A metal detector is likely needed. It's not unusual for th arrow to be completely under the surface of the ground. I have found then in soft ground as far as 6 inches under the surface. !-3 inches is pretty common.

 

I lost one this year too. I looked and looked couldnt find it. Funny thing is and ive done this. One day it will be how did i miss seeing that.

 

3 deer so far and 2 lost arrows. I'm in the process of building and arrow that I hope will not over penetrate. I'll even take it if it does not completely pass thru, as long as it sticks out the other side. At least that way I have a 50/50 chance of getting my arrow back and still get the deer.

 

You use lighted nocks ? My pass though this season was from a tree with a lighted nock

 

I don't lose near as many arrows when shooting down out of a tree stand.

Out of a ground blind I think its par for the course to lose arrows.

 

As stated, this was my first time using a ground blind. My experience has always been from a tree stand and I've recovered my arrow or bolt most of the time. However, after shooting from the ground blind I began the search for the bolt and I quickly realized recovering the bolt was going to be a challenge. Estimating how far the bolt travels after the pass thru is difficult to judge.

Skeeter, I believe you are correct, lost bolts from a ground blind IS par for the course.

 

Here is a suggestion that may help when looking for lost arrows: put an arrow vertical
in the ground where you were shooting. Go to where your target was and put a second
arrow. Now when you go beyond the second arrow you can line both of these up as a
reference point. Providing the shot arrow did not hit something to ricochet in another
direction, the arrow should be pretty close to being in line with the two you set up.
All the best.

 

This is good advice. Also think about the height of the vitals and if you line up those two arrows with the height of the vitals..... boom. you should have it.

Also you need to mentally section off the grass or ground you are searching. If you don't cut it up into manageable pieces your brain has trouble focusing....

 

I have had 2 pass throughs this year one i saw the arrow in the ground immediately and the 2nd i found a week later

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I have only lost one arrow since I have been hunting with a crossbow and it was from a ground blind and into a grass field. I was even using a lighted nock and I could not find it. They bury right under that grass and they are tough to find. Good luck.

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Did you look for it after dark?

 

I tried lining up from where I shot to directly on the other side. Never found either arrows. Once they go zipping thru the woods Its to my belief that unless they hit a log or tree, they go under the leaves never to be seen again.

 

I lost an arrow taking my turkey. I tried lining up the shot and searching behind it, but was a lost cause. I'm very certain that it is buried in the ground somewhere.

 

Thank you for your comments and suggestions. I talked to the owner and he will be cutting the field in the next week or so and I will give the search another try. I'll report back. Thanks again.

 

If possible get lighted nocks if your hunting from a ground blind or off the ground period

They are the only thing that kept me from loosing my arrows (knock on wood)

One was buried under leaves up to the end of the nock after a pass through at 20 and took waiting for low light to see/find it.


The other was buried in grass/dirt after a miss on a turkey at 40 during the day but between watching the flight path and green light, i was able to find the arrow.

They may add a little weight and more money to your arrow but from personal experience. Both are worth it in long run, Esp shooting horizontal

 

Best thing is to get a lighted knock. That arrow can go quite a ways. I missed my block target at 60 yrds and hit my backstop which is just an old bag target. There arrow went thru the bag target and thru and 15 ft bush and another 20 yrds.


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Then when you lose an arrow it's even more costlier. That $28.00 to $30.00 arrow just turned into a $40.00 lost arrow.

Just one of the reasons why I do not use lighted nocks. Its going to happen sooner or later either way. And when an arrow slides under the leaves in the woods that lighted nock can be just as much history as the rest of the arrow.

Now to be fair I can see where a lighted nock can be beneficial in certain situations.

 

Since I have a couple of metal detectors, and I have found hundreds of arrows with them I might have a warped idea of lighted nocks.

The detectors have taught me that you cannot bank on anything being visible on the arrow. My experience is that most of my own arrows shot from the ground and at Block targets on closely mowed ground will bury completely under the ground with field points., and this has been on dense packed sand. I do not remember an arrow in softer soil not being completely under the surface. I do find a few arrows not buried completely, but I couldn't begin to say what percentage of those were lost because the shooter didn't put eyes on them.

