Guys..I am struggling

[leatherneck]

Are you having fun shooting traditional? Thats the first question you need to ask yourself. Thats also the most important. Killing/harvesting is an added bonus. Thats part will come in due time. I let a BIG miss send me back to the dark side many moons ago. I killed alot of deer once i went back but I wasn't having fun. Well I came back several years ago and I'm having fun again. I think we as hunters take killing as the only reason we hunt.

[T Folts]

I had the exact same feeling my first and second year so I know how you feel. My brother who shoots a compound kept encouraging me and I stuck with it and I didnt even shoot a deer my 1st year. I evaluated the hunts and relized it didnt have anything to do with the choice of bow because I didnt even have a shot I could have made with the compound so it wasnt the bow. During th second year I connected with a buck from the ground and every thought I ever had is GONE peroid. That shot is forever burned into my mind, the flight of the arrow the impact and the deer running away, not my biggest by a long shot but my best. Keep at it and you will be rewarded beyond your expectations.
Terry

[tarponnut]

One of the joys of traditional archery is that it IS difficult. If we just wanted to shoot deer we would wait for gun season to "hunt".
I would just enjoy your time in the woods and have fun. Shoot at stumps, squirrels, and be ready when the first legal deer gives you a shot.

[BradLantz]

for me, what kept me back was the super strong desire to succeed and by that I mean the feeling that if I missed a big buck or didn't kill one with trad (when if I'd been using a compound I would have) it was a failure

I hope/think I've shed that now that I'm older. There is still a strong tie to success and a filled tag but I recognize now the journey is the hunt, the hunt is the success and the success isn't as weighted with a filled tag as it once was.

I can say too that when you do fill a tag with trad its so much more rewarding .... its why you do it

[VAFarmer]

Im in the same boat as you, brother.

Went the first day (Saturday) in the morning, trapsing thru the brush, and herd the famous "snort-wheeze of doom".  Went a little farther, and found where they are bedding down.   This was good as the harvest for me-now I know where they are sleeping back there.

Went Saturday evening-walking the edge of an open field, and jumped 3. Shoot-I almost stumbled on them, I was about 25 yds away when they moved.  I would have taken this shot, had I seen'em. Again, good as gold-now I know where they like to bed down up there.

Now, if you are TOTALLY dependant on them for food-this is discouraging. But hey, that's what rifle season's for.
Just Saturday I had to put this into perspective for myself-so here goes-
You started this because something inside was urging you to go this route.  You made the choice to do like I did, and pull your hair out trying to match arrows to your bow-wondering if you bought too much bow, or too little.  Sitting here watching these other guys who have been doing it awhile harvest the deer that YOU want to be harvesting.
Well, you didn't start it to begin with cause you thought it would be easy-so now is the time for you to persevere.  We (as men) were wonderfully and fearfully made-there is no limit to our potential but our own selves.  
Stick it out with me-we will be better men later on down the road, not because we finally "got one", but because we had faith, and saw it thru.

God bless you buddy,

Farmer

[kbetts]

Switched after almost 20 years with a compound.  So far, one turkey (all we're allowed a year in DE), and two deer.  Never going back.  Like so many have said, success will take the doubt away.  All of my friends still shoot wheel bows and I still work on them but now I have found "my way".
One thing I will say, however, is being a shooter and a hunter are two different things.  I'm no Olympic archerer but I feel above average when it comes to closing the deal.  With less to think about at crunch time, instinct does it all for you.

[stickbow2442]

This is my 3rd season with a traditional bow. The first year I hunted with it I got a deer the 4th time out. Last year I missed 7 shoots at deer and got none. I really thought about buying another wheel bow. But I really enjoy my longbow to much. I decided that if I get a deer great and if I don't oh well. I will enjoy being in the woods. And now I hunt small game with my bow also. I never did with a wheel bow.
I never practiced much with a wheel bow but I shoot year around with my longbow just because I love it.
You can shoot with both if you want to. Get a deer with your wheel bow, then the rest of the season use your traditional bow.
Its all about having a good time with archery and hunting. Good luck.

[tradtusker]

After hunting 10 years you'l know by now that everyone makes mistakes/poor shots even the very best archers hunters mess it up they just do it less often so dont be put off with a poor shot or miss. or dont let that thought mess with you.
Confidence is a Very big factor i think you have to believe when that string comes back that the arrow is going to find its mark.

i know a few guys that can not shoot well on paper, but they are the deadliest shots when that animal gets in front of them.

good luck with the season stick with it
! it is Very rewarding

[GingivitisKahn]

Sounds to me (from the other side of my computer screen - heh) that you are focused on the kill rather than the hunt.

Have fun with your trad stuff - do some stump shooting, still hunting, etc.  Sure, take a doe or something at the first opportunity, but that's not the hunt - it's just the work after the hunt.

[dragonheart]

Lean into your fear.

[JL]

Everybody has different comfort levels with  their equipment and/or shooting/hunting ability. I will tell you this; if you lack cofidence in either, you have already talked yourself out of the shot.

At some point, traditional equipment will feel "right" in your hands. This takes time and a lot of pratice. There is no shame in going back to a compound if you feel you airn't ready yet.

