I wanted to apologize yet again for a slow response. School is kicking my butt and I'm preparing for finals next week. I think my thesis is done but I can't help but re-read it entirely too often. Thank you all for all the kind words and advice it's much appreciated.
3Rivers Archery up here in Gods country sells a test kit of arrows you may want to get. Give them a call. Very knowledgeable, very helpful. Just click the link up top.
Thanks for the advice! I'll have to check out that test kit. I think they have a retail store as well don't they? Would probably be worth the drive to check out their shop in person.
I would plan on 400 spine arrows with your draw, and desire to load up front weight. I'm pretty confident that 340 will be too heavy.
A couple of examples:
My two favorite bows are a 57# recurve and a 56# longbow at my 28" draw. On those bows my favorite arrow is a 30.5" Beman ICS 400 with 100 gr brass insert and 225 gr broadhead. Total weight comes in about 620-630 grains. I've tried 340s and had to go almost full length with around 400 grains on the front.
I just started working on a 47lb longbow and it is tuning up nicely with a 500 spine CX heritage at 29.25" with ~200 grains on the front. Total weight is about 510 grains. If I want more weight, I can run a length of vinyl tubing in the shaft from nock to insert which brings it to 660 gr (haven't shot that yet - just experimenting).
I highly recommend downloading and becoming familiar with this doc. http://www.acsbows.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/tuninglongbowsandrecurves.pdf
Since I shoot carbons, one of my best investments was an arrow saw for tuning the arrows, and a good assortment of field points weighing 145-250 grains. A well tuned arrow is key to accuracy and building confidence.
Thanks so much for the advice & info! I'll print out that document and read it carefully. I've already got the arrow saw but I'll definitely pick up a variety of field point weights as well. Tuning on my wheel bow was pretty dang easy but I know there's no comparison with a tradbow.
I shoot .600 spine out of my 45 - 50# bows, but I only draw 27". You might consider picking up a cheap used stickbow of similar specs to practice with all summer instead of waiting until the season is upon you.
I'm a bit strapped for cash between school and the 8 month old but I'll see what I can find. Thanks for the suggestion! I'd like to get some practice in before the season; I won't hunt with the bow if I'm not feeling confident in placing an ethical shot so hopefully I can pick something up locally.
Hello LUMEN...I am located in western KY...Slaugthers, KY...~2' 35"s away(~164 miles)
It should be worth your while to visit or even stay a couple of days...I have plenty of arrows to get you in the ball park for specs, have worked successfully with many traditional archers from entry level to world class and live on my farm which is developed specifically for hi quality deer management...note:planning to have 14 foodplots this year which may be of particular interest since you have just acquired your own property.
Friend, I would greatly appreciate that! I don't have my bow in hand yet but I'm hoping it arrives sooner rather than later. I'm a bit tied up with grad school until August 14th but if you found yourself with a little bit of free time after then (or when I get my bow) I would appreciate any help/guidance more than you know. I'd also love to learn more about establishing foodplots; this will be the first time where I've got enough space to get some established. My concern is that my bow will likely not arrive until early-mid October and I wouldn't want to interrupt any of your hunting time. Hopefully we can figure something out though!
There are many possible options yet you will be restricted to shafts over 30 ½”s.
Achieving EFOC with long shafts can be a little challenging.
One very lethal possibility, if I may suggest, should be in the ball park.
BE Carnivore 400…~30 7/8”s….3x4” fletch..100 gn insert…250 gn point…~28.7% EFOC..~585 gn total…
Wow! That sounds like an incredible setup. 28.7% EFOC is outstanding! I'll get a look at those arrows; I'm running BE Rampages on my wheel bow and BE definitely makes some nice arrows.
Lumen, welcome. And, you really, really, should take Friend up on his offer to help you out.
Thanks for the warm welcome! I would LOVE to take Friend up on his offer. I already sent him a PM.
Good advice posted above.
I am less than a year into a similar journey from compounds. I had a lot of frustration with accuracy until I watched “The Push” on YouTube and set my bows up with a 3-under fixed crawl.
Bagged a doe in late January with a 45# Omega Original longbow and acquired a couple of vintage Wing recurves, 45# Red Wing Hunter (1963) and 47# Thunderbird (1967).
I shoot at a 3D Rinehart buck target almost every day, I am now very accurate inside of 20 yards. Favorite bow is the Red Wing Hunter, everything about it feels just right.
In all three bows, I am using full length 400 spine Beman ICS Bowhunter pro arrows with 250 grain tips, 546 grain total. These chrono at 150-160 FPS depending on the bow. Slowest is the Omega, arrow was a clean pass through on the doe I shot with it.
Leave one of your arrows unfletched and tune it to your bow/form for straight flight by adjusting point weight and/or length. I was able to tune with point weight. It will also define the right nock height, which is crazy high to get level flight with a fixed crawl setup. That way your broadheads will land at the same spot as field points.
Good luck with your journey and hunting.
Thanks so much! I watched The Push video which is actually what drove me to ordering my first longbow! Thanks so much for your advice, I've got so much to learn.
Welcome and enjoy. Stick with one bow for awhile. IMHO In the end it's the archer more than the bow, but all them bows do look great.
Thanks for the welcome and advice! My wife might kill me if I started buying a ton of bows!
No worries there. I'm hoping my first bow will be a solid bow for a long time. I'm not sure if I'll end up being proficient enough to hunt with it this season but that's just all the more reason to practice.
Work on form and don’t shoot to exhaustion.
This.
Took me a while to realize it, and I always have to force myself to stop. I am the kind of guy who could shoot the whole day at the same target without getting bored, but when you start using your shoulder, neck, or biceps muscles, it is time to stop. Ignoring it led me to pains and to lost/broken arrows.
Thank you Wudstix for the post
Thanks for the advice guys! I noticed it took a completely different set of muscles to draw & hold the shot with a tradbow. Definitely a different experience without those cams to hold all the weight for ya. I'll be sure to focus heavily on form and shot follow through.
Also, I have just read your second post. Good luck with Grad School, it is one of the toughest things I've done in my life. Remember to schedule time with your family and friends, and whenever you feel in a corner with no way out, say something about it. Seek your colleagues' advice. Don't isolate yourself, it will save you a lot of pain.
Archery wise, it is great that you have a piece of land. I find that training regularly, even just for 15 minutes, but multiple times per week, will do better on your accuracy than shooting more rarely but for longer sessions. Just my two cents.
And welcome to Trad Gang
This really hit home man. I'm doing two short summer semesters, each one is 5 weeks long. Three classes in the first, two in the second and then grad school is done. Not to whine but I've been having a tough time mentally with all of this lately. I wake up and read for school, I go to work, come home, eat dinner, put the kids to bed, and study/work on school until late at night. Weekends are just an attempt to catch up on everything school related I never had time to do during the week. It's been very taxing. I try to keep reminding myself that I've only got 6 weeks left... I'm looking forward to having my life back.
Thanks for your kind words and advice.
my advice is keep at it. Takes time to develop good form and consistency. 6 seasons nothing but squirrels here. But I'm keeping at it. Hello LUMEN...I am located in western KY...Slaugthers, KY...~2' 35"s away(~164 miles)
It should be worth your while to visit or even stay a couple of days...I have plenty of arrows to get you in the ball park for specs, have worked successfully with many traditional archers from entry level to world class and live on my farm which is developed specifically for hi quality deer management...note:planning to have 14 foodplots this year which may be of particular interest since you have just acquired your own property.
Heck if you're hunting squirrels you must be a pretty darn good shot! I'll stick with it! I'm looking forward to this new challenge.