Pros and Cons of Hill Style longbow?

[toddster]

Rossco= there have been alot of good advice on here from some very good shooters.  Like alot said it takes a little changing to shoot the style of bow.  I had several r/d bows that shot well and bought a hill and struggles, noted by someone, I didn't adapt.  I read somewhere where Mr. Hill said, "guys will spend hundreds on bows, but not a cent on learning how to shoot them right."  So, I went to see Mr. Bob Wesley and learned what I was doing wrong, and yes, shooting the Hill bow is more of an overall philosophy.  I heard great things about David Miller's shooting school too.

[Rossco7002]

Guys,

Thanks for all the great advice! As always I'm cut but the laser sharp insight (i.e. I'm looking for an excuse to buy another bow). How true!!!

I'm currently shooting bows at 52lbs and 49 lbs at my draw (27 inch) and want to go a bit lighter with my next purchase. What is a good (light weight) whitetail setup for a Hill style bow?

[Bud B.]

Put one in your hands and shoot it. Have an experienced Hill shooter with you to offer pointers.

I have an old Bingham project bow I got three decades ago. It has a longer handle but the handle is slimmer than a true Hill. I took it to an archery shop to get some arrows for it and as soon as the shop guy saw it he said I needed another bow. Not sure why he said this but he gave me three arrows to shoot. all with the same shaft spine but different tips and lengths. (carbon) At his shop range I put two of them side by side and the third was about 2" from the others. It was only about 10 yards but hitting his 5" orange dot with that group he never said anything else about me needing another bow.

If you don't hold it right it'll vibrate your teeth. If you don't have a reasonably clean release then groups are spread.

To echo the comments already stated, shoot what you want but try before you buy if possible. BUT, have that experienced Hill shooter nearby to help you. My experience has been trial and error which, for this style shooting and bow, is not advisable.

I enjoy mine more and more. I will one day own a true Hill style.

 

[Michigan Mark]

I imagine everyone is different but when shooting about 13 years, my HH bows, Wesley special or Redman I never had any hand shock that I noticed.

[kestimator]

I can't offer any better advice or insight than what has already been posted.  I'll just chime in with my opinion that as an archer, you should treat yourself to the HH experience.  If you give it an honest effort with a bow that is not too heavy for you, I think you'll like what you find out     If not, you probably won't have a difficult time finding one of us HH fans to give that bow a new loving home  

[Red Tailed Hawk]

I just recently acquired a new HH Tembo 70" 50#@30.
I wasnt really sure what to expect when I first shot it. I heard many talk of the tremendous amount of vibration "Tooth rattling" that they get during the shot.

I havent experienced any of this. All I get upon release is actually a quite pleasant little thump letting me know the arrow is on it's way.

This style of bow should not be gripped with a high wrist"It doesnt like it". If high wrist is your style this bow may not be for you.

The pro's of this bow for me is that I find it the most forgiving bow that I have shot to date. I dont claim to be some kind of expert and havent been shooting trad all that long, but for me this bow plain shoots!!

[kestimator]

Red Tailed Hawk,
I agree the "hand shock" that many describe has been a mystery to me.  All I feel is that "pleasant little thump" that I find so reassuring.  Well, I'm heading out right now with a friend of mine's homage to HH.  Gonna go try to find some agreeable pigs or does on public land not far from the house.  I'll be using my Sarrels Yukon with cedar arrows that Jason Ekin made for me pointed with HH broadheads.  Talk at you all later  

[Raging Water]

I am a dyed in the wool Hill Shooter. No Doubt.

Do I own bows that are easier to shoot, faster, more forgiving? Yep.

But, I love my Hills. Like it was said earlier, don't need Testosterone if you shoot a Hill. Just feels manly.

Oh, and boo hoo about the hand shock. Once you figure out how to hold a Hill, you will never have hand shock, and never look back.

Do yourself a favor. Buy a used one from the classifieds. They are always in demand. If you don't like it, you can easily re-sell it.

My 2 cents.

Matt

[monterey]

I think on the hand shock issue that arrow weight plays an important role.  I shoot way over 10 GPP and have no problem with hand shock.  I shoot 675 grain arrows from a 42# and 50#.  They just happen to match up in both bows.  Sometimes the Good Luck Fairy sits on your shoulder!

If you are shooting a 50# hill with 400 grain arrows it will probably show up.

[Mudd]

The only con I can think of with any Hills or Hill style bows that I have shot is draw weights.

I have found if I try to shoot a bow that is too low in draw weight my arrow release isn't as clean as with the proper draw weight for me.

A little over a year ago I was shooting bows in the low 40's and as I progressed up in weight I found my release getting better and therefore my accuracy increased.

Now I shoot bows between 52# and 57#,

I think my ideal is around 54@28.

My two cents worth.

God bless,Mudd


God bless,Mudd

[Kentucky Jeff]

When I first tried a Hill bow I wasn't too impressed. I was all over the place.

