It is not optimal to have to rely on bow and arrow to survive – but in a long-term survival situation, what choice do you have?

Even the best stocked survivalist will eventually run out of ammo, which means you must have at least a rudimentary knowledge of how and what to use if you are reduced to using bow and arrow technology to survive.

1. Wooden Arrows

Wood is the most favored and used arrow material throughout history. Cedar tree wood was the most popular of choices by Fletchers, the craftsmen who make arrows. However, to find wooden arrows pre-made nowadays, you may be limited to craftsmen sites online such as Esty, or local overpriced big box stores selling at $60 an arrow. It is very likely that if the “SHTF,” the Fletcher trade would make a big come back.

Pros

Materials are readily available in the wild, and good branches can be carved or sanded down into dowels easily.

Cons

Wooden arrows are time consuming to create the straight dowels necessary, and the material presents many issues with warping an non-uniformity, preventing consistent down range target groupings. Use on re-curves, both traditional and take down models, and many types of long bows is only suggested to be used with these arrows.

2.  Aluminum Arrows

Aluminum makes an amazing spine material because of the metal alloy characteristics. It does not have the warping downfall associated with wood arrows in humidity.

Pros

These are light weight, and can easily be custom made online by archery retailers to fit unique arrow weight & lengths if desired. They can also be customized with wraps or paints to cover metal light refraction that could give away your position. These can be used on re-curve, long bow, crossbow and compound bows.

Cons

Being a soft alloy metal, the arrow spine can easily be damaged or bent during its use against hard targets, although it still miles stronger than wood. However, if it is bent to much, unlike warped wood arrows,  it is pretty much impossible to fully straighten the arrow back to its full glory.

3. Composite Arrows

Composite arrows are the best. However, their high price tag makes them not so favorable when compared our first two picks. They have been used widely at Olympic games across the world for many years. The spine material has a habit of consistent pin point accuracy at a long distance.

Pros

They are very strong and rarely break or splinter, unlike fiberglass or carbon-only spines.  They have a high quality build, made for long range distance shooting. They can be used safely on any bow, even as cross bow bolts with over 150 lb draws.

Cons

They are extremely hard to source homemade, or even from stores. Many archery ranges require custom orders, while some arrows must be custom made to the bow you plan to use.

If you get to the point where you are reliant on bow and arrow technology to survive, SHTF has truly arrived.

That said, if it does, you have to know what you are doing in terms what to use, when and how. To learn more about arrow shafts and other stuff about bow and arrow technology, please visit Survival Life.