I will also tell you this, traditional equipment has taken every species of game that walks. There is no reason to second guess the equipment. Just got to get yourself right. Keep with it, make sure your arrows are flying true and your broadheads are hair popping sharp. You'll be fine once you get a couple on the ground.

JL

[Gehrke145]

Shoot both!  I still shoot a compound (mostly for 3d, but I do hunt with it as well sometimes).  I like shooting trad bows alot, but I also like putting big animals on the ground!  If you have doe tags start filling them with the recurve.  If the ruts really going and you are getting a little unsure pick up the compound.  There is nothing wrong with wanting to fill tags, but that first doe with the stick will be way better then any PY critter you've shot to date!

[waknstak IL]

Only been hunting with a trad bow 4 years. Its hard to give up the comfort of wheels but the feeling is great when success finally comes. Get doe tags and shoot every chance you get, its all about confidence and concentration. Stick with it you'll be glad you did. I look at my longbow more as a advantage than a disadvantage now.

[Jeff Strubberg]

Originally posted by Altiman94:
This is my first year dedicating to trad gear.

I sold my compound to concentrate on my trad bow right after turkey season here in Iowa.  Now I'm having thoughts that maybe I should go back to a compound.

I'm shooting well, I'm seeing deer.  I don't know why I am having these doubts.  Can someone chime in and help me out?

What do you think would be better about going back to your compound?  What's the attraction?

[BradLantz]

"What's the attraction?"

If he's feeling what I felt its knowing I was 2" group with a compound at 0-35 yards and anything that came within that distance was very likely double lunged and shooting a trad bow I'm not that good a shot and knowing I COULD have made that shot with a compound after the fact .... it weighed on me a long time and still does if I miss or don't get a shot opportunity.

I love the hunt for the hunt ..... I also like filling tags with big antlers and setting the table with tender young venison too and there is a balance that has to be met I think ....

[tradtusker]

I see no reason why trad gear will restrict anyone filling tags or shooting Big Animals?

there are tons of guys on this site alone that use only trad gear and shoot big animals (trophys if you will) consistently year in year out and fill the freezer, their is no limit with trad gear i think it's just case of taking your skill as a hunter and an efficient archer to the next level, to get it done.

everyone hunts at a different level i guess, you gotta have the drive though, i feel no restrictions with a longbow in my hand.
i also know a lot of guys that shoot both compound and trad ( i used to) can work very well in different situations, but dont get the misconception that it cannot all be done with the trad gear consistently. I dont ever pick up the compound anymore because i know i can do it with my trusty longbow

[Jeff Strubberg]

Originally posted by BradLantz:
"What's the attraction?"

If he's feeling what I felt its knowing I was 2" group with a compound at 0-35 yards and anything that came within that distance was very likely double lunged and shooting a trad bow I'm not that good a shot and knowing I COULD have made that shot with a compound after the fact .... it weighed on me a long time and still does if I miss or don't get a shot opportunity.

I love the hunt for the hunt ..... I also like filling tags with big antlers and setting the table with tender young venison too and there is a balance that has to be met I think ....

I ask because the first post says "I'm shooting well".

You can't find an answer until you find a question.

If it's a confidence thing, I would say you need to shoot at some critters before you make up your mind.  If it's something else, then the answer  could be very different.

First, we have to find the question.

[Biggie Hoffman]

If you're not ready you're not ready. Don't fight it. You're supposed to be enjoying yourself!
Come back when you're ready. We'll be here.

[Tioga]

I went through the same thing when I made the switch. We were in our 4th year of antler restrictions here in Pa, and I was seeing some slammers. I kept seeing this vision in my dreams of one of these slammers standing just outside of my effective stickbow range laughing at me.

  Well that dream was put to rest on the 5th day of the season. Wasn't one of the slammers, but a very respectable buck that decided to walk right into my shooting lane. Was the most exciting hunting day of my life bar none. Well worth all the worry.

I've thought about compounds since just to change things up, but then I pick up a catalog and see what they look like nowadays, and I just plain forget about it. Ugliest danged things around.  

[GANGGREEN]

I'm also in my first year where I'll be hunting exlusively with trad gear.  Frankly, I'd sell my compound (or trade it for another recurve) if I didn't have two young boys that may decide they want to hunt with compounds one day.  I'm shooting "OK" with the recurve but have nowhere near the confidence that I did with my compound.  

I had a spike at 18-20 yards broadside today and it would have been dead, dead, dead, without even thinking about it if I shot at it with my compound.  With the recurve I was "pretty sure" I could have made the shot.  I don't suppose I would have taken him anyway but, as Tioga points out, we have antler restrictions in PA and it wasn't even considered.

The one thing that has surprised me a bit is that I can't draw cleanly from a fair number of positions from my treestands.  I really enjoy treestand hunting and plan to continue to hunt from elevated stands with my recurve.  I've been in my stands this fall and always take some practice draws from different positions and there are shots that I'll have to pass up even though I'm only shooting a 58" recurve.  I'm actually considering an ultra-short recurve to make it easier, though I suppose it may be difficult to find one that shoots as well as what I'm using now.