which longbow for hunting deer and moose, maybe bear

[CanadanHirvi]

New guy here. I have two longbows and thinking about selling one. one is a 47# bow I draw about 55# and the other is #58 bow I draw about #67. shooting the same 735 grain arrows I get an extra 10fps out of the heavier bow (163 fps vs 173 fps).  I can shoot the lighter bow much better so not sure if it's worth it to keep the heavier bow for that extra 10 fps. Any thoughts on performance on game with either one? I've ever only shot one deer and that was with a different bow somewhere in between these two for strength.

[Orion]

55 is certainly enough for deer and bear.  Folks have killed moose with 55# or less as well, but I like more weight for moose.  Maybe keep the heavier bow around for when you hunt moose. Lots of folks have different weight bows to hunt different species.

Given the poundage you're drawing above what is marked at 28 inches, you must have a very long draw length.  That's putting a lot of stress on the bow, and it may be too much for a shorter bow.  Might want to consider keeping the longest bow, whichever that is.

[CanadanHirvi]

Thanks for the reply. The lighter bow is 60" and the heavier one 66" I'm drawing about 30.5" The heavy bow has a long riser and short limbs so it actually feels a lot heavier. Is it pretty normal to only get 10fps more out of quite a bit heavier bow?

[Orion]

I think a general rule of thumb is, starting at some arbitrary weight, say 50#, every additional pound of draw weight equates to about 1 1/2 to 2 fps with the same arrow.  If both bows shot the same grains of arrow weight per pound of draw weight (gpp), they should shoot about the same speed, all other things equal, which they usually aren't.  

One would expect a 12# difference in draw weight to yield more than a 10 fps difference, but, as you've noted, the bow designs are very different.  The shorter bow is obviously a more efficient design.

[azhunter]

Keep the lighter bow you shoot better. You are shooting arrows that are 13.3 gr per pound of bow weight with your lighter bow. Keep those arrows for when you need a really heavy arrow and buy some arrows that are 9-10 grains per pound of bow weight. With that arrow and the lighter bow you will probably be shooting it faster than your heavy bow with the heavy arrows.

[Sam McMichael]

Either of those bows should be just fine, so why sell one off? Just work up a good arrow for what you want to hunt and go for it.

[CanadanHirvi]

Thanks for all the input guys! I do have a set of lighter arrows as well. The heavier arrows have 300 grain field tip (because I have some nice 300 broadheads) and a 100 gr insert, so I could go for a lighter set up, but I've been reading too much Ed Ashby... lol!

[Cari-bow]

It looks like your draw is all of 30" or more. With your draw length the lighter weight bow will be fine. I've put the broadhead through a moose more then once with 53#.  The arrow weight was much the same as you are shooting. My draw is not over 28".
Abe

[Birdbow]

I killed the moose in my avatar in Maine (@ 1000#) with a 60" LB, 54# @ 27". Like you, I could shoot it better than heavier bows and opted for a 750gr. carbon arrow with a SB broadhead. Got complete penetration.

[hybridbow hunter]

Well being from Canada you have another ( better) option:
You sell not one but your 2 bows so you can fund the purchase of a peregrine longbow from Abe ( caribow) 55# at your 30.5-31" drawlenght and you will get both the light draw weight and the higher speed.   :D

[LB_hntr]

Your 55# bow will cleanly kill any animal walking in North america and I would not hesitate to hunt any of said critters with that set up.
You shoot it best and that is all that matters. Sell the other one and put the money towards one of the hunting trips and have fun!

[Thumper Dunker]

What's wrong with having two bows? Make up the best arrow for each bow. You just might need a back up bow one day.

[newhouse114]

Originally posted by Thumper Dunker:
What's wrong with having two bows? Make up the best arrow for each bow. You just might need a back up bow one day.

This!  I always take a takedown recurve as a backup bow even though I hunt with a one piece longbow.

[Friend]

Would not entertain sacrificing observed accuracy degradation, especially when you already have ample lethality.

Dead is dead and even placing the arrow on the mark with a moderately lesser setup than your current lighter setup will yield the same results.

[CanadanHirvi]

Thanks again everyone for all the comments! I was hoping guys would have had proven success with similar setup to the lighter bow I have, so it's good to hear this is the case. I'd probably keep them both and may do so for awhile but I need to somehow get stronger to handle the bigger bow. I can shoot it a bit but there seems to be something wrong with my shoulder so I prefer the lighter set up for now. Caribows look beautiful but out of my price range or now  

Either of those draw weights will kill any of your target animals! Keep the one you can shoot best. If that is the heavier one, then great. But if not, the extra weight and speed of the heavy one won't help you if you cannot put the arrow where it needs to be!

Bisch

[elkken]

Go with the lighter bow, it is more than enough to kill anything in North America ...

[Michael Arnette]

Seeing as you can shoot the lighter bow better I would definitely make it my choice. Accuracy trumps speed any day

[KentuckyTJ]

If you get a shot of a lifetime at a great trophy but it is a tight shot through some limbs which bow would you rather have?