New Bow Hunter

[Kennakinz]

Hey guys, so I’ve a compound bow for a couple of years and I’m hoping to use it this season for deer. Since I have a fairly low draw weight, I want to make sure I’m not taking shots too far away. Everything I’ve seen says you need 25-41 ft-lbs of kinetic energy to hunt deer. So I tried to calculate it out, and i got 22.62 ft-lbs at only 1 yard... which doesn’t seem right. Can anyone help with this?

I have a Mathews Passion bow
IBO speed: 325 FPS
Draw length: 24”
Draw weight: 32lbs
Arrow weight: 500 grain

Thanks!


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[d16ridgehiker]

Cant know unless you get your actual arrow speed as well. Seems like a pretty heavy arrow for draw length and draw weight though.

Edit--- I ran some hypothetical numbers.
500 grain arrow at 150 FPS is about 24.98lbs of kinetic energy
a 450 grain arrow at 200 FPS would be about 39.92lbs putting you in the area you need to be at.

I would suggest a lighter arrow. That alone would increase your arrow speed. But Im not sure you would want to get lower than 450 grains with your setup. Any way you can add a little draw weight? Say 35 to 38 lbs would help as well.

 

[Mud Pigeon]

Good news is adjusting your pins should be a piece of cake lol. I can't help, but archery is something I can't imagine taking up without a good pro shop.

 

[Kennakinz]

I could probably add a few pounds and get some lighter arrows...how do you find the arrow speed?


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[d16ridgehiker]

Need to find a chronograph. If there is an archery shop near you they should have one.

 

[Sdhunt17]

I could probably add a few pounds and get some lighter arrows...how do you find the arrow speed?


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best bet is to go into a local bow shop and have them use a chronograph and have them put different arrow weights to see whats best for your situation. i would suggest maybe going up a few pounds and trying different draw weights weeks at a time and just practice.

 

[TheGDog]

Calculating ft-Lbs is just (weight in grains of the projectile) x (speed of the projectile in FPS) x (speed of the projectile in FPS)... take the result of that multiplication... and divide it by 450450.

 

[Bowman]

Hmmmm, there. Is a requirement in the requlations that an bow must be able to cast an arrow x number of yards. I believe it was something like 350-375 yards. I will look it up.
I believe it equates to forty to forty five pounds draw weight.
To build up your draw weight slowly
Build up your back muscles by cranking up the draw weight by five pound increments.
You need to get to at least forty five pounds at a very short distance.

 

[Bowman]

Thirty pounds is the bare minimum.
But then ethical hunting comes to mind. I think you need to work on your draw weight.
The more you practice the better you will get that is normal. I am out of shape and I need to get my arms ,shoulders and mainly my back muscles back up to strength.
I blew my elbow out so it will be touch and go.
If I can't do it then it's time for doctor write up to to use a crossbow.
I seen to many wounded deer get away and lost.

 

[TheGDog]

If you want to be able to have half a chance of hitting one when they are in the 40yd to 60yd range away from you... you will want your draw weight up around 50+Lbs. With a compound bow that should be totally doable. Even with my painful shoulders I can do my 54 Lbs and draw back slowly. It's definitely the total upper limit of what I can do at my current level of fitness. But ya figure if my 50yo arthritic a** can do it... you guys should be able to do it.

When you go to the Gym, use one of the cable stacks and practice the bow draw motion. And practice pulling it back slowly like you're going to want to do in the field. Or if you don't have a gym membership... maybe lay on something like a bench or your bed... and hang your arm off the side... holding a weight in it.. and practice that same bow draw motion... nice and slow.

 

[TheGDog]

The lower your draw weight the more the arrows trajectory dips down at the different (further) yardages. 45Lbs would be fine. Just make dang sure you've put in the time to adjust your pins for the different yardages amounts. And remember to also practice doing shots at the in-between yardages amounts.. like if 25yds means you have to hold the pins so that your desired target is halfway between your 20yd pin and your 30yd pin... make DANG SURE you practice those kind of shots too!

Practice shooting from kneeling position. Then with both knees on the ground. Then, if you're gonna sit on a Tripod stool out in the field, make sure you practice shooting from sitting on that stool!

Also it's a good idea to at least try shooting a little bit with the specific gear on that you plan to wear while out in the field. Just to make sure there's no surprises you weren't aware of when wearing those particular garments. That way you've confirmed nothign gets in the way of the string or anything like that.

Remember, you've got to think of all your gear as a system. And you want to know without a doubt that YOU PERSONALLY have tested everything in your system. Just so you can have the confidence in it and familiarity with it that you will require out in the field.

