especially archery hunting. A heavy arrow with a single bevel won’t go thru every shoulder blade. A lighter arrow with a mechanical sometimes will punch thru. There are trade offs with every single setup, I look for the ones that offer the least amount of them.

Your components and adhesive are more critical at 300 fps impact velocity. Good components add weight. Aluminum is not my favorite.

We can argue about components, broadheads, arrow weight, fletching designs, etc. until the cows come home. And no one is wrong or right.

we can, however, all agree that Troy Fowler is a Jack-leg goon