How to know when your overbowed, ready to drop down in bow weight

[frassettor]

  I’m just curious when other members know when they are “overbowed “ and its time to drop down in bow weight.
 Not being  able to hit the target?
 If you are snapshooter, and NOT holding the bow back at full draw,  are you able to get away with more bow weight?
If you are an archer that holds at full draw,  is it the amount of time that you would like to hold back a full draw but shake to much?

[Pine]

For me pain was a good indicator.
I could still shoot bows over 60# but my bow hand just can't take the presure.
Also shooting a bow is accumulative, the damage can occur over time and then it's too late.

[frassettor]

For me pain was a good indicator.
I could still shoot bows over 60# but my bow hand just can't take the presure.
Also shooting a bow is accumulative, the damage can occur over time and then it's too late.

That’s interesting,  what bow weight are you shooting now?  I have my bows at 59 pounds, I am considering going down to 50/51  pounds while I advance in my older age.  I would personally rather drop down in bow  weight, knowing that that bow weight  is good for anything I want to hunt in North America

[McDave]

If you are snapshooter, and NOT holding the bow back at full draw,  are you able to get away with more bow weight?
If you are an archer that holds at full draw, is it the amount of time that you would like to hold back a full draw but shake to much?

I don’t really understand your first comment above.  Why would you not want to hold the bow at full draw?  I think the inability to hold a bow comfortably at full draw is a good indication of being overbowed, whether a person is snap shooting or not.  The hold time for a snap shooter may be very short, but there should still be an instant when the bow is held at full draw.

I think the second comment is accurate.  You should be able to hold comfortably at full draw for as long as you want to.  If you can’t, it is a good indication you are overbowed.  Probably a snap shooter who only holds momentarily at full draw can pull a few more pounds comfortably at full draw than a person who holds for a longer time at full draw.  A person who holds for 2 seconds can probably pull a few more pounds comfortably than a person who holds for 4 seconds, etc.

Injuries are a whole other ball game.  People who learn to draw correctly can avoid injuries more than a person who doesn’t.  However, some people are more prone to getting injuries from shooting the bow than others, and by the time they know that it is too late to completely repair the problem.  My advice is to shoot the minimum weight bow you need to get the job done.  I know a lot of people don’t like that advice, and they are welcome to their opinions; some of them may be in the group that will never have a heart attack, cancer, or shoulder problems.  This is something that is difficult to predict in advance, or, as Dirty Harry said, “Do you feel lucky today, punk?”

[frassettor]

If you are snapshooter, and NOT holding the bow back at full draw,  are you able to get away with more bow weight?
If you are an archer that holds at full draw, is it the amount of time that you would like to hold back a full draw but shake to much?

I don’t really understand your first comment above.  Why would you not want to hold the bow at full draw?  I think the inability to hold a bow comfortably at full draw is a good indication of being overbowed, whether a person is snap shooting or not.  The hold time for a snap shooter may be very short, but there should still be an instant when the bow is held at full draw.

I think the second comment is accurate.  You should be able to hold comfortably at full draw for as long as you want to.  If you can’t, it is a good indication you are overbowed.  Probably a snap shooter who only holds momentarily at full draw can pull a few more pounds comfortably at full draw than a person who holds for a longer time at full draw.  A person who holds for 2 seconds can probably pull a few more pounds comfortably than a person who holds for 4 seconds, etc.

Injuries are a whole other ball game.  People who learn to draw correctly can avoid injuries more than a person who doesn’t.  However, some people are more prone to getting injuries from shooting the bow than others, and by the time they know that it is too late to completely repair the problem.  My advice is to shoot the minimum weight bow you need to get the job done.  I know a lot of people don’t like that advice, and they are welcome to their opinions; some of them may be in the group that will never have a heart attack, cancer, or shoulder problems.  This is something that is difficult to predict in advance, or, as Dirty Harry said, “Do you feel lucky today, punk?”

