Over-drawing a bow?

[brackshooter]

I will give you an example.  I bought a bow from a friend that is labeled 55#@26".  I have a 31" draw and have been shooting it for 3 weeks or so.  I havent noticed any problems with it.  Is this a problem?  At my draw its about 70#, which is fine.  Can you overdraw a bow that has been set up for someone else?

Brackshooter

[Jerry Jeffer]

My bow is 50#@28. I have a 31" draw. I have been shooting this bow for about 11 years with out trouble.  I know this is not an exact answer to your question, just my experience.

[Orion]

Yes, you can overdraw a bow that is too short for your draw length.  In addition to the finger pinch that is usually associated with it, overdrawing the bow puts an inordinant amount of stress on the limbs and riser, though most glass laminated bows are pretty tough and usually don't break, at least not immediately.  Overdrawing a self-bow to the extent you may be overdrawing it would likely break it in fairly short order.  My recommendation for a 31-inch draw is about a 64-inch glass laminated recurve or about a 66-68-inch longbow, or even longer in both cases.  Of course, there are a lot of folks who have 31-inch draw lengths that are shooting bows shorter than this.  Short is the trend nowadays, and some short bow designs (forward handle and a lot of deflex/reflex)will handle a fairly long draw, but a very short bow with a long draw length usually leads to trouble.

[vermonster13]

You can have the bowyer label the weight at any draw length you wish. If you aren't getting a ton of stack, odds are you aren't overdrawing it if it's a laminated bow.

[Brian Krebs]

28 inches was the 'norm' for the industry- pretty much all bows were marked for their weight at 28 inches.
  When the average guy or gal would buy a bow it was done based on the draw weight at 28 inches- even if it was to be drawn and shot at less or more than that..
 Factory bows virtually all done that way. The older bows would have 50XXX at 28 inches; which was one pound per X - so it was a 53 pound bow; and xxx50 was a 47 pound bow.
 Everything was relative to  28 inches.
Bowyers now would not put 50xxx@28 they would write 53 @28.
 If you special order a bow; they will match it to your needs; by using all their magic.
  I buy 60 pound @ 28 inches and draw back to 31; and shoot the same weight as my bow that I had made that says 74#@31.
  I have never had a problem shooting past the marked weight with any bow.
  Then again I am a new comer; only been doing this for 50 years or so....  

[mcgroundstalker]

Are You Over Drawing This Bow?...Good Question...Maybe not if it is a 60" bow...Better 62" or longer for your draw length of 31".

Gonna stick my neck out and say:

Hope you are NOT shooting an arrow too light for the bow to handle...Play is safe and use about 10 grains per pound of draw weight...

... mike ...

[brackshooter]

Good responses guys, should have given more info on the bow.  Its a habu Death Adder longbow, 64" long.  No finger pinch, shoots great.  MC, arrow weight is around 640 grains, shoots straight and flat with plenty of punch.  Thanks again, guess I wont worry about it.

brack

[vermonster13]

I'm surprised you aren't getting stack with it. Habus are usually built with specific draw length in mind to get the best performance they can out of them.

[brackshooter]

Vermonster-
Nope, no stack.  In fact, its so smooth, I wish I could find one 10 or 15 lbs heavier!  But this one shoots an arrow with authority and is strikingly beautiful, so why complain, right?


brack

[bayoulongbowman]

Yep ur over drawing in my opinion...but it depends on the bow ...I saw bows exploded at at range with the same set up you have ...if I named the bowyer , most would know him...but the bows wasnt build for one with a longer draw. good luck

[vermonster13]

I wouldn't complain. That is a sweet bow.

[brackshooter]

Bayou-
You got me a little spooked!  So what is the consensus here guys, am I screwed?

brack

[vermonster13]

Send Habu an e-mail and ask. that would be the best place for an answer.

[brackshooter]

Will do, good advice.

brackshooter

[Steelhead]

At least yor bows 64 inches so I assume it has some descent length for the limbs to work and unfold.That should help vs if it was a 60 incher.Glad you found a bow you like.I would call the bowyer if you got any concerns and let him address them to ease your mind of any doubt.Perhaps you can get a new set of limbs in the future as well.