I know that a lot of people say you should go with your max weight you are comfortable pulling when hunting but we are talking maybe 1-2 shot's (maybe 5-10 more for warm up before a hunt) in a day.
Shooting these tournaments or long practice sessions I can shoot upwards of 200 arrows so being able to stay fresh through a 3-5 hour shooting session or all day shooting affair is very important.
With that being said, does anyone know what draw weight the current top guys in longbow field/3D are shooting in tournaments?
I've been shooting a 40# draw for a year and have been thinking about going up to a 45# draw as a 5# increase should not be too much to handle.
I can handle 64# on the fingers but there's no way in hell I would be able to shoot that all day at events.
So basically my question is can a 45# D style longbow with no reflex nor deflex still throw an arrow relatively fast (160-170fps) and be used effectively for 3D/Field and possibly even hunting (hunting deer at most)?
This will be my first longbow and I found a really good deal on it (I don't want to put out a lot of money for my first longbow.) but I don't want to get it and have it cast an arrow ridiculously slow.
I figure I can always use it for form work in the future as well.
I read somewhere that the average weight bow used by Olympic archers is 38-39#. I personally like a 40# recurve, or a 42-43# reflex/deflex longbow, for 3D. The extra couple of pounds on the longbow helps offset the slightly lower speed I get out a longbow because of inherent differences and because most longbow tournaments I enter require wood arrows. I find that carbon arrows that are easy to tune are readily available for 40# recurves, and they have a relatively flat trajectory out to 50 yards. This becomes more difficult at weights under 40#. Even at 40#, I get a few bounce-offs of 3D targets that have been refinished a lot and have built up a hard surface. We give credit for bounce-backs, if someone else sees where they hit, but not skip-offs. I think some of my skip-offs might have stuck with a heavier weight bow and arrow. But I can shoot a 40# bow all day, whereas my shooting suffers by the end of the day with 45# or more. (Actually, my shooting suffers throughout the day regardless of what bow I'm shooting, but that's a different issue!)
My mentor, Rick Welch, shoots whatever bow he's currently hunting with, 55#, for example. But I'm not Rick Welch.
Sorry, can't help you with D shaped longbows, but I would imagine 45# would be sufficient.
Thanks for the advice I appreciate it and keep shooting straight!
Rich is a hell of a shot he probably gets a really flat trajectory shooting 55#.
I have been shooting a 66" D type 52# longbow almost every day forever. I think that it is what you get use to. I'm 65 years old ( which is just a number right).I have never felt the need for higher poundage, punch through deer just find,course if I was planning on shooting big game animals I would probably re-think that hunt.A well tuned bow of any poundage is a awesome thing to behold. (http://i.imgur.com/zMI1X9y.jpg)
When I was in my 40's I shot a 64" Monarch Royal at 55#. I loved that bow and shot it everyday. I won class in several 3-D tournaments with it and always placed in the top 3. I also hunted with that bow and killed a couple of deer and an elk with it. The best weight is what you are comfortable shooting a lot. Since I shot lots of arrows with that bow every day I was comfortable with that weight. Now that I'm almost 60 and recovering from major surgery/battling cancer, 6 arrow's out of a 30# bow and I am done for a couple of days.
Most of the top barebow shooters are shooting around 40# at their draw for targets, and then up to 55# for hunting. Longbow shooters seem to err towards 45-50# since wooden arrows are usually heavier by nature, with the heavier weights being used in 3D (fewer arrows) and lighter end being used in field (more arrows).
My advice would be to shoot a weight you can control each and every shot through your entire round. I just ordered a pair of 38# ILF limbs because I want to really work on my form and to increase my arrows per day to about 100-120.
Thanks guys I actually ended up going with a 44# longbow a few months ago.
It has a really nice cast to it and believe it or not is faster than the recurve I used before it.
I do shoot it completely naked (no silencers or attachments) and with it's low brace height that's probably why it's faster than my recurve.
I was surprised at how much of a difference a 5# jump felt at first but I got used to the draw weight after 2 months and it's now a joy to shoot.
That being said I think I can go up 5# a year with no problem.
I currently shoot around 100-200+ arrows a day.
That being said if you are on the fence about buying a longbow be careful.
I have found shooting the classic longbow MUCH more rewarding and a joy to shoot over my bulky recurve.
It's light in the hand and deadly accurate and quiet.
It's long limbs help to stabilize the bow and I feel as though there's a lot of advantages to shooting a longbow over a recurve.
I can't even bring myself to shoot a recurve if I wanted to at this point as it feels like a chore compared to my longbow.
Thanks all