To answer your first question, when I say snapshooter, I mean someone that holds possibly a quarter to a half a second .  More of a one fluid motion, but still reaches full draw .

[McDave]

Makes sense.  I found it kind of a difficult concept to express myself.  Now that I understand what you meant, I think it's reasonable that a snapshooter should be able to hold a few more pounds than a person who draws and holds.  The key would be whatever a person feels comfortable with.

[Pine]

I shoot nothing over 45# for the past 4 years. And I get pass threw so why do I need more?

[pavan]

If you can get to full draw and shoot yourself in the foot, you are not over bowed.   

[blacktailbob]

On a cold morning sitting for an hour or longer chilled can you still reach full draw and make a good shot?

Only you know the answer to that one.

[Sam McMichael]

Mostly, I know when I have great difficulty pulling it back and then shaking heavily when I do reach anchor. In short, when trying to shoot it ain't fun.

[GCook]

If you are snapshooter, and NOT holding the bow back at full draw,  are you able to get away with more bow weight?
If you are an archer that holds at full draw, is it the amount of time that you would like to hold back a full draw but shake to much?

I don’t really understand your first comment above.  Why would you not want to hold the bow at full draw?  I think the inability to hold a bow comfortably at full draw is a good indication of being overbowed, whether a person is snap shooting or not.  The hold time for a snap shooter may be very short, but there should still be an instant when the bow is held at full draw.

I think the second comment is accurate.  You should be able to hold comfortably at full draw for as long as you want to.  If you can’t, it is a good indication you are overbowed.  Probably a snap shooter who only holds momentarily at full draw can pull a few more pounds comfortably at full draw than a person who holds for a longer time at full draw.  A person who holds for 2 seconds can probably pull a few more pounds comfortably than a person who holds for 4 seconds, etc.

Injuries are a whole other ball game.  People who learn to draw correctly can avoid injuries more than a person who doesn’t.  However, some people are more prone to getting injuries from shooting the bow than others, and by the time they know that it is too late to completely repair the problem.  My advice is to shoot the minimum weight bow you need to get the job done.  I know a lot of people don’t like that advice, and they are welcome to their opinions; some of them may be in the group that will never have a heart attack, cancer, or shoulder problems.  This is something that is difficult to predict in advance, or, as Dirty Harry said, “Do you feel lucky today, punk?”

Dang I think you know me!
I've got shoulder issues.  Lots of manual labor and playing ball until I was 48 didn't help.  3 heart incidents and 5 stents starting at 41.
However shoulder repairs got me back in the game and even the current tear up I have confidence he will repair effectively.   So I will shoot and hunt and work until it all falls apart.
Can't take it with you.

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[GCook]

And I think if you can hold 10 seconds without shaking you aren't over bowed.

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[Maddog20/20]

My dad had a simple rule.  If you can’t hold full draw for 5 seconds without “shaking like a dog trying to poop a peach pit,” you’re overbowed.


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[GCook]

My dad had a simple rule.  If you can’t hold full draw for 5 seconds without “shaking like a dog trying to poop a peach pit,” you’re overbowed.


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Yeah that'll tell ya!

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[ozy clint]

I release as soon as I reach anchor. Why would I need to hold for any amount of time to see if I'm overbowed if I don't hold at anchor anyway?

[Trenton G.]

I'm a bit of a snap-shooter, but for my test I draw and hold for 3 seconds. As long as I can focus on the spot without my vision shaking a bit, then I consider that to be good. Also, my "overbowed" weight changes. When I'm able to shoot every day, my 62 pound bow feels like a toy. When I haven't been able to shoot for a long time, then 45 seems to be plenty for a couple of days.

[Tooner]

If I can't reach anchor without farting a little bit, I know its time to back off on the draw weight.

[Roger Norris]

If you are snapshooter, and NOT holding the bow back at full draw,  are you able to get away with more bow weight?
If you are an archer that holds at full draw, is it the amount of time that you would like to hold back a full draw but shake to much?

