bow draw weight?

[inksoup]

for hunting
what should the bow draw weight be? and for what?

thanks...

[Jim Picarelli]

In the state I live in, the minimum draw weight for a hunting bow is 35lb. I like my hunting bows in the high 40-low 50 lb range

[Whip]

Depends on what you want to hunt.  Squirrels to elephants covers a wide range.

Most people are looking for deer sized game.  States have varying rules on minimum draw weights, so that will enter into it.  I would suggest 40 pounds on up is a good place to start (if legal where your hunt) and manageable for most people.  

Heavy arrows with perfectly tuned flight will really work to your advantage, especially if you are pushing the lower limits of effective draw weight.

[rockkiller]

I live in Wyoming and the minimums I think are 40 lbs for deer,bear. sheep,mountain goat and antelope,and 50 lbs for elk,moose etc.
I shoot 58 to 63 lbs

[daveycrockett]

I've recently dropped a bunch of weight. Gone from 60 plus at my draw of 30.5 to 51 . I've never hunted with a bow this light. Bow tuned out with a 490 gr. arrow. I knew what my 60 lb. bows would do, have no clue what this new setup is gonna do on the local deer and hogs.

[Friend]

As always, a subject of considerable debate and personal choice.

[duncan idaho]

Depends on your physical conditioning and how hard you want to work...anything above 55# will require you to work harder, so I guess only you can answer that.

[legends1]

I shoot 51# @ 31" with a 600 grn. arrow. Has worked great for me all the way up to elk. If I didn't hunt elk I would shoot around the mid 40's. We build more bows in the mid to high 40's than any other weight. That kinda says something.

[RecurveRookie]

Ink,  That is a very common question from people.  I am wondering,  "Are you big and strong, and  how much can you pull now?"  I started at 35# and worked up to 45, then 50, and thought, "That's pretty good, but I think I can go higher, just for the hunting power advantage, in case I meet a big hog."  For deer and smaller hogs, 40 - 45# minimum.....IMHO.  But if you are willing to work a little, why not get more power if possible, as a safety margin?
I'm 42 yrs. 175 lbs, 5'8", and not a particularly strong guy.  Cheers

[Stickbender87]

i run 51 to 58 depending on arrow set up. its all in what you can shoot accurately, and have your tuned with, i do believe the more weight the better when it comes to getting a pass through. i have killed deer with 55 to 58 pounds and have had all pass throughs with shots from 5 yards out to 20 yards with a bamboo and or carbon shafts with 3 blades and 2 blades. so again all in what you can accurately shoot

[duncan idaho]

I shoot 51# @ 31" with a 600 grn. arrow. Has worked great for me all the way up to elk. If I didn't hunt elk I would shoot around the mid 40's. We build more bows in the mid to high 40's than any other weight. That kinda says something.

--------------------
As a matter of discussion, what do you think it says?
That the majority of traditional hunters only hunt deer and small game? I would think that if one was after big hogs, elk, moose, bear, goat, etc..they would want something at least in the 50's.
Has the high cost of hunts for the species, (placing them out of range for most working people), I listed, making the average bow weight drop down into 40's?
Just curious, because, there has been a very steady decline in  bow weight over the past few years, evidenced by the numerous "what is the minimum amount of weight i can use threads".
Just would like your opinion because of your bow crafting experience. Thanks.

[gringol]

I dont think your strength has much to do with this question.  State regs typically say 35-40# so that should be the lower limit. If you can manage more than that, go for it, but theres no need to go nuts.  80# bows are cool, but so are howitzers...  Id guess that more folks are over bowed than under bowed.  If you cant come to anchor and hold steady for 5 seconds, i think your over bowed.Control is more useful than raw power.

[NBK]

Lots of opinions complete with anecdotal evidence supporting them.  A broad brush stroke would be 50-55 @ 28 is the trad equivant of a 30.06.  It will kill anything without killing you.  Just feed it the right ammo, (I.e. well tuned arrows).

[legends1]

Its true, subject of bow weight comes up a lot. I think the big thing is the bows we are all building today perform much better than past years. The advanced materials and designs have made big advancement. In many cases you can shoot a bow 5-6 pounds less than bows of the past and get the same performance. Also the use of heavier arrows have made a difference. I don't look at bow weight anymore for bow performance as I did id the past. I think our thinking in the future will get away from the bow weight as thinking about performance but as what someone can pull comfortable. When people ask about bow weight I always tell them its best to find a weight you can shoot comfortable at a 3D shoot and have fun. You will always shoot a comfortable bow better. When a person pulls a bow once and says that's almost to light. I tell them this " If it feels light, its probably right". There are way to many heavy bows for sale in the classifieds. I also find that the people we build two sets of limbs for a heavy and lighter. They find one of those that they shoot all the time and they rarely shoot the other set. So why waste your money. Get a limb weight that works for all your shooting. Hope my thoughts can assist some in the question of weight.

One must remember that the number is abstact.  If a 38 pound bow shoots a 440 grain arrow 20 yards farther than a 50 pound longbow, which one is more powerful?  No one would argue that the 50 pound longbow would not do the job on a whitetail, but get that number below 40 and all kinds of people will think that it is not enough.  I can tell you that a straight flying arrow from a fairly quick shooting 38 pound bow will shoot an arrow completely through 140 pound Iowa whitetails.  I did it myself one time with a 36 pound Hill longbow.  I would recommend using more power, if you can still be accurate enough.  I have a 26" draw and so does my wife, if your draw is longer you will have noticably more power to play with.  Those with long draws have a lot more power per pound than us short draw folks.

[damascusdave]

I am 61 years old and was 57 when I got into shooting traditional bows seriously...I started out with a bow that drew 30 pounds at 28 inches...the latest bow I bought pulls 65 pounds at 28 inches...I was just going to use it to condition myself to heavier draw weights to make shooting 60 pounds seem easy...that only lasted until I shot the bow of course...now I am determined to master it...if I can get it to my nominal draw length of 30 inches it will be awfully close to 70 pounds draw weight...my goal is to shoot a moose with it this fall, although if an elk came by I would not pass up the chance

DDave

[Goshawkin]

At least the minimum legal weight for where you're hunting.Other than that it's up to you.
55# is light to some guys,heavy to others.Same can be said for any other weight you want to pick as well.Try some out and shoot what ever you like and are comfortable with.

[Sam McMichael]

I like heavier draw weights, so I never bothered about minimum requirements. However, if you live in a state that has minimums, by all means, adhere to them. Lighter bows will do the job so there is no need to become obsessed with high draw weight. However, if I were advising a newbie, assuming normal strength and ability, I would suggest about 50#. My personal preference is my 65# Hill Wesley Special.

[sagebrush]

It's not just the efficiency of the bow or the draw weight, it is the draw length also. I like to shoot bows 55-60 lbs. with a 30 inch draw. I know you can kill stuff with less but I hunt elk and like the extra penetration in case of a bad hit. My buddy has a 28 inch draw and he never gets the penetration I do. If you shoot much at all it isn't that hard to work up to heavier weights. I used to shoot 65 lbs. Gary

[damascusdave]

I am fortunate to live where I can step out my back door and start shooting...I shoot at least a couple of arrows every day and a lot more than that some days...I think that the animals we hunt are deserving of that kind of commitment...if I found I could not put in that kind of effort I would switch back to hunting with a wheel bow

DDave