I'm new to the sport and I'm shooting an arrow that is 32 inch's long right out of the box. I was wondering if this is an ideal size or should I get them cut down. At full draw the arrow sticks out the front of the bow about 5-6 inch's. My groups are ok for now til I get better, but would a shorter arrow help?

You need to cut them to your actual Draw length . It will make you more comfortable not to mention it will be faster. go to your local bow shopw or bow tech and they will measure you out the right way.

Yes you can cut them your self but read up on it I think it is recomended that you leave 3/4" of an inch past the rest but i ma not sure. i am sure someone else will give you more percise numbers but remember if your gonna cut them yourself Measure twice cut ONCE ! you cannot ass length. Hope this helps you. Thanks for the opportunity to help you out. Hope you have a great time In the sport. Its very addictive when things are going right but very very very annoying when its not. Stick with it the good out weighs the bad by far.

Have the arrow cut about 1 inch in front of where the arrow contacts the most forward portion of the arrow rest and you will be in the ballpark.

jmo

First of all, welcome to archery, and to this forum!

The above posts are correct in that you want approx. 3/4" to 1" of arrow past your rest. BUT... keep in mind there is more to arrows than length alone. Arrow shafts should be matched to your bow. Variable that affect this are draw length, draw weight, cam style, fingers/release, arrow spine, arrow length, and point weight. Some folks even figure in F.O.C. (front of center) balance, and fletching, wrap, and nock weights. Sometimes leaving some extra length to make your arrow match your bow is not a bad idea.

If you just whack 5 or 6 inches off from the shafts you are currently shooting they will become much stiffer and could lead to flight problems.

Speed wise, you won't gain much by just shortening your current shafts. Most arrows weigh between 8-10 grains per inch. The general rule of thumb is 1 foot per second for every 5 grains of arrow weight. So even if you cut 6 inches off you are looking at a maximum gain of about 10-12 fps which really doesn't amount to a noticable difference.

If you want to post your bow specs and what arrow you have, I'd be glad to figure out the best length for you to cut it.

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Many target shooters use a longer arrow to keep the arrow spine matched to the poundage of the bow.
You didn't say what venue of archery you are in.
FYI, a longer projectile is inherently more accurate than a shorter one.

FYI, a longer projectile is inherently more accurate than a shorter one.

When it comes to arrows, I don't think this is necessarily true. Yes, the longer the distance from fletching to the point, the more leverage, or control the fletching can apply to correct the flight. But I've found leaving a lot of arrow hanging over the rest can create other problems. It will magnify any torque applied from the bow hand. Hold an arrow in your hand with the point end hanging way out, then torque your wrist back and forth and see where the point goes. Then try the same movement with the point end closer to the pivot point of your wrist. The shorter arrow will be far less affected.

The same was true years ago when everyone was shooting the huge overdraws with super short arrows. It wasn't the actual length that caused inconsistent accuracy, it was that the distance from the wrist pivot point magnified bow hand torque.

I like to set my rest right over my wrist, and set my arrow length just in front of the launcher about 1/2". Then I select the correct spine shaft for that length and point weight I'm using.