goodbye compounds

[Spindrift]

After about 100 or so arrows through my $100 1966 grayling grizzly 58" 45#, I think I may rid myself of my alphamax 32     .. traditional shooting is so much more rewarding.. I bought a longbow last year and man what a difference between that and this Grizzly.. im sure ill be askin alot of questions, seeking advice, and getting input.. id like to purchase a nice hunting recurve in the very near future, so you guys can start throwin your 2 cents in there.. also would i be better off with carbon or aluminum in regards to ease of setting up with my bow?

   
   
 
 

[JimB]

That Grizzly is a smooth shooting bow with a nice grip.It is a great bow to start out on.Don't get in a big hurry to sink a bunch of money into a bow until you are sure what type of bow you and your shooting style like.

Any type arrow shaft will work if you tune it properly.Check out the tuning information at bowmaker.net and follow it to the letter.

You may have to do some shaft cutting to tune.You can cut aluminums with a small tubing cutter.You need an arrow saw or some cheap fiber wheel cutoff saw to cut carbons.

[Spindrift]

yeah i have Easton st. excel carbon 500's i got for my longbow cut at 28 3/4 with 125 tips and straight fletched feathers.. im thinking about changing shafts and definitley going to helical fletched.. probably switching to easton legacy aluminums i think the 2018's were right? as for the bows.. i love how this bow shoots and its comfortable for my shooting style, but coming from compounds makes me desire a slightly narrower grip

[ckanous]

Carbons will hold up a little better to missed shots  resulting in hitting hard objects. To me aluminums seem to be a bit easier to tune, maybe its just me. You gotta good bow to start with, shoot it and shoot it often! Nice choice of sub floor also and are those Hickory cabinets!

[GreyGhost83]

I just got back into trad archery myself and everyone here has been very helpful. You have come to the right place for knowledge and advice!

[Spindrift]

haha yes im in the process of remodelin my poor excuse for a house, but for 22 its a start..

[Eric Sprick]

Nice bow.  I had a 67 Grizzly, out of all the bows I've had that one I regret selling the most.

Eric.

[bigbadjon]

Thats a bow thats reliably served amateurs and pros alike for many a year, can't go wrong with a grizzly. I'm he'll chime in soon, but Rob DiStefano has a nice primer made up for beginners you can find on here. As far as my opinion on synthetic arrows, I prefer aluminum over carbon. Aluminums are more consistent, easier to cut, take hotmelt glue, can be straightened if it warps (like all shafts sometimes they just break),and usually has more choices in weight and spine. Carbon has some desirable traits, most notably it is quieter and smaller in diameter, but it is harder to work with and if you make a bad shot they still break just with no chance of salvaging.

[sawtoothscream]

i hear ya. ever since i got my new long bow i cant have fun shooting my alien x.  got my groups pretty tight at 20 yds and not horrible at 30 yds.  just bought another r/d long bow that shoul dbe here tuesday. been thinking about calling it quites with compounds.   my longbow will be out for turkey season and deer a few times this year.  cant wait

[stickem1]

Same here. I have been shooting a hand me down Ben Pearson cougar for a few years and just got a nice longbow. Now I only have one more wheelie to sell. It is much more satisfying for me shooting trad.
That is a sweet grizzly, and for what it's worth, my longbow shoots fmj's, 2018's, and cedars. Although they are different, they are all properly spined for my set up. I just personally prefer wood. Good luck with your new bow and HAVE FUN!!

[GO Rogers]

sweet

[cacciatore]

Nice Grizzly you have there!It is better you try as many bows as you can before making checks!

[Bowwild]

Like a lot here I've been at archery for more than 4 decades. Like several, but fewer, I've also only recently returned to traditional. I owned a relatively rare 56" Grizzly back in the early 70's. I was a righty then. Paid $60 new at the Tru-Flight shop in Monticello, IN. You have a very nice bow!

I love to tinker. I love to "game" with Stu's Calculator for hours at a time. I care very much that my broadheads and field tips shoot the same, BEYOND the distances I'll shoot at game.

That written, I'm going to share something that many will consider over simplistic. A good friend of mine, and equally devout archery nut, gave me this advice about 14 months ago. Because I would be shooting in the mid-40# range he advised I try Beman MFX Classics in size 600 (smallest diameter they make). My arrow weighs (with 100 grain broadhead and 75 grain insert) only 415 grains (2 complete pass-throughs on whitetails this past season).  I'm fletched with 3, 4" parabolic feathers (I'd go longer if I had a 28"+ draw length).

My arrows fly like dreams and you can't tell whether I've shot a broadhead or field tip in the target. I shoot this arrow in recurves from 45 pounds to 50 pounds at my 26" draw.

I have hundreds of aluminum arrows and shafts -- mostly 1916 and 2016--several are Easton legacy shafts still in the packaging. I love the toughness of these MFX shafts. I've been shooting 2 dozen for 14 months. I've broken one. I shoot at least every day, twice today... so far(I'm test-driving a Robertson Fatal Styk). My feathers are wearing out and I've destroyed several nocks, but the shafts (except for some finish chipping in too-tight groups)are the toughest I've ever shot. I just obtained 4 dozen more of these, 2 dozen 600 and 2 dozen 500 as I'm going to bump my set-up to get to a 500+ grain arrow.

Maybe this shaft won't work for you as well? However, my buddy saved me a lot of trouble, experimenting, and likely some frustration by passing on his experience to me. That is my hope for you.

[Bowwild]

P.S. I only wish (and my wife more so) I could settle on a bow (or two) as firmly as I'm locked in on the arrow! I am lucky though, the arrow, with broadhead, is the most important part of the hunting equation for me.

[Mudd]

Welcome to the tradgang family!

Enjoy your journey along with the rest of us.

God bless,Mudd

[Bow Bum]

Welcome to trad!

You've already got a good hunting recurve. Make sure to give it a fair shake. It could save you alot of money.

I sway towards aluminum. Its very easy to manipulate the spine, and point weight right in my basement with a tubing cutter and hotmelt glue.

Carbon will always win the durability contest. but alumnum is right behind it durability-wise.

Have Fun!

Brian

[Ky Double Lung]

Good looking Griz' don't be surprised if you found your hunting recurve already!    

[The Whittler]

Congrats on the bow. Stick bows are great.

If you are going to alum. then I would try 1916 or maybe 1816. For carbons I think the 600 spine should work.  Good luck, have fun and enjoy.

[Fletcher]

Welcome to the Gang, Spindrift.  The '64 -'67 Grizzly is one of the finest bows Bear ever designed and made, IMO.  Mine is a '67.  Best grip ever and a great shooter.

I'm pretty much an ate up wood arrow guy, but the aluminums will work well, too.  I think you will do better with a 2016 or maybe 1916, depending on length and point weight.  A 2018 will spine almost 70 lb and would need to be quite long or have a really heavy point to tune well.

[Spindrift]

my shafts without nock and point would be somewhere around 28 3/4" and i try to shoot 125 g points (if the bow will allow me)