Then one night I was watching Fred Asbell's "Instinctive Shooting" video and there's a segment where he talks about the differences in shooting a longbow and recurve.  He picks up a Hill style bow and shows you how the limbs behave with different gripping forms.  My epiphaney came when he shows how the longbow limbs react when drawn with a high grip and why you must use a low grip on long bows.  It all has to do with how the bow is engineered and Hill bows are designed to be shot with the fulcrum (for lack of a better term)--the point where you support the bow handle at full draw--in the middle of the handle.  Recurves are designed to be shot with the fulcrum just below the shelf.  Again--you can see how the limbs work together (or don't) for both bows when he uses a correct grip for the bow in question and an incorrect grip.  When I saw that it was clear as a blue sky what I was doing wrong with my longbow and its made all the difference in my longbow shooting.

[Shakes.602]

My Outlook on the Situation: Take the  TIME  to Learn to Shoot a D-Bow Accurately, and You wont go Back!! There is something Extremely Rewarding about Shooting a Straight-Limbed Longbow and Hitting what You want, it is  THE  Greatest Feeling of Self-Accomplishment!!    P.S. I Shoot a High Grip due to a Fuzed Wrist, so I guess that Adds to the Love!!

[Ben Maher]

I own a bunch of bows,  trad and otherwise ... and I sell many different style 'trad ' bows through my shop . I have access to pretty much everything an archer could want and when I head into the field I am usually toting a Hill style bow ...

To be honest , I have bows that are 'easier' to shoot , and I have recurves that are so easy to tune they are a joy to set up , let alone . tack drive shoot ... A 300 round with these bows is great fun ...

But in the field and forest I want "deer" accuracy ..... and I get this from my Hills . They ain't the fastest and they have a 'bump' ... but they are sweet , slick and robust !!!

And at the end of things they are are about as "ol skool" as I can go in a glassed bow ... I play with other bow styles  , even hunt with them ... But Its the Hill style bow that floats my boat and has accounted for much of my limited success in the wilds , ... bringing home goats , hogs , deer , rabbits and foxes ...

Could I have dome with another style bow ? You bet !

Would I want to ?

Not really ...

[Stone Knife]

Originally posted by Ben Maher:
I own a bunch of bows,  trad and otherwise ... and I sell many different style 'trad ' bows through my shop . I have access to pretty much everything an archer could want and when I head into the field I am usually toting a Hill style bow ...

To be honest , I have bows that are 'easier' to shoot , and I have recurves that are so easy to tune they are a joy to set up , let alone . tack drive shoot ... A 300 round with these bows is great fun ...

But in the field and forest I want "deer" accuracy ..... and I get this from my Hills . They ain't the fastest and they have a 'bump' ... but they are sweet , slick and robust !!!

And at the end of things they are are about as "ol skool" as I can go in a glassed bow ... I play with other bow styles  , even hunt with them ... But Its the Hill style bow that floats my boat and has accounted for much of my limited success in the wilds , ... bringing home goats , hogs , deer , rabbits and foxes ...

Could I have dome with another style bow ? You bet !

Would I want to ?

Not really ...

That pretty much sums it up for ya. I love my Howard Hill Big Five, I have all kinds of bows but my Hill is my favorite to hunt with and to just shoot they are simple and fun and deadly in the woods. My Big Five is a no frills workhorse not a bow rack queen, pretty much bomb proof and a proven taker of game.

[Rossco7002]

Getting a ton of great advice here guys. Thanks.

What about this:

1) Are these bows just plain harder to shoot?

2) Is a low-40's Hill type bow good for whitetails? I wanna add a lower weight bow to my collection but I also want to make sure it won't disappoint in the field.

[Mudd]

Question 1.... no!

Question 2 ... they will punch through any white tail in the US with a good sharp 2 blade broadhead.

God bless,Mudd

[Kentucky Jeff]

1)  Harder to shoot?  No.  Different--Yes!  If you had never hot a bow before and picked up a Hill Bow and had someone who knows their way around a Hill bow teach you how to shoot it I don't think there's any real difference in the learning curve.  But the fact is that few people actually start on Hill bows.  So they learn how to do things differently and when they get a Hill Bow in their hands they try and shoot it in the style they learned as a recurve shooter and have a hard time trying to understand why they can't get the bow to perform and why it has so mu h hand shock.  

2)  Hill bows like big heavy arrows.  In my experience you hunt with a Heavy hill so you can throw big arrows at repectable speeds.   You can hunt with 40# Hills I suppose....but I've never done it.  Suppose someone will be along and tell you how they do it.

[Ben Maher]

Question 2 ...
What Mudd said .

[Rob DiStefano]

Originally posted by Rossco7002:
Getting a ton of great advice here guys. Thanks.

What about this:

1) Are these bows just plain harder to shoot?

2) Is a low-40's Hill type bow good for whitetails? I wanna add a lower weight bow to my collection but I also want to make sure it won't disappoint in the field.

try one.  you've to try some.  get thee to a shoot or rendezvous and try LOTS.  

all the words in the world ain't gonna help ya one bit - git out there and shoot and find out for yerself!

[arrow flynn]

i shot my highest 3d scores w a 44 lb hill bow nate steen put one of his wedge grips on it and the guy in 2nd place was surprised he had been in another groupwhen he saw whaty i was shooting well im certainly not the best archer you have ever seen and hill bows are not the fastest but they have afeel to them and when you are in the that bore ahole in it conncentration mode and you connect with it you will know it imho