Got Gold Tips...problems?

OwnerITO · Post by **OwnerITO** » Tue Mar 06, 2007 10:29 pm

I went out and purchased the carbon Excalibur bolts and while I am very happy on the purchase I am not overly impressed by the Excalibur bolts (carbon at least). Every pkg I opened had something wrong with the bolts. (Shafts were not cut straight and the inserts, both of them were all inserted improperly). Meaning they were not flush or some were flush while others sat out a bit from the ends of the bolt. I believe I went through 5 pkg's of 6 packs of the carbon bolts before I found a pack that was to my liking even though the vanes are brown, black and dark green. Oh well. Has anybody had similar problems as this or do these little things mean nothing when it comes to shooting performance. Also, is the purchase of the Flemish Fast Flight string an absolute neccessity? Any and all feedback would be nice. TY in advance, Owner.

GREYWOLF · Post by **GREYWOLF** » Tue Mar 06, 2007 10:46 pm

There has been some problems in the past with GOLD TIP II , but it has been only related to shaft weight and front insert weight. I have been building custom bolts for 4years now and I watch weight very carfuly ! I would sugest you take them back to were you bought them and demand a refund, then get back to someone that builds them custom ! that way your weight is within toll, and your F.O.C. is set for your application. You have several good people up in your area that can help you get what you need GREYWOLF

Pydpiper · Post by **Pydpiper** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 6:41 am

GRAYWOLF is right, they need to be made by hand in order to be made correctly. I had a similar problem to yours, now I just buy blank shafts and make my own.

wabi · Post by **wabi** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 7:41 am

I have been less than inpressed with GoldTip quality since the exported the manufacture to Mexico.
As for the FFF string, I prefer dacron. You loose a few fps velocity, but you get less noise & vibration and probably put less stress on the limbs. Make a good shot at close range and the deer will be just as dead with either string!

Shakky · Post by **Shakky** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 8:02 am

Just bought a six pack. Three of the arrows were within 2gr of each other and coming in around 260gr the other three were off. Ranging from 235gr to 290gr.

sumner4991 · Post by **sumner4991** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 10:02 am

In my compound days, being perfect in the arrow department wasn't a big deal. Being perfect in the yardage to target department was a very big deal. As the years have passed, there seems to be a change in this environment. The faster these bows shoot, the less perfection there needs to be in the estimating yardage to the target and more perfection needs to be directed toward the arrow.

Now, if you are content with making 20 yard shots, then just use whatever comes off the shelf. Otherwise, either find a good custom bolt maker or start making the bolts yourself. Because the higher speeds will quickly expose small flaws in the arrow/bolt. It doesn't take much of a flaw to throw your bolt off 2 inches at 30 yards. If you don't think 2 inches is a big deal, then couple that with human error.

Balance and wind effect are the two biggest issues. A slightly off balanced bolt is even funny to watch coming out of the rail as it fights to fly. Same with the wind catching a worn vane or a off-center point.

The last dozen bolts I bought were off balanced. Excess glue was used on the inserts and it had gathered to one side of the bolt and dried. Ugly flying bolts until I cleaned them up.

OwnerITO · Post by **OwnerITO** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 10:19 pm

Well, I guess the answer to the problem is to take the bolts back and find someone who makes crossbow bolts in my area. Therein lies the problem. I wouldn't know how to start looking for a person in my area that makes custom graphite crossbow bolts or where I can find a place to order graphite crossbow bolts and the accessories and build my own from scratch. Any help here would be highly appreciated. Thank you in advance once again, Owner. OH!!!! I am in the Kingston, Ontario area if anyone can find a dealer around here.

taxman · Post by **taxman** » Thu Mar 08, 2007 9:20 am

i ordered 2 dozen bolts from greywolf and could'nt be happier.

my only gripe w/ his bolts(gold tips) is they are harder to pull out of my mckenzie 3 d deer than 2219 alums.

