Bow Design

[4dogs]

I would like some of you guys opinion. If you buy a used bow that is say 60# at 28" but you only pull 27" are you loosing anything besides poundage? Are bows designed to perform better at a given draw length when made? Thanks.

[Orion]

At 27 inches, you'll lose about 3# of draw weight.  Despite what some will tell you, very few bowyers actually make bows to deliver peak performance at a particular draw length.  Most are marked at 28 inches, but bowyers will measure and mark the weight at a different draw length at the buyer's request.  For the most part, they don't change how they make the bow, however.  They just mark their bow that draws 50#@28 instead at 45#@26, or whatever.  That being said, some designs/bow lengths are better for short draw lengths, and others are better for longer draw lengths.

[Mike Vines]

not at all

[paperenginner]

Nope.  That is the beauty of shooting traditional.  Three different draw lengths can pick up the same bow and let it fly!

[Lee Robinson .]

I both agree and disagree with Orion. It depends on both the design and the bowyer.

For all practical purposes...and paperenginner is correct in that 3 different people can pick up the same bow and let arrows fling. Sure, you will be fine doing this for the most part. But, a custom bow can fit someone's specific needs in order to optimize a custom fit draw for a given bow design. For example, Let say two archers both order "identical" bows but they have different draw lengths.

Bow 1 - 62" 55#@28" w/ 24" riser

Bow 2 - 62" 50#@26" w/ 24" riser

My 62" Protege Longbow with a 24" riser is a bit short for a 28" draw, but it can handle if fine if I make the limb 1 & 1/4" wide at the fadeouts and use less core in order to prevent stack and maintain a smooth draw.

For a 26" draw, the same bow would ideally be 1 & 1/8" to 1 & 3/16" wide at the fadeouts to add core in order to maintain stability for a short draw.

At 2 1/2# to 3# per inch, these bows would be almost identical...but knowing the archer will help me build it to optimally perform for a given individual. This is both good and bad. It is good because it does the customer a service. It is bad because if I was to make a 64" bow for one archer with a short 26" draw, it would have the 1 & 1/8" wide limb...but this bow gets sold and later someone with a 29" draw sees my 64" bow will go out to 29" they may buy it used...and while the bow will be fine, it wouldn't as smooth as if it was made for someone with a 29" draw.

I have had some people request that I mark their bow at 28" even though they draw more or less than that. This is something that bothers me for the above reason. I would rather the bow be labelled the way it was made...and have recently started insisting that my bows are marked that way. Upon explaining this to my customers, so far all have understood my reasoning for this. That way, if the bow gets sold, the buyer will know what draw the bow was designed for...so it can represent my work accurately.

[4dogs]

Thank you all for your responces, gives me some things to think about.

[Night Wing]

Since my two Blacktails are so smooth out to my 30" length, I know Norm Johnson "made" the bows for the poundages I shoot at my draw length instead of "marking" them at my draw length.

This way, both bows poundages are at their optimum performance for my 30" draw length.