Why choose LB limbs over recurve limbs, on the same riser?

[Matt D.]

I prefer a heavier bow. I find it easier to shoot well. Some of the longbow limbs made now shoot as fast as the recurve limbs, and you get the advantage of a quieter bow. The only negative, in my opinion, is a slightly longer bow.

[Pheonixarcher]

Well put Kirk. I agree.

[DaveT1963]

Of all my bows I believe my bruin bow might be the quietest - possibly only second to my Berry Vixen.... so I agree with Kirk that a well-made recurve limb can be every bit as quiet as a longbow.  My Thunderhorn takedown longbow is not my quietest bow in the stable either.... however,, pound for pound, it is definitely right up there in speed with any of my recurves.  Then there is my BW which to me is loud despite trying to quiet it down.  All this to say that each bow has its own characteristics and you can no longer generalize that longbows are quieter and recurves are quicker.... it just ain't so these days.

[Flying Dutchman]

Well said, Dave and Kirk! My 3 pce Whippenstick recurve is more quiet then most longbows and my one pce Cari-Bow is faster then most recurves    
Both are a joy to shoot!

I agree that nowadays modern hybrid longbows and recurves are very close, old days are over!  Just try each bow because after all it is up to you to decide what shoots the best for you!

[rlc1959]

A set of Centaur Long Bow limbs on my 17" Dalaa Riser is my choice at this time. Very quite and forgiving. Almost as fast as my Borders. Smooth draw .

My thoughts on the long bow limbs

Take care, Randy

[MnFn]

My experience is of the eleven bows I have owned, my current hybrid is the quietest, but heavier wood arrows have quieted my recurve bows down considerably.  

I also have popped a string off a recurve limb while hunting. Also, I like the ease of stringing longbows compared to recurves.

[**DONOTDELETE**]

Comparing "Recurves" to "Long bows" to "R/D long bows"  is like comparing cars to trucks to sports cars... They all come in different shapes and sizes with different amounts of horse power and different suspension.  There are many different makes and models of bows that have many different attributes that different archers love....

The one thing that i see a lot with archers in general is that they all have a preconception of their "bow set-up" regardless of which bow they are shooting.... Type of string material used and finding the best possible brace height for any bow  plays a HUGE part in how that particular bow feels & performs, and how noisy it is.

Every bow that is built is a little bit different, and if discriminating archers would take the time to find the sweet spot in their brace height and match the arrow weight correctly. They could change a noisy bow that has a bit of vibration to an excellent shooting quiet bow.... To do this i recommend playing with your brace height using a lighter weight arrow with no string silencers first.... once you find the proper brace that produces the least amount of buzz feeling in the grip & noise level. THEN put your string silencers on and increase your arrow weight until she stabilizes.....

For example:  You hear a lot about Black Widow recurve bows and their noise level being unacceptable. I think you'll find if you run your brace height up to about 8.5" on those bows you'll find an incredible difference in not only sound, but performance as well.... Each different bow design has its optimum brace height, and each bow has a little different sweet spot....

I hope this info helps a few folks out... Kirk

BTW... always check with the bow manufacture for their recommended brace height on any bow first, then play with brace higher and lower from there.

[Charlie3]

I had the oppportunity to shoot 2 Habu Vyperkahns side by side a couple months back. They had the same riser design, but one had recurve limb and the other radically reflexed longbow limbs. If you put a blindfold on me I could not tell the difference between the two as far as feel. The bowyer claimed the recurve was 1-2 FPS faster. Both bows were very silent, the longbow miiiiigghht have been a little more quiet according to my ear. I ordered the longbow for three reasons:

1. I do not have one and thought it'd be cool to shoot both recurve and longbow divisions at tournaments.

2. Even though I could not tell much of a difference in noise, the longbow is supposed to be a little quieter.

3. The longbow just looked cooler. I've shot a Black Widow recurve for 10 years and the Habu recurve looks and feels so similar. The longbow was something different.

Not too long ago I thought longbow limbs on a "recurve hande" was the worst of both worlds. When I shot a quality one my mind changed. Try to shoot one yourself and see what you think!

