Do longer arrows shoot better than shorter arrows?

[silvergts1998]

I am shooting a 26" arrow with a 27" draw. I was thinking of adding an inch to my arrow but wasn't sure if that would have any advantage. What you all think? When I draw back my 26" arrow, I have about an inch past the fall away rest.

[DocHolladay]

You would gain a small amount of KE and lose a small amount of speed. Your arrows are just right the way you have it set up. That extra inch adds whatever weight the company says the arrow weighs per inch(8.1, 8.6, 9.1 etc)

[silvergts1998]

I was thinking with a longer arrow, the arrow might stabilize faster than a smaller one?

[KwackWacker]

It won't. As a matter of fact it will make it worse. Here's what happens when you shoot and arrow. All the force from the bow's cams or pulleys is exerted on the string which is then exerted onto the arrow. The initial reaction is for the arrow to flex the full length of the shaft. Once the arrow has left the bow it will flex back and forth through the flight until it stabilizes and begins to fly true. If your arrow is too long, the initial flexing will have some effect on the contact between your rest and the arrow itself. Even an extra inch will have some negative effect at this moment because the flex points have changed. This is known as the Archer's Paradox, the saying "straight as an arrow" isn't really true as an arrow in flight isn't really straight. In reality, what you want is for the tip of your arrow to be as close to the rest as possible, generally an inch or less. This is why the drop away rests perform so well, because the rest is completely clear of the rest whne the arrow initially begins flexing. Check out a video here. It's really well done and you can see what happens to an arrow during the shot. I know this guy is shooting a recurve but the same principals apply to all bows.

[silvergts1998]

spaghetti! One of the shots the guy got lucky it didn't pierce his hands. I guess I will stick with my 26" arrow with my 27" draw. (I really can't do anything with my 27" draw unless I grow longer arms).

[KwackWacker]

Here's the original video I wanted to post. This is a much better view with one exception, this archer had a little bit of a bad release as the string is coming back to the bow on the inside of the bow's axis causing more side to side flexing than normally seen on an arrow.