the chosen one...

[HartHeart]

I've come to the conclusion that there is no such thing as the perfect bow. As much as I'd like to think that it's out there, I've probably only hurt myself trying to find that perfect one. Recurve vs. longbow, brand A vs. brand B...my suggestion to my fellow archers? You might really hate this, and my skinny white neck feels pretty exposed right now; but find a bow that is quality and fits you well and keep it! Sell all the others! But you say, that won't work for me. It never has!! You have to work for it! I've become convinced that the longer that I shoot the same bow the better I get to know it. It becomes an extension of me if you will. No my bow may not be the quietest in the world. It might not be the fastest. It might not be the prettiest. It might not be the most expensive(!) :big laugh:. But what's your goal? For me, I strive to become a better shot, to be able to put that arrow right where I'm looking consistently. As I look back, I realize that I've tried to fix the wrong things. I make myself believe that a new bow will fix all the problems. But each bow that I bought and sold, only made things worse. Why? Because the key to accuracy with a traditional bow is consistency, and every time I switched things up I confused my poor little brain. Alright, your turn...

[HartHeart]

I have a feeling that this might hurt some feelings, but it's just how I feel:) I even take this a step further, and only use one arrow setup; year around, for all animal species, including the plastic kind. Remember, consistency. Oh, and one other thing; this really frees up a lot of unnecessary time, resources, and potential stress. I believe that good things happen when you commit to a setup longterm, choose one(because that's all that you can shoot at a time anyway) or rather let it choose you!

[Hoosierarcher88]

 I started out with a great northern shadow recurve that initially i did not shoot good. I quickly bounced between several other bows from a r/d longbow, to a few bears and even a couple ilf setups but nothing seemed to click. I sat down one day, tuned a set of arrows good to the great northern and just pounded my target a few hundred shots each day for a few weeks and one day i noticed averything had just fallen into place. I think too many people pick up bows left and right and never give themselves a chance to learn it right and i agree with you on the arrows as well. I dedicated myself to shooting my 720 grain hunting arrows last year even for 3d and target. Even though the draw weight was higher than id ever want to shoot competition in and the arrows were easily half again the weight that most 3d shooters use i absolutely dominated during the end of 3d season. I chalk that not up to the equipment but fully knowing my equipment. Ill be hunting with the shelton this year and plan to roll rught into indoor season with it as well even though the draw weight is about 10-15# higher than what i would personally choose for a strict indoor bow because i want to learn the setup which hopefully will end in me shooting better, not a bow shooting better.

[Cavscout9753]

Every bow I end up owning becomes “the” bow, then I get wanderlust and change it up. ASL’s, take downs, recurves, R/D, you name - I’ve loved them all. I’m currently shooting an early 70’s Kodiak Hunter, and honestly I really just love it. Its old and beautiful, and I’ll never know it’s story, but I will gladly add to it. Truthfully, anyone can get the hang of any bow type, there are nuances to each type, but if you start at the fundamentals and work your way up, the skys the limit. There are trade off’s, speed, noise, weight, length, etc. but that how you learn to shore up your weaknesses on the hunt. Now someday I’ll likely move on from this Kodiak and fall in love all over again, but with each bow owned and shot I get a little smarter and a little better overall.

[HartHeart]

"anyone can get the hang of any bow type"...I think there is a lot of truth to this. Arranged marriages are known to have higher success rates. I come to this from a hunters perspective. For me, accuracy is king, a silent shot is queen, and speed is the arrogant prince. Then there are other variables like compactness, "shootability"(don't ask me what that is), and just the warm, fuzzy feeling that some bows give. So, obviously different people look for different things in a bow and there is usually a narrowed down category of bows to fit each archers needs. But I still come back to, choose one that best fit's your criteria for what you want it to do and stick with it. Btw, the bow that chose me is an Elkheart, hybrid longbow, 54" long, 50# @ 28, and a t/d.

[Lakerat007]

Blasphemy! Did my wife put u up to this?