[PaulDeadringer29]

Like I say, I have one being built soon and really want the R/D limbs. I'm not as concerned with speed as I used to be, the more quiet a bow is, the better. I shot at a deer a few weeks back and the arrow went high, the deer never really ran off as he didn't know where the arrow came from. I didn't miss the 2nd time :-) and that was with my PCH. Thanks for the replies, more are welcome too....and Kirk, love your bows man, can't wait to get my hands on one of them one day.

[Charlie3]

That's funny Paul, I've had it the same thing happen twice with my PSA in the last year. One with a turkey and the other a whitetail. Kinda felt bad for getting the 2nd shot, not very fair. OK so I didn't feel bad haha  

[Bladepeek]

I'll go with Bisch and JDunlap. I got an RER XLR that I am more than a little fond of.

Sometimes I shoot the longbow limbs and sometimes the static tip recurve limbs. If I blindfold you, I defy you to tell me which set is on the bow if you draw it.

Besides, I just like being able to say "yeah, I have matching (plug in whatever is not on the bow) limbs too".  

[DaveT1963]

Originally posted by Kirkll:


For example:  You hear a lot about Black Widow recurve bows and their noise level being unacceptable. I think you'll find if you run your brace height up to about 8.5" on those bows you'll find an incredible difference in not only sound, but performance as well....

Sorry Kirk but I disagree with you here.   Ben at this over 30 years and I know how to quiet and get performance out of a bow.   The black widow is just a loud bow.  Ive taken the bow from 8 to 9 1/4 inch brace height and it doesn't help it.  There is a reason there are 100s of posts asking how to quiet them.

[Charlie3]

Dave, if you see 100 posts on how to quiet a Black Widow and 2 on how to quiet another semi-custom, that's a wash per capita. There are tons of widows out there.

[**DONOTDELETE**]

Originally posted by DaveT1963:
 

Originally posted by Kirkll:


For example:  You hear a lot about Black Widow recurve bows and their noise level being unacceptable. I think you'll find if you run your brace height up to about 8.5" on those bows you'll find an incredible difference in not only sound, but performance as well....

Sorry Kirk but I disagree with you here.   Ben at this over 30 years and I know how to quiet and get performance out of a bow.   The black widow is just a loud bow.  Ive taken the bow from 8 to 9 1/4 inch brace height and it doesn't help it.  There is a reason there are 100s of posts asking how to quiet them. [/b]

Well you may be right as far as getting them as quiet as a lot of other bows that are designed with more preload brutha.  The point i was trying to make is that you need to find the right brace height where the tension on the string at brace is the highest..... once you've found that sweet spot, that is the max you are going to get out of that design all the way around....... I've had several Black Widows in my shop and i tested them at different brace heights, and the best performance was around 8.5" to 8.75" on both of them..... I was just using BW bows as an example.
Your milage may vary with different limb designs.

[Archie]

My BW recurve was loud at the wrong brace height, but all I had to do was find the right brace and now it's "thump", with nothing but their spider silencers.  And I'm no bow guru like alot of you guys are!

But to keep with the topic of the thread... I sure like being able to string my longbow without a stringer!  I never string or unstring my recurve without one, and it's just one more thing to fuss with.

[Stumpkiller]

Send all those horrible, unloved recurves to me.

I much prefer them.

Longbows sexy?  I guess if you prefer starved, anemic models.  But I like curves.  ;-)

And most of what folks call "longbows" are nothing of the sort.  American reflex/deflex flatbows with recuve risers.

Just admit you want a recurve and join us . . .

Join us  . . .

[beaunaro]

I have both the RER XR and the LX and I agree with JDunlap.

I used to shoot recurves exclusively.

Just now enjoying the differences with a couple of new short R/D longbows.

Lighter, more forgiving, and quieter.

A joy to carry.

Good looking.

Actually, I like shooting a quality recurve too. EX: RER, Zipper, TimberGhost, Dakota.

It's all good.

[Brianlocal3]

No need for A stringer...... That's the ticket for me. I won't own a bow that needs a stringer.

[DaveT1963]

Originally posted by Stumpkiller:
Send all those horrible, unloved recurves to me.

I much prefer them.

Longbows sexy?  I guess if you prefer starved, anemic models.  But I like curves.  ;-)

And most of what folks call "longbows" are nothing of the sort.  American reflex/deflex flatbows with recuve risers.

Just admit you want a recurve and join us . . .

Join us  . . .

  lol post made me smile.  I am not sure what to call most things now as everything changes way to fast