I don’t really understand your first comment above.  Why would you not want to hold the bow at full draw?  I think the inability to hold a bow comfortably at full draw is a good indication of being overbowed, whether a person is snap shooting or not.  The hold time for a snap shooter may be very short, but there should still be an instant when the bow is held at full draw.

I think the second comment is accurate.  You should be able to hold comfortably at full draw for as long as you want to.  If you can’t, it is a good indication you are overbowed.  Probably a snap shooter who only holds momentarily at full draw can pull a few more pounds comfortably at full draw than a person who holds for a longer time at full draw.  A person who holds for 2 seconds can probably pull a few more pounds comfortably than a person who holds for 4 seconds, etc.

Injuries are a whole other ball game.  People who learn to draw correctly can avoid injuries more than a person who doesn’t.  However, some people are more prone to getting injuries from shooting the bow than others, and by the time they know that it is too late to completely repair the problem.  My advice is to shoot the minimum weight bow you need to get the job done.  I know a lot of people don’t like that advice, and they are welcome to their opinions; some of them may be in the group that will never have a heart attack, cancer, or shoulder problems.  This is something that is difficult to predict in advance, or, as Dirty Harry said, “Do you feel lucky today, punk?”

As long as I want to? No...

I was shooting 65# 15 years ago or so....then I went to 57#-60#....my new bows are all 50#. My indicator is when I am shooting in a league. I can still shoot a pretty heavy bow a few times, and pretty well. But after 40 50 arrows in a league, if my form starts to fall off, I'm overbowed.

I used to say that I needed a heavier bow because my release was sloppy. I chose to fix that.

[Maddog20/20]

If you are snapshooter, and NOT holding the bow back at full draw,  are you able to get away with more bow weight?
If you are an archer that holds at full draw, is it the amount of time that you would like to hold back a full draw but shake to much?

I don’t really understand your first comment above.  Why would you not want to hold the bow at full draw?  I think the inability to hold a bow comfortably at full draw is a good indication of being overbowed, whether a person is snap shooting or not.  The hold time for a snap shooter may be very short, but there should still be an instant when the bow is held at full draw.

I think the second comment is accurate.  You should be able to hold comfortably at full draw for as long as you want to.  If you can’t, it is a good indication you are overbowed.  Probably a snap shooter who only holds momentarily at full draw can pull a few more pounds comfortably at full draw than a person who holds for a longer time at full draw.  A person who holds for 2 seconds can probably pull a few more pounds comfortably than a person who holds for 4 seconds, etc.

Injuries are a whole other ball game.  People who learn to draw correctly can avoid injuries more than a person who doesn’t.  However, some people are more prone to getting injuries from shooting the bow than others, and by the time they know that it is too late to completely repair the problem.  My advice is to shoot the minimum weight bow you need to get the job done.  I know a lot of people don’t like that advice, and they are welcome to their opinions; some of them may be in the group that will never have a heart attack, cancer, or shoulder problems.  This is something that is difficult to predict in advance, or, as Dirty Harry said, “Do you feel lucky today, punk?”

As long as I want to? No...

I was shooting 65# 15 years ago or so....then I went to 57#-60#....my new bows are all 50#. My indicator is when I am shooting in a league. I can still shoot a pretty heavy bow a few times, and pretty well. But after 40 50 arrows in a league, if my form starts to fall off, I'm overbowed.

I used to say that I needed a heavier bow because my release was sloppy. I chose to fix that.

I think this is a good point.  It depends on your shooting.  There’s a vast difference between shooting 50 arrows in a league and 1-2 arrows hunting.

I shoot 50# in my league, but truth be told, I could probably EASILY shoot 65# for hunting purposes.


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[GCook]

If I can't reach anchor without farting a little bit, I know its time to back off on the draw weight.

Solid advice.

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