340 & 350 Spine Arrows: Spec & Grain Comparison (Hunting & Target)

On paper, 10 points of deflection — a 340 shaft bends 0.340″ under the AMO test, a 350 bends 0.350″, roughly one-fifth of a grade. In practice the difference is mostly labeling: 340 is the Easton/Gold Tip standard hunting grade, while 350 is the Victory/Carbon Express grade that fills the same 60–70 lb slot in their lineups, and a measured '350' often deflects 0.340–0.355″. Treat them as the same class for bow fitting: 340 or 350 both serve 60–70 lb compounds at 28–30″ draws with 100–125 gr heads. When mixing brands in one quiver, deflection-match them at a spine tester rather than trusting labels — the labels drift, the physics doesn't.

Almost always yes within the same brand family and setup, with two checks. First, deflection: measure both shafts at 26″ with a 1.94 lb load — if the 350 reads under about 0.355″, it behaves like a 340 on any bow. Second, weight: a 350 that's 15+ grains lighter per arrow changes your point of impact between brand-mixed arrows, so re-sight after swapping. Where swapping fails: at the exact crossover of a draw-weight band (a 63–64 lb bow), a true 0.350″ shaft can be the wrong side of the line where a 0.340″ tunes clean — that's a paper-tune call, not a label call.

The 60–70 lb compound class — the largest hunting demographic there is. Standard fits: 65 lb at 28–30″ draw, 70 lb at 28–29″, 60 lb at 29″ with a 125 gr point or a 30″ draw. Corrections push the boundary in both directions: a 150 gr head or an aggressive cam moves a 70 lb bow to 300; a 27″ draw or a 90 gr point lets a 65 lb bow drop to 400. For recurves and longbows, 340-class shafts fit roughly 55–60 lb off-the-shelf shooters. The 60-second summary: if your compound is the common 60–70 lb deer rig, start at 340/350 and paper-tune to confirm.

The same 60–70 lb class, because 350 is that class's label in Victory and Carbon Express lineups. A Victory VAP 350 or Maxima Red 350 fits where an Easton or Gold Tip 340 fits: 60–70 lb compounds, 28–30″ draws, 100–125 gr heads. The practical difference is which brand you're shopping and the small GPI deltas between specific models — the Maxima Red 350 runs 8.9 GPI while a VAP 350 runs 8.2, which matters more day-to-day than the 10-point deflection gap between the labels.

Shaft-only, 340-grade carbon runs 8.1–9.5 GPI — about 235–275 grains at a 29″ cut. Finished with a 100 gr head and standard components (insert, nock, vanes ≈ 35 gr): micro-diameter light builds like the Easton 5.0 340 land near 370 grains, the benchmark Easton Axis 340 near 395, and the heavy micro Pierce Platinum 340 near 410. That 370–410 finished band is the reason the grade owns deer hunting: it clears the 5 gr/lb IBO floor at every draw weight it serves, while staying fast enough to keep 20-to-60-yard pin gaps manageable.

Three picks cover almost everyone. Easton Axis 5mm 340 — the micro-diameter benchmark: ±0.006″ straightness standard, huge component ecosystem, and wind-bucking small diameter for open-country deer. Gold Tip Hunter 340 — the durability pick with ±0.003″ factory straightness and the best damage warranty in the business for rocky-terrain hunters. Victory VAP 340 — micro accuracy at a mid price, with a V1 option at ±0.002″ for shooters who sort dozens. Budget-conscious buyers get the Easton 6.5 340 or Bloodsport Hunter for the same functional fit at lower cost. All of them paper-tune identically when the bow actually calls for 340 — buy on straightness tolerance and wall thickness, not marketing.

The micro-diameter speed models: Easton 5.0 340 at about 8.1 GPI (≈ 370 grains finished with a 100 gr head) and Victory VAP 340 at 8.5 GPI (≈ 380 grains finished). That's 15–25 grains lighter than the same-brand Axis or 6.5, worth roughly 4–7 fps at the chronograph. The trade-off is wall thickness — the light micros dent and bend more easily on hard impacts, so they reward the spin-test habit after steel-target sessions. If you want lightweight with maximum toughness instead, the Gold Tip Hunter 340 at 8.3 GPI is within 3 grains of the 5.0 while keeping the thicker standard-diameter wall.

No — Easton's hunting ladder jumps 400 → 340 → 300, and 350 is the Victory/Carbon Express naming for the same slot. That's why searches for 'Easton 350 spine arrows' dead-end: the shaft those buyers want is Easton's 340. The deflection math backs the equivalence — Victory's 350s typically measure 0.340–0.350″, and Carbon Express's own size chart cross-references its 350 to Easton's 340 in shared draw-weight bands. Shop the class, not the label: a '350' from Victory, a '350' from Carbon Express, and a '340' from Easton all fill the 60–70 lb hunting slot, with GPI and straightness as the real differentiators.

The Maxima Red 350 is Carbon Express's flagship 60–70 lb deer shaft: 8.9 GPI nominal, standard 0.246″ diameter, ±0.0039″ straightness, and the line's signature technology — a bonded 'Red Zone' rear section that's deliberately stiffer than the front of the shaft. The engineering idea: most spine-related flight problems come from the tail over-flexing at launch, so stiffening the rear third lets the shaft run a slightly weaker overall rating while launching straighter — Carbon Express claims broader tune tolerance and less sensitivity to point weight changes. Each shaft ships with a BullDog nock collar that reinforces the nock taper. The '350' label measures like an Easton 340 in practice, so fit it to a 60–70 lb bow exactly as you would a 340.

The Trophy Ridge Wrath is a ready-to-hunt compound package typically set in the 60–70 lb class with a 26–30″ draw range — squarely 340/350 territory. The factory arrows that ship with such packages are serviceable but usually standard-grade straightness; most shooters upgrade to an Axis 340, Gold Tip Hunter 340, or Maxima Red 350 and immediately gain grouping consistency. Two fitting notes specific to package bows: confirm the actual peak weight with a bow scale (package bows ship with limb bolts backed off, often 5 lb below the sticker), and paper-tune after your first 20 shots as the cables seat — the arrow the package 'includes' and the arrow it 'needs' are frequently one grade apart.

At 29″, yes — 340/350 is the textbook grade for 63–70 lb. At 30″ the line sharpens: 63–65 lb shooters are now right on the 340/400 boundary (some need 340, some drop to 400 depending on point weight), and 70 lb at 30″ has crossed into 300 territory unless the point stays at 100 gr on a smooth cam. Long-draw shooters also should watch finished arrow length: cutting shafts to 29″+ of exposed length means the GPI you buy is the GPI you shoot — no trim savings. The practical sequence for a 30″ draw: buy one test shaft at 340, paper-tune with your hunting head, and only then decide whether the dozen is 340 or a step to 300/400.