[U.a.horribilis]

That is all great, but.... in fear of digressing from the point which I believe to be accuracy and consistency for hunting, which I’m not trying to argue with, the more the merrier. I have one wife, and by her rules that is all I’m allowed
,but my bows make me happy and don’t get jealous. Monday maybe my Hill,Tuesday some blazing fast curve,Wednesday whatever floats my boat. Again not disagreeing from an accuracy/ consistency perspective, but from a happiness point of view own as many as you can and get the prettiest you can afford. Take the one that feels best that day to the woods, and love them all.

[Cyclic-Rivers]

I understand where you're coming from and do not disagree, but shooting new bows and getting new bows is fun. The Honey moon period of a new bow is great and the anticipation of a new bow is well... Makes you feel alive.

But with that being said, I prefer to put my resources towards hunting trips anymore. I get the same giddy feeling inside and have lifetime memories.

[Tim Finley]

No you need to keep looking, you all will eventually find the right bow, just keep buying from us bowyers one of us will finally get you the right one  !!!

[Orion]

I've never bought a new bow in the belief that it would improve my accuracy.  I bought them because i wanted to try something different and expand my knowledge of different style bows. For the same reason, I experiment with different arrow and string materials and configurations.  I'd argue that the knowledge and experience gained contributes to improved accuracy, not to mention enjoyment, across all bow types.

The nice thing about archery is we can each do what suits us best.   

 

[Bisch]

For the most part, I am a one bow kind of guy. I have about 10 bows, but only practice and hunt with one. Some of them I keep for sentimental reasons, even though I know I probably will never shoot them again. 3 of them are just so I can shoot more classes at the big 3D shoots.

For a long time, I bought a new bow about once a year, always looking for “the” bow. In 2009, I got my first Sarrels Blueridge takedown longbow. Since 2009, the only new fiberglass bow I have bought is a brand new Sarrels Blueridge with the same specs as the first one (I have 4 now! ). Only because I got a hankering for something new and pretty!

Each one shoots the exact same arrows with very minor tweaks.

Bisch


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[Wannabe1]

No comment! Hey, wasn't that just a comment? DOH!

[Jim Wright]

After owning and shooting a number of recurves & d/r longbows over the years I find myself with 3 Dan Toelke "Super Ds", a 64", 66" and the newest a 68" that is 52 lbs. at my 29" draw. I shoot the 68" bow about 95 % of the time now with Douglas Fir arrows around 620 grains. I'm not looking for anything else. If there is a bow that is more stable, smoother drawing, that shoots heavy arrows faster, more pleasing to the eye and especially quieter I don't deserve it.

[kennym]

I will agree with shooting same setup year round, with one add.  Find the bow that the grip is right for YOU on and then keep it.

I told Renee " I have built THE bow for me, I won't need to do another"  She rolled her eyes and said " Yeah right"

I didn't build me one this year, so I'm showing her!!

[Sam McMichael]

There are many bows that could serve me perfectly well, but I also agree that there is probably no such thing as a perfect bow.

[M60gunner]

You make points well taken. While I may stick with one bow-arrow combo for hunting the rest of my shooting anything goes. I may take 3 different bows, LB, recurves, one piece, three piece, ILF, etc for a days shooting. I find at reasonable ranges it doesn’t take much to keep the arrows in the “kill” after a few practice shots.  But that’s me other experiences may vary

[GCook]

For me happiness is a large gut pile at the end of a short blood trail.  When I find the one with the right Mojo I'll keep it and never let it stay home.

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[Cmane07]

I can see both sides.  I have been shooting my recurve almost exclusively for 2 years now and there is something special about developing a relationship with a bow.  I also believe that with proper form, you can be pretty accurate with most any style.

This weekend I was at my parents house and found an old D-style longbow I bought many moons ago.  I strung it up, grabbed a flu-flu and walked outside.  My dad was piddling around and jokingly said "I bet you can't hit the broadside of a barn with that thing".  I pointed out a pine cone up in a tall longleaf pine in the front yard and preceded to knock it out on the first shot.  It may have been pure luck, but the look on his face was priceless

[Oscar-eleven]

I agree with Tim but I'm implusive. Sometimes you don't know what you have (had) until it's gone.