How heavy bows?

[Ben Maher]

Originally posted by Rob DiStefano:
 imho, all that matters is the poundage you can personally command, not endure.  

Thats about it in a nutshell ...

[WDELongbow]

Confirms my observation that this is a very touchy subject.  I should have just answered:

"57 lbs"

[champ38]

My prefered wt is 67#, use this for 3-d and hunting. I shoot a 84#er serveral times a week to keep my strength up , makes the 67#er feel like a toy.

[Jeff Strubberg]

Originally posted by WDELongbow:
I did not realize this was such a touchy subject, particularly for the lighter tackle folks.

It's not that touchy, it's that for every guy shooting a heavy bow, there are fifteen shooting lighter tackle.

You're going to get more opinions in favor of lighter bows, just simple numbers.

[The Whittler]

Light or heavy it's all about having fun and enjoying one's self. It's not to heavy or not to light it's just shooting.

[longbow fanatic 1]

#49 for me.

[BeNoIt]

I shoot a 67# bow @29".

Being that this was my first traditional bow I think initially it was too much weight for me but I read enough from fellow trad shooters that I didn't develop bad habits. I spent a good bit of time building my strength up so that my form was correct and I was using a solid anchor.

I actually enjoy the weight now and don't find it a bother at all to shoot a whole bunch of arrows. Now for the deer. Maybe tomorrow....

[sticksnstones]

I like Ben's last post! (My bad, that is Ben commenting on Rob's post.)

All my bows scale at 52-59 currently. I shot my D for two hours tonight at #56 and enjoyed a long full anchor and smooth release during blank bale practice.

I'm sure I'm under bowed, but 56# with a 600 grain arrow seems plenty lethal to me. I might go mid 60's if I do a trip for elk, moose, or bear next year. I'm liking this combo for deer/pigs.
Thom

[dave19113]

That is def true about being able to hold a long anchor....

I shot a friends bow that was 85#.... I could shoot it..... for only about a dozen shots then I would start almost snap shooting... bc I ddnt want to hold the weight and it created bad habits...

What it did do was make my lighter bows seem like a toy and let me hold the lighter bows at anchor very comfortably.....

Sometimes it is a little bit of an ego thing for us guys.... Myself included... I powerlifted for many year.... Boasting big numbers is awesome... What I think Rob is getting at is we do owe more to the game we hunt....

For many years 55# killed everything around just as long as the right set up was used. Nothing has changed in that aspect.

What has changed is technology. Bows can be made heavier and last....

To put a cap on it.... Shoot what makes you happy but remember why we are out in the woods... Its not a contest....