Because I use a scope on my crossbow I can always see if Bambi moves when I shoot. I have seen every single arrow go into Bambi, since I have yet to use one without a lighted nock in my crossbow. That information is very important to me. After the shot I follow through and if that light is centered in the scope know my arrow went where I wanted it to go. Shooting from well above ground means my arrows do not usually go completely under, but I have seen that happen on at least three occasions. On the single deer which the arrow did not penetrate all the way through the lit nock was spotted first in swamp grass when I was recovering the deer. That light is very, very useful to me. I wouldn't be without it. If for nothing else, going directly to the arrow after the shot and looking at the blood on it without wasting time and energy to find the arrow. For 15-20 grains of weight it's a no brainer, the cost is nothing when factored into the total cost of hunting deer.

 

For 15-20 grains of weight it's a no brainer, the cost is nothing when factored into the total cost of hunting deer.

Everyone to their own thing but I can tell you that 15-20 grains added to the aft of my arrows is not acceptable. It throws the F.O.C. way out of line and is more total arrow weight than I want for my setup. If I wanted more arrow weight I'd be putting up front, not on the back of an arrow.

Not the mention the additional cost of the nocks themselves.

I just don't see it why folks "Think" they need lighted nocks? I can and do see my arrows hit the deer. I know where I hit them.

I do understand IF a lighted nock helps you recover an arrow. But that's not usually an issue when hunting from a tree stand anyway. Ground blinds may be a different story.

Honestly I believe folks just like the cool factor of seeing a lighted nock flying thru the air more than anything else.

But that's just me.

Have fun and good luck hunting.

 

I do not become emotionally attached to either my arrows or my golf balls, they sell them by the dozen for a reason....lol

 

I don't get emotionally attached to my arrows either.

But I am attached to my bank account. And losing a $30.00 to $40.00 arrow is more than I like to just throw away.:wink:

 

Am sure Everytime you pass the area you will be looking.

 

My crossbow is rated for 300fps. I shoot a large 3 blade fixed broadhead. 4 out of 5 deer were pass through, with the arrow laying just past where the deer was hit. The fifth the arrow penetrated to the fletch and broke and fell out. So maybe slow and heavy is the way to go ? All my shots were under 20 yards, 4 bloodtrails 50 yards or less, one just over 100 yards.

 

I mostly hunt on the ground and haven't lost any arrows yet on pass throughs. Did lose one from a vertical due to a deflection once, that arrow went skyward and luckily I was in big woods where it could come to earth safely. My trick is from CSI, I use a cheap laser pointer and tape it to a stick where I was sitting and aim it at where the deer was. Then I zigzag through the woods to keep the laser spot on my leg or whatever until I locate the arrow. I don't have any use for the lights on my arrows and rather put the extra weight up front.

 

Me and a friend were hunting deer from a ground blind last week. We shot 2 deer the same afternoon both with complete pass throughs and both arrows went airborne after the shot. I think it was because it is really cold here and the ground it frozen. We found both arrows because on the lighted nocks but man did they go far. When I shot mine I could not believe how high the arrow went. I never really thought about the ground being frozen and the arrow deflecting before, it's something to think about though.


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I usually hunt from ground blinds. Use lighted nocks. It is not unusual for the arrow to get buried in the ground a couple inches after passing through the game.

You can even see the lighted nock when it’s a few inches under the surface. However you may want to wait until it gets darker. Plan B would to have a metal detector. I got a cheap Harbor Freight model and it worked. I’ve found my arrrows and the arrows of friends
.

 

this is how you find lost arrows
my last dog found 4 out of 5 lost arrows for me.

 

this is how you find lost arrows
my last dog found 4 out of 5 lost arrows for me.
View attachment 6460209

Good looking arrow finder. Do you train them or did they just kinda pick it up on their own.

 

the only training I do is give them a deer leg to chew on..after that they know what to do!

 

Couldn't find mine either. Took a rake and red leaves in the areA when that failed I used metal detector. Found the arrow and some shell casings.