Why am I better with a recurve?

[Stone Knife]

Getting myself ready for turkey season has had me shooting my little Bob Lee hunter 54" 46# @28 My groups are so much tighter with this bow than they are with my longbows Why is this? I'm kind of getting to like these recurves.

[George D. Stout]

It can be a number of things; smoothness of the draw; mass in the riser; better fit in hand, etc.
Bob Lee has been making great, smooth shooting bows for over fifty years.  Most recurves will be smoother than the average longbow, when talking about standard longbow profiles.

[swampbuck]

LOL do ya really wanna know??

Most of us aren't Howard Hill and those D shaped Hill bows aren't the easiest to shoot consistantly

So now ya have your recurve which is probably lighter in poundage with a grip thats much more forgiving and repeatable and what ya get is better groups

Not saying it can't be done with your Hill's just genrally speaking it takes more work to get the same accuracy....good luck

[One eye]

I tend to shoot longbows more accurately.  Go figure.  I vow to master those recurves though.  Good luck turkey hunting.  I am going to try to get mine with a St. Charles Thunderbird recurve I just bought.

Dan

[woodchucker]

It's the grip Jim!!!!!

I've always wanted to shoot a longbow (hill style) Joe Skipp had a GN bushbow he was gonna let me have dirt cheap.....I just cannot shoot consistantly with a straight grip bow!!!!!

I found my Mikuta longbow fits the bill just nicely.....a longbow (hybrid) with a recurve style grip.

However,I think the old "vintage" recurves are just plain more fun to shoot!!!!! I love shooting my collection of old Bears.      

[bayoulongbowman]

Recurves are more foregiving , less finger pinch , and the grip is different...and the shelf ya shoot off of his different as well...

[Dick4bows]

Hand control!  More mass means it's harder to move the hand when you shoot.  Inertia.  I used to make my own longbows but I can't shoot them as accurately as a recurve. The more mass in the riser , the more inertia that has to be overcome to move the bow.  Simple physics.

                           Dick!

[Dick in Seattle]

I think a lot of folks find this, Stone Knife.   You know I'm having a good time with my first recurve right now.   I think the fact that Hills are a challenge is part of the appeal.   When I first started to shoot, they appealed to me... the look of them... the history, and someone said, "That's doing it the hard way...".   Well, h___, I always do things the hardway!    They are a ball and when I had to drop weight, I just went out and got some lighter ones, but the simple fact is they're not the only toy in the toybox.   Or, to go back a few years, "I like your dump truck better'n my fire engine...."    Do we ever grow up?

[BobW]

Knowing the way I've seen you shoot your Hill, it scares the heck out of me to hear you say you are better with a 'curve......

[Vig]

Stone Knife,
  ... because recurves are easier to shoot than longbows.  That's why.

Ha! I'm kidding guys... who knows why? It beats me; I just couldn't pass up an opportunity to poke fun.

-Vig

[Ghost Dog]

More mass in the riser and in the limbs of a typical recurve helps a lot of archers to steady their bow arm. It is that simple. Grip shape is less of a factor, aside from what one is used to or believes.

Try this: Try to get a hold of a recurve with a small grip, like a Great Northern Ghost. That will tell you a lot about how riser mass effects your shooting consistency. Personally I love that small, straight grip, but for those of us who are used to the stabilizing effect of a heavy riser, a small, lighter grip will require an additional skill set, and practice, for keeping the bow arm steady.

For those of us who have the time to practice often with a longbow, riser mass is not an issue. It really comes down to what you are used to, and what you have come to believe.

[One eye]

I happen to shoot the 50s style recurves better than the newer design, heavy mass recurves.  Perhaps this is due to me shooting longbows better too.  I have very small hands and grip mass is very personal for me.

BTW, my St. Charles Thunderbird just came 5 minutes ago.  I will start another thread ;-)
Dan

[GameGetter]

MOST poeple shoot a slight pistol grip with a bit of a forward set handle(riser) better than a striaght grip and as mentioned the heavier mass wt. of most recurves are more stable. However, recurve limbs are not more forgiving. The riser is but the longbow limbs are more forgiving.
     IMO, The best shooting bow is a cross between the two (hybrid longbow). I shoot my GameGetter longbows better than anything I have ever shot!

[swampbuck]

I've seen him shoot his Hill well too Bob LOL not sure how much better better is

[Shaun]

You don't often get to shoot "groups" at a turkey. I am most accurate with the bow I like the most and shoot the most, often the bow I just got...

[One eye]

Originally posted by Shaun:
You don't often get to shoot "groups" at a turkey. I am most accurate with the bow I like the most and shoot the most, often the bow I just got...

Haven't you ever heard of "flock shooting"??

Dan

[Diamond Paul]

The only two guys I've ever seen who could really shoot a longbow well (or, at least, what I consider well) were Howard Hill and Byron Ferguson.  Kind of like what Hill said about instinctive shooters: he had seen lots of them, but never a good one!  They are just dang hard to shoot!  More power to anyone who can shoot one well!  Paul.

[carparcher]

Because recurves rule!!!!

[laddy]

Sounds to me that perhaps your form is better suited to recurves, the pistol grips raise hell with me.  I cannot get the right bend in my arm without the bow feeling squirrely in my hand, and to go back to my target form is not an option.  I will stay with longbows.