 

[Kennakinz]

Thirty pounds is the bare minimum.
But then ethical hunting comes to mind. I think you need to work on your draw weight.
The more you practice the better you will get that is normal. I am out of shape and I need to get my arms ,shoulders and mainly my back muscles back up to strength.
I blew my elbow out so it will be touch and go.
If I can't do it then it's time for doctor write up to to use a crossbow.
I seen to many wounded deer get away and lost.

Yes ethical hunting, that’s exactly why I want to make sure there is enough force behind my shot at different distances...unfortunately it sounds like I won’t be hunting this season with my bow, due to such low draw weight.


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[TRICER]

just keep your shots under 30yds and put it in the boiler room. Better to be comfortable and accurate than to push yourself to higher draw weight and be in accurate. Your draw weight is right about where you need to be for a woman your size. You might be able to increase up to 40# over time but don’t push it. Go stick one and keep your shots under 30 yds. Know your limits and get accurate. A 80# draw threw the guts is no where near as good as a 32# in the boiler room.
Long bow guys kill animals all day in the 30-40lb draw range.

 

[Bowman]

I am not trying to deter you. As a matter of fact , I want to encourage you. And I not the all knowing guru.
30 lbs is doable. But you have to get very accurate. And close to your target. So I challenge you to practice. Practice at 10, 15, 20, 30 yards. Learn to be stealthy
My old hunting freinds used fancy compound bows, I started with a 50lb long bow. Instinctive shooting.
I practice every chance I got.
My ethical distance with that longbow was 35 yards max.
My first kill was 40 yards.
Why because no said it was not possible. That year I scored, my buddies all got skunked. Ate tag soup. Their respect went up a notch with that old longbow hunter.
Don't give up, practice , practice
You can do it.

 

[TheGDog]

Yes ethical hunting, that’s exactly why I want to make sure there is enough force behind my shot at different distances...unfortunately it sounds like I won’t be hunting this season with my bow, due to such low draw weight.


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You could probably do it and be successful... but you'd likely need to be at 25-30yds max. So you'd have to do the homework and know that your sit location will give you that. I don't know your terrain type, so I don't know if stalking closer is a possibility or not in your scenario. It's not in mine. My scenario provides opportunties at 25 to 45yds basically.

But yeah... probably be a better idea to wait until you've got a little more oomph from the bow.

You totally do not need a 70# draw bow. My foolish self bought one, thankfully it can be adjusted down a bunch. I'd suggest a 60# that will allow you to adjust down to 50# (or more). 50# is pretty easy to pull actually. Make sure to get a nice high 80% let-off value in the bow. Sometimes you end up having to hold at full-draw WAY longer than you expected to.

 

[Bowman]

Actually the bow you have is set perfect for practice. Keep it low down practice. Then as you get more comfortable have the crank it up a bit. Try to get as high as you feel comfortable. It is better to be accurate than it is to pull heavy draw weight. I ordered a 45-55 lb bow, instead I got a 60-70lb draw weight compound bow. I kept it now IAM paying the price. I need a 45lbs for practice.

 

[Kennakinz]

My little practice range at home is setup for 15yds-25yds. I know 32# is bare minimum, but I’m 5’3 and 120lbs... I could add a few more pounds to my draw weight but I don’t think I could hold a full draw very long... i already have 80% cams. I’d rather shoot confidently at 32# then less confident with more weight. For the terrain I’m hunting in, in fairly certain I could get within 25yds, especially if I found one bedded down.


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[Bowman]

My little practice range at home is setup for 15yds-25yds. I know 32# is bare minimum, but I’m 5’3 and 120lbs... I could add a few more pounds to my draw weight but I don’t think I could hold a full draw very long... i already have 80% cams. I’d rather shoot confidently at 32# then less confident with more weight. For the terrain I’m hunting in, in fairly certain I could get within 25yds, especially if I found one bedded down.


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Perfect,

 

[TheGDog]

At 25yds you should be able to do it. Thing of it is though... is how much that may limit your ability in terms of opportunities that do end up presenting themselves to you being within those narrow parameters.

I'm saying like... if it turns out that they routinely present themselves at greater distances than that... and you end up learning that the spot really doesn't allow you to creep up on em... you're gonna be pissed at those opportunities you had to just sit there and let pass you by. So from that standpoint I'd say... yeah... wait until your bow can give ya a lil more range.

So yeah... judging from your physical stature you mentioned. Just get a 50# max draw weight bow that allows you to adjust downward a bunch. That sounds perfect for you. And yeah... get cracking on working on your traps/lats/delts (trapezius / Latissmus dorsi/ Deltoids (posterior and anterior). Also work on your Triceps (back of your upper arm)... the bow holding arm needs Tricep strength and Deltoid strength.