bows that feel lighter

[Rob DiStefano]

IMO, the perception of a lighter holding weight is typically a result of smoother drawing bow limbs.  This drawing "smoothness" is really very close intervals of increasing draw weight and is a product of limb design and materials.  It's hard to find a smoother limb core material - and limb veneer! - than Tonkin cane.  YMMV.

[Morning Star]

With my 27.5" draw, my 60" Widow recurves have seemed lighter than actually are.  Just a good smooth limb I guess.

[Orion]

I agree Rob, bamboo makes for a very smooth drawing bow, which will often give the impression that the bow is lighter than it is.  All the bows I shoot now have bamboo limbs.  But even among those, two seem to draw particularly sweet and less than marked -- a GN Ghost recurve and a Dwyer longbow.  And, yes, I've scaled them both, and I have others in the same weight class to compare them to.

[Irish]

Of all the bows I have shot, it would be a Widow with bamboo limbs.

[DeerSpotter]

I would have to say out of the bows that I have had and it is about seven bows, the
" whisperstik " is one that is 45# but it feels like I'm drawing 42#.

I thinkit is because the whisperstik is so smooth in the draw and I might add also the quietest bow I've had.

It's also the reason I'm getting another one.

Carl

[GingivitisKahn]

Does the bow that feels lighter have the same sort of grip?  

At the risk of starting a nearly religious war...

Regardless of preferences for shooting high or low wrist (or something in between), I believe a bow with a straight grip (which encourages a lower wrist) will feel like it draws a bit easier than an identical bow with a pistol grip (which encourages a higher wrist).

[Elk whisperer]

Sometimes they are lighter than they are marked.

[wingnut]

We spent a lot of money on the digital scale we use to weigh each bow.  It weighs to tenths of the pound and we round up and down at over and under .5.

I will tell you that if you do a force draw curve on the bows that feel lighter you will find that the line has high early weight and consistant weight gain per inch.  

Mike

[WidowEater]

the first straight limb longbow i ever shot felt very smooth and very lighter than what it was rated.  It was a Liberty English.  BWs seem very smooth too.  At least compared to a flatbow I have.

[Gordon martiniuk]

Mine is a Jack Kemph little Grizzly it is 61#@28 but feels like 54lbs very smooth      

[NDTerminator]

I have a Kota Prairie Swift that feels much lighter than it's 55#@29"....

[bentpole]

Bows that feel lighter than their actual draw weight? I  had a few. My 2 Turkeycreeks, felt much lighter than their actual draw weight. My Thunderstick Mag felt lighter than it's actual draw weight and my Mohawk Longbow feels alot lighter than it's actual draw weight. The Mohawk is light as a feather in actual weight too, all Tonkin Cane Limbs, it's fun to carry and shoot.I believe limb design and limb woods have alot to do with it.

[Orion]

Gingivitis:  I agree that "wrist" can have something to do with it.  High wrist is more fatiguing than low wrist, and though it might not be noticeable with a few arrows, a lot of arrows might make a bow feel a tad heavier.

Wingnut:  Your findings match my experience as well.  My Ghost and Dwyer do front load more than the others.

[ArkyBob]

My Arkansas Stick Caddo LB feels lighter than the 52# that it is marked.  Smooth from the start of the draw until I anchor.  The amazing thing about it is that it is only a 58" bow.    BOB

[LBR]

I've drawn a few that felt noticeably lighter than marked--yew is another limb core that seems to be smoother, at least at my longer draw length.

On the flip side, I've drawn a few that felt a whole lot heavier than they were marked.  Most, if not all of these had carbon lams--but I have drawn a few with carbon that felt like glass.

I think the bowyer's skill has as much or more to do with it as the limb core, although I have felt a difference in two identical bows with different cores--osage vs. yew--the yew was MUCH smoother.

Chad