GNerol · Post by **GNerol** » Thu Mar 08, 2007 9:58 am

I too have a problem with Gold Tip Laser 2 bolts. Just got my new Xbow yesterday. I ordered an extra 6-pack of bolts. One of the bolts in the extra pack is not straight. If you spin the bolt supported just in front and behind the fletching, the tip end of the bolt goes around in a circle about an inch in diameter. The ends are resonably flush, nothing I can't deal with. I have not weighed them yet, I am afraid to. Lots of extra glue on a few of the flights. Also have some glue runs to clean up from the nocks and tip inserts. Not very impressed with bolts at all.

hawg hunter · Post by **hawg hunter** » Thu Mar 08, 2007 4:27 pm

Yeah they went to Mexico just like the american auto makers and the quality went bye -bye. The prices didn' go down either. If it's not made in canada or us Itry not to buy unless ther's nothing else to do .

bj · Post by bj » Thu Mar 08, 2007 7:27 pm

-when we do goltips we start with 22" raw shafts...these are trimmed to the desired length resulting in a nice even cut that can house both inserts...if you prepare them properly, they are one of the finest bolts out there with the versatility to be anywhere from 315 grains to 440 grains in total weight depending on the choice of point, insert style and fletching type...goldtips are now all machined weighed so the tolerance should be within +/- 2 grains (if this didn't happen, i would suggest like greywolf said - send them back)...this is a far cry from some experiences we had with them a year or so ago...oh, and btw, the last ones i bought saw the prices go down a tad from last year...

Wayne......

GREYWOLF · Post by **GREYWOLF** » Thu Mar 08, 2007 11:52 pm

BJ is 100 % right , a clean grinding wheel cut to get a perfect 20'shaft is the way to go , most of our's start out at 22" ,and end up at 20". and the use of GOLD TIP 5 , 10 & 20 grain screw in weights correct most weight problems and make FOC a lot easyer to maintain and keeep total weight within a tolerance that is very accurate . GOLD TIP is one of the largest makers of carbon arrows and bolts in the world, and are a proven company .

Stosh · Post by **Stosh** » Fri Mar 09, 2007 5:19 am

I sent my bad bolts back to goldtip. They were very good about it. Got 6 returned for 4 sent. I got an arizona ez fletcher, went to 3 inch duravanes. Every bolt will shoot great now. Was worth the money as I practice I cut vanes off unless I shoot at different bulls. I also blamed the shafts but my problem was the vanes. Some of the dozen I had did not have the vanes at 120 degree spaceing, so they shot bad. Slick tricks and sonicheads shoot the best in my exocet.

Hope this helps, Stosh

Grizzly Adam · Post by **Grizzly Adam** » Fri Mar 09, 2007 11:52 am

Sorry to be the spoiler in this gripe-session, but the Gold Tip bolts that came in my Right Stuff accessory package were fine, just fine. The shafts are straight, the inserts are straight and flush mounted tight, the vanes are well-set and glued, free from excess and evenly applied. Every arrow balanced beautifully and shot well, with field points and the Wasp broadheads supplied.

I killed deer with them, as supplied, this year, and recovered every bolt. Each was undamaged, and with touch-up on the heads will be used again next year, and I'm sure I'll kill deer with them next year too. I don't doubt but what they'll do me several seasons.

I only fire my bolts into good commercial-range backstops, and I avoid shooting them close together, to preserve them.

I've always been surprised at the amount of arrows some guys go through.

By the way, I can build arrows too, and often have. It's just that there was nothing wrong with the Gold Tips Excal sent me, and I'll use them until I'm down to four. Then, who knows?

sumner4991 · Post by **sumner4991** » Fri Mar 09, 2007 12:35 pm

Grizz . . .after your post, I decided I needed to clarify. The last dozen bolts I purchased were Gold Tip Laser II's and not Excalibur specific bolts. The six I got in the Right Stuff package were put together well and they were straight. I too killed two deer with those bolts. Both pass thru shots. I recovered both bolts and only had minor damage to the vanes. I'm still shooting those bolts. It's the Gold Tip Laser II's that were put together messy. It's was just a matter of buying them from a poor source.

Anyway, I have decided to start making my own bolts because I like playing around with the set-up, making sure the bolts are correct, and trying out new stuff. Plus, repairing the existing bolts will be easy once I have the tools.