Ladies, I need your help... and gents with hunting spouse

[John McCreary]

My young bride Marcia, has expressed interest in going to elk camp this next fall. Not just to follow but to hunt as well. What sort of set up do you use or would recommend for a lady to use on elk. Marcia is not a big woman, 5'4" and 120 pounds, but she is fairly strong and 45- 50 pounds would be with in her realistic range.

Thank you


John

[Shawn Leonard]

John, a high performance recurve or longbow between thos eweights will work fine, get a weight she can shoot well.  iimagine her draw will be around 26"s at 5'4" so ya should get a bow that is at least 52-56#s at 28"s. Tune the bow to perfection and shoot an arrow with high FOC with a very sharo head abd keep the shots 20 and under and she will be fine. Shawn

[tecum-tha]

Well,usually the minimal regulation requirement is 50 pounds of draw weight for elk. That means that she has to shoot a real efficient bow or a bow with some natural let-off. Being of about the same height as your bride, I have a draw of about 25-26 ".
Shawn is right about the arrows,FOC and a razorsharp 2-bade head but it needs a special bow. Please remember that most standard recurves do not really open up at those draw length, not yielding the desired increase in speed.
I have about 16 different high performance longbows and  recurves. I ordered a couple weeks ago a 48" korean Hwarang bow. It takes about 4 weeks to get it delivered to your door step. This little bow is very light weight (about 6 ounces)but shoots my 600 grain arrows 225 yards.
I have the 69#@28" model, but pull it 25" = 60#.
That means a very efficient bow with 10 grains per pound. The good thing is, that this bow feels much lighter to hold than all my other bows with the same poundage. I was playing yesterday with an epic ST, which I equipped with a 200grain fieldpoint and some rope inside the shaft to make it heavier(530 grains now.) I shot 15 yards last night in our attic and the little bow was smoking those arrows. The grip is also small enough for smaller hands to hold it loosely, which is important with short bows.
I didn`t shoot through a chronograph yet, but I think that little bow beats all of my others so far.
If you get her a 59#@28" she will hold about 50 pounds. A 55# may be ok,too. Just my 1,2,3... cents.

[Tom Leemans]

Cool! You can bring more elk meat to Cloverdale!

[Bill Carlsen]

My wife is one of only two women in the world that shoots a DAS bow. The beauty of the bow is that even at her 26" draw and 45# weight she gets performance I typically get at 28" with bows 10# heavier. Other women who try her bow and who shoot the same or similar weight cannot get over the increased performance.

[LV2HUNT]

I am not sure I would break her in on an Elk hunt. It is pretty country, but that is very tough hunting.

[limbow]

Does she have a sister LOL. You are a lucky fellow. There are several great bow set ups out there. Performance wise an A&H ACS CX is tough to beat. You can drop weight and still have the same performance as a heavier bow. Pricey, yes. Worth it though.

[GingivitisKahn]

It may be different in other states but I'm pretty sure you aren't allowed to hunt spouse here.

   

[celticknot]

if i had to recommend a bow i know a bowyer that makes a hybrid longbow that at 45# feels like a 35# it has a tall fist male it was designed for bow fishing but has taken deer and hogs with no problem at all its been tested for 3 years and hasnt had a problem he has just started production for the line of bows plus its short only 54" it would most likely make a great elk bow for your wife.  the bowyer is Shane Hyme at Fairfield Outdoors in Lancaster OH  if you would like to contact him his number is (740) 653-2697 tell him matt george told you   if you would be interested.  good luck to you and your wife

[tamure]

As mentioned, the very first thing is to check what the minimum (if any) draw weight is for the place you will be hunting. That may be the determining factor in deciding the weight range your wife needs to be shooting.

Your post is in worded in the future tense, which makes me wonder: does your wife shoot now? If so, how much draw weight does she shoot, what sort of performance is she getting? What's her draw length?

I'm about the same size as your wife, and my longbows are all 53# - 56# at my 26" draw. It took me a solid year to work up to shooting comfortably at that weight! If your wife isn't already shooting near her target weight range, seems to me she needs to start working up to it, NOW.

[Roadkill]

John, if your wife can shoot as good as tamure (kerry) you'll be packing meat.  Kerry is the best woman longbow shooter in NV.

[TexMex]

John, you Lucky Dawg!

[Bill Carlsen]

I think if she wants to shoot an elk let her go for it. My wife wanted  her first to be a black bear and by golly she put down a nice one the last hour of the last day. Don't be discouraging, be encouraging.

[outbackbowhunter]

Lancasters TT Titan might be worth a look.

An arrow of 10 grains per pound draw and a 3:1 ratio 2 blade broadhead, like a Grizzly.

[John McCreary]

Some good info here. Marcia shoots in the 40 pound range and though this would here first bow hunt she has a lot of boot time in the woods.
I'm interested in specific set ups. Type of bow, poundage? Type of shaft, ie: wood,carbon or aluminum? How heavy a shaft and why? What broadhead, grizzly, magnus, woodsman etc...? I'd like to know what has worked for you. Pics!?
  Tamure, what is your practice regimine? Did you use a wieght program to build up to 56 pounds or just shooting progressivly heavier bows?
  We ,my friends and I, have been hunting elk in Colorado since '97. Having Marcia with me this year is thrill enough but I would rather see her take her first elk than kill a bull myself. I think I may be more pumped than she is...

John

[zirnsak]

My wife has wanted to get into archery for a few years now. She started to shoot at Christmas with a 35# recurve and it was amazing to watch her start to throw darts at 12 yards in the basement. She has a 28" draw and now owns her own Ancient Spirits long bow that is 45# at 28". She can shoot lights out, and is not soar anymore. Last night she shot my 50# recurve with no prob. I its just like exercise, the more you shoot the stronger you will naturally get. I agree, I get charged up to watch my wife throw darts and also enjoy shooting with her. Can't beat it!!!

[tamure]

Sounds like you are in for a good time, John! I'm jealous!  

As far as working up to 56#, I did it exactly the WRONG way. I had shot a compound before, pulling low 60-something. So I bought a 60# @ 28" longbow, figuring I'd be pulling 55# no problem. Boy was I wrong. That's probably why it took me so long to work up to comfortably shooting that weight.

I did finally admit that I was way overbowed, and decided that instead of spending the money on a new bow, I'd work up to it. I tried to shoot everyday. Also, I'd string up the bow and put an arrow marked for draw length on it. Watching myself in a mirror, I'd draw it slightly longer than usual, and hold for 5 seconds. Did that three sets of 15 reps almost every day. My draw length "grew" from 24" to 26". So now I get the benefit of both higher bow weight and longer draw.  

I was shooting a Martin Savanah, 55# @ 26", with 1918s or 1916s and a 125gr point, total arrow weight was ~475gn. I never managed to stick a deer with it, but I'm quite sure it would have been lethal if I put it in the right spot. Elk you'd probably want heavier. Personally, I'm a fan of aluminum arrows. Skinny, slick, straight (and restraightenable), consistent, not as light or expensive as carbon, not as heavy as cedar.

Good luck to you and your wife!

[John McCreary]

ttt