Draw weight recurve vs longbow

[acollins]

I shoot a 45#@ 28" 58" recurve, if I went to a 66" longbow would if feel any lighter or any heavier at the same weight. Does the length effect weight at all. I am considering a longbow and was wondering if I could jump up a few pounds, but I don't want to over bow myself.

[Pat B]

Draw weight is draw weight but some bows draw smoother than others.

[Tradcat]

Agree

[McDave]

You might find that it seems easier to draw a 66" longbow than a 58" recurve of the same weight; at least that's been my experience.  There's less finger pinch, and possibly less stacking with the longer limb length, depending on your draw length.  The difference I've experienced has to be subjective, since 40# at 28" is 40# at 28", regardless of how you get there, but I do feel it nonetheless.  Definitely nor enough to make a 45# 66" bow feel like a 40# 58" bow, but maybe enough that a couple of pounds of extra weight on the longer bow would feel the same as the shorter bow.

[Terry Green]

In my experience it will feel lighter I have a hundred and 10 pound warbow it is easier to draw than a hundred pound recurve the..... logbow is 72 inches the recurve is 60 ......and again the Longbow is much easier to draw but heck what do I know

[David Mitchell]

Longer limbs provide greater leverage. Compare your riser to a fulcrum and the limb to a pry bar.  Which will be easier to lift a given weight--a short pry bar or a long one? My longbows of equal weight as my recurves feel a good bit easier to draw.

[calgarychef]

I think leverage would apply if there was a fulcrum but there isn't on a bow.  If the force only came from a spot next to the riser or fade outs it would indeed be a lever.

[LBR]

Varies with design, but most likely the 66" longbow will feel lighter than the 58" recurve...but in the end, 45# is 45#, whether it be lead or feathers.

[slowbowjoe]

I have less experience than many here, and agree that a longer bow GENERALLY easier/smoother. That said, I'll add a different spin, in that... it also depends a LOT on design.

[BWallace10327]

They should both feel the same at your draw length, but getting there will be different.  The recurve will BE (not just feel) heavier in the earlier stages of the draw.  I don't believe it is entirely the limb length, but the higher preload associated with recurved limbs.

[Friend]

From my limited experience:

Generally takes at least a 2-4" longer LB to be perceived as smooth as a recurve...particular design configurations may have significant impact.  

Since you are contemplating an 8" longer LB over your recurve, I would expect a 3# draw wt increase to generally be imperceptible. I believe I would be challenged to even discern a 2# increase from one identical bow to another.

[riser]

A pound is is pound-no way around that.  A longbow may provide more draw weight increase earlier in the draw back (pre-load) than a recurve.

Limb design (ie. straight-grained amount of reflex vs defle, limb length), riser length, and lengths of the recurve and longbow for comparison (at equal draw weights) are key variables.

Cop out synopsis of answer? "It all depends."

[damascusdave]

Differences in force draw curves can make different bow designs feel different at different points in the draw cycle...in the end though drawing any 45 pound bow requires the same conditioning as any other 45 pound bow...on the other hand going up in weight just is a matter of working at it unless you have some physical issues that limit you...I am 64 and can shoot 55 pounds all day long

DDave

[Terry Green]

Agreed... a pound is not a pound depending on draw force curve...... God knows I've shot enough bows to know the difference.


There's also a thing called Leverage

Anyone believing or thinking any different are welcome to come down here and pull both mine and see for themselves

[Bladepeek]

Terry, if I tried to draw either of yours, I'd be re-habbing my joints for 6 months    

Just my $.02 worth, I think it is difficult to generalize like that. I've had some longbows that are very easy drawing for the first 26" or so and then stiffen up quickly over the last couple of inches. I wouldn't call it stacking, necessarily, but definitely a steepening of the draw force curve toward the end. Others have started out stiffer than my recurves, but the draw force curve was somewhat flatter. I think each bowyer adds a personal characteristic to his bow design and you "just gotta try em" to find one that likes you.

[legends1]

I guess it depends on the type of recurve. Every bow can react differently. If you are looking for  a longbow we make a 66" longbow called the "Mayan" and those specs of yours would react more smoothly to the design of this particular longbow. The limbs give no stack and is forgiving on the shoulders. Check out some samples at our website
 http://legendsbows.com/index.html

[Stumpkiller]

Originally posted by Terry Green:
In my experience it will feel lighter I have a hundred and 10 pound warbow it is easier to draw than a hundred pound recurve the..... logbow is 72 inches the recurve is 60 ......and again the Longbow is much easier to draw but heck what do I know

But the effort will produce better results with a recurve.  The nature of the beast is that a recurve produces more cast for a given draw weight than a longbow.  American flatbows (regularly called longbows anymore) are a little more efficient of design than the "D" profile longbows/warbows.

[Stumpkiller]

[Terry Green]

"But the effort will produce better results with a recurve."

Yes...that can be true, but that was not the question asked.      

At the moment my longbow would have better cast as I can't get the recurve to full draw        

...too busy to stay on top of it.