Determining effective range

[jonsimoneau]

I don't think most bowhunters are honest with themselves when it comes to effective range. Most of us when shooting at a deer out of a tree stand are going to be pretty deadly at 15 yards but drop off in accuracy quite quickly even just out to 20 yards. I know there are guys who can consistently take deer with a recurve at 25, 30 yards and beyond but I believe they are very far and few between. On my best shooting year, I hunted in Namibia and took some animals at 30 yards but we are talking big animals that don't jump the string. I did however kill a warthog at 33 yards on video but I was cocky and shooting very well! The compound guys crossing over to hunting with a real bow often quickly learn that the challenge is going to be much greater than they thought. Watching deer walk by that they know they could easily kill with a compound but that they haven't a prayer with a real bow can be difficult. In the end, the ultra-short range required of a traditional Bowhunter will make you get very good at hanging stands in the exact right tree. For me since I am pretty much an average shot, I must focus on my strengths and that is my hunting ability....or at least I'd like to think so! My advice to a guy coming from a compound to a recurve or longbow who may be reading this is that you must accept the fact that you will not be as efficient as you were with a compound. Your buddies who shoot compounds will likely kill more deer than you. But when you do it the way it was originally intended when bow seasons were originally established, the satisfaction is unparalleled. Best of luck out there guys.

[jonwilson]

Wow! Excellent post jonsimoneau! I am coming from compound archery, and it can be discouraging knowing that 30 yards is a chip shot with the wheelie. I take ethics very seriously and hate to wound an animal. Therefore, I am learning to take it slow and practice often. I know it won't be an overnight thing.

[jonsimoneau]

jonwilson, I love guys like you. You get it. I'm not against compounds as I have used them as well but the satisfaction you will gain by hunting with a real bow is hard to describe. Welcome. Please consider looking into joining The Professional Bowhunter Society which is made up of the finest bowhunters on the planet not based on only successful harvests but mostly by attitude. These guys are as good as it gets in both hunting skill and attitude and there is much to learn from them. Email me at [email protected] if I can help you on your new journey in any way and or look me up on bookface. I'm excited for you.

I could not have said it better than what Jon typed above, so I won't try!!!

I will add that I have helped several guys switching from wheels to Trad that just could not accept the limited range and amount of work it takes to get good enough to hunt with trad bows. They went back to their wheels, and will never experience that higher level of satisfaction that Jon describes in his posts above! It is not cut out for everyone, but for almost everyone who experiences the feeling of seeing an arrow they shot off a trad bow zip thru a critter, there is no turning back!!!!

Bisch

[jonwilson]

Can't wait for that feeling Bisch!

Jon Simoneau, I think I found you on bookface. I'll send over a request. Thanks man! I also posted a form question in the FORM forum if anybody is interested in giving feedback (Hope this is okay. Not trying to highjack this thread.)

 http://tradgang.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=6&t=008225

[Michael Arnette]

Originally posted by Bisch:
I could not have said it better than what Jon typed above, so I won't try!!!

I will add that I have helped several guys switching from wheels to Trad that just could not accept the limited range and amount of work it takes to get good enough to hunt with trad bows. They went back to their wheels, and will never experience that higher level of satisfaction that Jon describes in his posts above! It is not cut out for everyone, but for almost everyone who experiences the feeling of seeing an arrow they shot off a trad bow zip thru a critter, there is no turning back!!!!

Bisch

This!

[Turkhunter]

Since posting this subject originally I have done a lot more studying and practicing. First off I want to clear up the matter a bit. Im not interested in shooting at deer at long range, I am merely finding my effective range for pure confidence purposes. My goal is to get as close as possible for the shot, and knowing when to say no. That being said I got a suggestion from another shooter (maybe from another forum,I cant remember) for a way to test myself and I think it has helped me a lot. I shoot 10 rounds of 4 arrows each at a sheet of notebook paper turned sideways to approximate a deers vitals. Then I score my # of hits on the paper. First time I did it I shot at 5,20,10, and 15 yds in that order. I scored 95% hits out of 40 shots with a couple more that would have cut paper with a broadhead. Based on that I feel really confident out to 20yds. Today I did the same thing only at 10,25,15,and 20yds. I scored 88% hits on papaer again wit 3 more that would have cut paper with broadhead. So I feel pretty confident out to 25yds. Again I will obviously try to keep shots as close as possible but my consistency and confidence has grown. I want to thank everyone on this board for your help and support in making my comeback from injury happen sooner than I expected.

[Turkhunter]

Since posting this subject originally I have done a lot more studying and practicing. First off I want to clear up the matter a bit. Im not interested in shooting at deer at long range, I am merely finding my effective range for pure confidence purposes. My goal is to get as close as possible for the shot, and knowing when to say no. That being said I got a suggestion from another shooter (maybe from another forum,I cant remember) for a way to test myself and I think it has helped me a lot. I shoot 10 rounds of 4 arrows each at a sheet of notebook paper turned sideways to approximate a deers vitals. Then I score my # of hits on the paper. First time I did it I shot at 5,20,10, and 15 yds in that order. I scored 95% hits out of 40 shots with a couple more that would have cut paper with a broadhead. Based on that I feel really confident out to 20yds. Today I did the same thing only at 10,25,15,and 20yds. I scored 88% hits on papaer again wit 3 more that would have cut paper with broadhead. So I feel pretty confident out to 25yds. Again I will obviously try to keep shots as close as possible but my consistency and confidence has grown. I want to thank everyone on this board for your help and support in making my comeback from injury happen sooner than I expected.

[Terry Green]

Originally posted by Graps:
   

Originally posted by Sam McMichael:
A hunter's first shot should not ever be totally cold. I get on the stand and pull 20-25 times depending on temperature. Every hour or so I will pull a few more times, all in an effort to be at least "somewhat" ready. Granted, you northern guys may still be cold, even if you continually pull during the heart of winter. Fortunately, for me, our southern winters aren't usually that bad. Even when well warmed up, 20 yards is my maximum distance. I am working on 25 yards and am pretty consistent. But, I am not quite there yet.

   
So much for sitting still and quite . [/b]

I draw often  throughout a hunt
... guarantee you I don't leap to my feet and just start yanking the bow back... but I do make sure that there's no animals around and I draw the bow as if I'm shooting in a sneaky manner...

 if I can get away with killing animals at 5 to 25 yards by moving to draw a bow I think I can get away with it when they're not around.

I'm more likely to do it when I'm not stalking and in cold weather and to this day it's never cost me an animal that I know of

[kennym]

^

This....