Bowsite.com

Carbon Express PileDriver Pass Thru Extreme - by Patrick Meitin

A slimmer, more power-packed Carbon Express bowhunting option.

The superiority of low-diameter carbon hunting arrows is something more bowhunters each season are beginning to discover.  Die-hard bowhunters have learned low-profile arrows aid penetration on big game substantially, while easily standing up to crushing bone hits or prolonged stump-shooting and small-game-hunting abuse.  These are nail-tough arrows providing confidence that, say, a dreaded shoulder or heavily-quartered hit resulting from an animal “jumping the string” or otherwise spinning to the thump of a bowstring will provide higher odds of a broadhead perforating vitals and resulting in a quick, humane kill.  And better yet, extensive testing has shown the PileDriver Pass Thru Extreme provides accuracy on par with Carbon Express standbys such as the Maxima Hunter.

New Bowhunting Standard

Lighter, standard-diameter carbon shafting such as the Maxima Blue Streak and Maxima Red certainly hold a rock-solid place in our sport for the average archer, but when bowhunters contemplate the most tenacious big-game animals out there, such as 900-pound bull elk or 300-pound corn-fed whitetail bucks -- or when simply looking for the toughest, quietest arrow around -- today they usually look to low-diameter arrow designs.  As a consequence low-diameter arrows have emerged as one of the fastest-growing segments of the hunting-arrow industry.

Smaller outside diameters automatically result in thicker shaft walls to help create desired deflections (PileDriver Pass Thru Extreme shaft walls are twice as thick as standard PileDriver .244-inch inside diameter shafts, for instance).  As a consequence of these thicker walls and concentrated mass, these are hunting arrows that are slightly heavier than average standard-diameter arrows.  Bowhunters have begun to view this design as a huge bowhunting advantage – even those archers still obsessed with speed.  Low-diameter arrows drive deeper because of this increased mass combined with reduced surface area and less resulting friction, but also create quieter shots by more efficiently harnessing more of today’s high-energy bows’ available power.  They also happen to be less susceptible to side-wind drift on longer shots in open, windswept bowhunting settings.

Much of the widespread acceptance of low-diameter shafts stems from those faster, more efficient compound bow designs mentioned above.  In short, we now have speed to burn, so why not use an arrow carrying more downrange energy while maintaining arrow speeds we’ve found perfectly acceptable for the past several years? 

These are advantages that help real bowhunters in real-world bowhunting situations make their shots more deadly. 

Drive-Thru Hunting Arrows

Carbon Express has placed itself at the forefront of the low-diameter hunting-arrow wave with the all-new, aptly-named PileDriver Pass Thru Extreme, a.k.a. PTX.  Expanding on the success of standard .244-diameter, heavyweight PileDriver hunting arrows, this is a .203-inch inside-diameter (“A-Nock”) diameter shaft with thick, bulletproof, all-carbon walls and proven Carbon Express quality construction that makes it the toughest in its class.  To further enhance PileDriver Pass Thru Extreme performance as it directly relates to big game bowhunting, all are equipped with innovative PTX Half-Out Inserts.  PileDriver PTX are offered in 250 (.390-inch static deflection) and 350 (.330-inch deflection) spines weighing 9.36 and 10.32 grains per inch, respectively, to cover the needs of the average bowhunter today. 

Unlike other small-diameter hunting arrows, the ultra-slim profile works in conjunction with the all-new PTX Half-Out Insert to increase accuracy by reducing the impact of crosswind drift, and maximizing downrange energy delivery for deadly big-game performance.  This PTX Half-Out Insert is a key component of the new PileDriver PTX Extreme Small Diameter Hunting Arrow’s overall design.  The 44-grain PTX half-out insert is made of high-grade carbon steel to carry more mass, delivering up to four times more Kinetic energy than conventional aluminum inserts and twice the momentum as even other steel micro-diameter inserts.  No more need to add weights or additional inserts behind the primary insert to boost F.O.C., broadhead stability and penetration potential.  The universal-fit 32 TPI (Threads Per Inch) configuration also allows you to continue using your favorite brand fixed-blade or mechanical broadheads and field tips or those you already own.

Improved F.O.C., or Front Of Center balance, holds many real-world advantages.  On release, energy is transferred from the bow limbs and cams, into the bowstring, and ultimately through the nock and into the arrow.  As the arrow travels forward after string separation, that energy travels up the shaft like an electric current.  By the time the nock clears the riser 100 percent of the arrow’s energy is carried by the point.  Increasing front-end weight translates into a more efficient hunting arrow; one that is more stabile in flight, carries more downrange energy and penetrates much deeper through big game.  High F.O.C. essentially pulls the trailing arrow along, meaning a sloppy release or slight deflection during flight has much less affect on accuracy, making it more forgiving and less prone to wild deflections after clipping a light twig, for instance.  This leverage effect also helps the hunting arrow crack through bone and push through hide, stomach matter (on heavily-quartering shots) and muscle, the heavier forward mass literally dragging the arrow through the animal during penetration.  Added forgiveness and stop-for-nothing penetration all add up to more meat in the freezer and more trophies on the wall.