Longbow Elk weight??

[String Cutter]

I have a mild R/D longbow that I shoot 47@27. If I stick with 12-13 grains per pound, use a sharp 2 blade and have  good arrow flight??? Is this enough for Elk??
I've been checking out past threads and can't really find a clear cut answer??

[Prairie Wanderer]

I'm not an elk hunter yet, not till this fall anyway, but I've seen it in several places that once you get to 12gr per pound you lose some ground in the momentum category and it was recommended staying between 9 and 11gr per pound.  I'm sure someone else will chime in shortly.  I've talked to several people who have taken elk with a 45# bow and the basic opinion I've heard from them is that it is enough, but that if you are comfortable shooting heavier, do so.  But use a sharp two blade and it will do the job, you just have to do your part.  More poundage won't help if you can't hit with it.

[Longbow Bowhunter]

Where doyou plan on hunting and what does the regulation say for min weight to hunt elk with? Some sates have a 50# min draw

[overbo]

IMO,NO
55lbs minium for me and I like 65+lbs.Big target that bowhunters can stretch their shooting abilities when compared to whitetails shooting distances.

[Alex.B]

that would give you a 564-611 gr arrow launched from a 47# bow. from what I've learned reading David Petersen & Doc Ed, you're not making the cut. You should shoot a minimum of 600gr from a bow pulling at least 50# at a maximum of 20 yards. Time to hit the gym          
PS:And,if you were to follow Ed Ashby's  calculations to the T, your 564gr arrow should come out of your bow at 230 Fps to have enough "umph" for mighty Wapiti. you're not gonna' get that from a 47# trad bow.     :D

[COOCH]

I am an elk hunter and have taken a few.If you keep your shots close,have great arrow flight,and a shaving sharp broadhead YES however I'm still not a fan of anything under 60# for elk size and larger game. they are very stocky critters hides are thicker as well as there ribs and shots tend to be a little farther out west than most first timers realize. 27 yards is the national distance average for elk.I spend most of sept in elk camp in New Mexico I've seen to many instances were a low poundage bow didn't get it done,most of them were highly efficient C-bows.Just one mans humble opinion.

[centaur]

You need 50# in Wyoming to be legal, and you will want it. Elk are big critters, particularly if you are used to whitetails. Get a bit more bow; you will be glad you did if the elk decide to cooperate and get close enough for a shot.

[Bjorn]

You won't find a clear cut answer to that question. I'd say your set up is marginal and you could be asking for real trouble, and not just legal either.
Others will give you differing opinions, and if everything is working perfectly your setup might be adequate.
For me, that's just not good enough and I respect the animal more than that; but that's just another opinion.

[One eye]

Maybe ROn LaClair will chime in on this one.  He sent me a pic a year ago of one of his customers who tool a huge bull in New Mexico with one of his Shrews at 47# of draw weight.  Pick your shots well and you will be fine.

Dan

[Gordon martiniuk]

Elk are the toughest of big game animals to take with a bow there ribs are thick and curved and close together the elk I have taken where shot at 70 lbs and I got complete pass through but that was at 70lbs 47lbs? I dought you will have sucess  

[Bill Turner]

Sounds like a great reason to buy another bow. Think they call it a man-law.  

[brackshooter]

I know many who have taken elk with low poundage bows, but I believe that usually involves not hitting ribs.  Elk have thick ribs covered by fat, hair, and, if in the rut, sometimes a decent layer of mud.  I would up your weight as much as possible and stick to a 600+ grain arrow and a shaving sharp 2 blade.  BTW, minimum here in oregon is 50# as well.

[String Cutter]

ttt

[j yenney]

I Think the law in Wyoming is that your bow has to be able to cast a 500gr arrow so many yards. Oregon will let it go also. You would not get a ticket anywhere in the western states for being at 47 pds and needing 50pds. I've shot quite a few elk with a recurve and 47 pds is more than enough, so long as you keep your shots inside 25 yards. A question like that is always going to get the "MAGNUM" crew going and seems to get asked at least every couple of months. Elk are thick animals, but you don't need 60 pds. to kill an elk. I use 52pds now and have used 48pds before and never had any problems. Just my 2 cents worth.

[String Cutter]

Well da bow is marked 50@28 so, I guess I would be legal in most states.. Unless the DNR man checked my draw??? Even then I think I could squeeze an extra inch of draw for him...    
Anyone else out there hunt with 50# or less for elk??

[wislnwings]

I'm planning on using my Crow Creek this fall.  It is 50@27".  I figure that since shot placement is the most important thing, and this is the bow I shoot best, its the one I should take.

[Doug Treat]

I have taken 5 elk with bows in the 45-50# range.  It's not the bow, it's the arrow!!!  600+ grains with a 2-blade head will do it.  I don't even stick to the "gotta-keep-your-shots-close" rule but it is harder to shoot those heavier arrows at longer ranges because of trajectory.  I have shot through elk and then broken bones on the other side with a setup like yours with heavy arrows.  One time I punched a hole through the offside scapula on a 40 yd. shot with a 630 gr. arrow and last year with a 47# longbow and 650 gr. arrow I broke the humorus bone IN HALF from 25 yds.

[donw]

i don't know what, if anything, it means, but i once shot an arrow at a junked car door with 50 pounds and the feild tipped arrow completely penetrated the door and i still have a black diamond that buried 1/2" into a rock i hit.

i would use nothing LESS than your current poundage along with an absolutely scary sharp two blade broadhead.

[String Cutter]

well,i just found 2 dz. ash arrows that weigh in @ 600-620. They seem to be shootin pretty good out of my 47# longbow. And are even rocking the chunck of 3d target im shootin at.But they drop like a rock after 25 yards.

[Wudstix]

Never been hunting for elk, but all I've read and heard is shoot the heaviest bow you can shoot accurately.  As several have said limit you shot to 25 yards.  Also, from what I've read many shots at elk are longer than at whitetails.  Big country, big critter.  But what do I know I use my 63# MOAB on everything from squirrels to 225# boar.