enough pounds or am I a wimp?
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enough pounds or am I a wimp?
Now I am in pig country I have been thinking maybe my beloved Croc Longbow is too light - its 55lbs at 29". Currently my arrows are POCs with 125g ribbies and 2219s with ribbies or 135g bear razorheads. Sadly I can't tell you total arrow weight!
Do I need to start working out and get a heavier bow or do y'all have suggestions for a different shaft and head combination to up the arrow weight and kinetic energy?
all suggestions gratefully accepted but keep the 'you own a girl's bow' comments to yourself, ok?
Lindsay
Do I need to start working out and get a heavier bow or do y'all have suggestions for a different shaft and head combination to up the arrow weight and kinetic energy?
all suggestions gratefully accepted but keep the 'you own a girl's bow' comments to yourself, ok?
Lindsay
Gday Lindsay
I have taken heaps of pigs with my 50lb at 28" martin hunter recurve.
Your shot placement is critical and the closer you are the better i found, As you don,t have the poundage to grunt your way through the shoulder blade of a large boar picking you shot is a must. Smaller pigs arnt an issue. I was running 140 gr on woods of about 650 grain on the bare shaft.
I have taken heaps of pigs with my 50lb at 28" martin hunter recurve.
Your shot placement is critical and the closer you are the better i found, As you don,t have the poundage to grunt your way through the shoulder blade of a large boar picking you shot is a must. Smaller pigs arnt an issue. I was running 140 gr on woods of about 650 grain on the bare shaft.
TOTALLY ROOTED AND STILL HUNTING
Lindsay
My recurve pulls 60# @ 28" but I pull it a little less than 28 so I'm probably not far off your 55#. I also use cedars and try to keep the weight above 600 grains. I used to use 125/130 grain broadheads but switched to 160 grain ribteks a couple of years ago. I like em because they are reasonably heavy, they have a good profile and you can buy 160 grain field points, so its easy to have field arrows and hunting arrows the same weight. This combination normally results in a pass through or something close.
If you work on the 10 grains per pound ratio I'd reckon with a 29 inch cedar and 125 grain head you'd be somewhere close or perhaps a bit under the ratio. I think knowing your arrow weights is a good thing as you can experiment with bumping up the weight and see how the bow and the shooter handle the extra grains.
No need to change your bow however - 55# is plently of grunt.
Cheers
MarkP
My recurve pulls 60# @ 28" but I pull it a little less than 28 so I'm probably not far off your 55#. I also use cedars and try to keep the weight above 600 grains. I used to use 125/130 grain broadheads but switched to 160 grain ribteks a couple of years ago. I like em because they are reasonably heavy, they have a good profile and you can buy 160 grain field points, so its easy to have field arrows and hunting arrows the same weight. This combination normally results in a pass through or something close.
If you work on the 10 grains per pound ratio I'd reckon with a 29 inch cedar and 125 grain head you'd be somewhere close or perhaps a bit under the ratio. I think knowing your arrow weights is a good thing as you can experiment with bumping up the weight and see how the bow and the shooter handle the extra grains.
No need to change your bow however - 55# is plently of grunt.
Cheers
MarkP
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G'day Lindsay,
As others have said 55# will do the job but I don't believe you have much to spare when it comes to a good size boar. Here are a few suggestions you might consider.
Firstly consider using a Dynaflight or similar string on your bow if you don't already. This will improve the performance of your bow equal to around 4 - 5 pounds of extra draw weight. This is an average figure we have found from testing. Another plus with this type of string is that the bow will feel much nicer to shoot - IMO anyway.
I would try a different shaft material - one that gave a higher finished arrow weight. By doing this you can use a heavier broadhead and still maintain good forward of centre balance with your finished arrows. As Mark has said it is good to work on at least 10 grains of arrow weight per pound of bow weight. I actually shoot heavier than this as my bow is 59# and I shoot around the 700 to 750 grain arrows. The extra weight increases momentum which I have found relates to a big increase in penetration!
Next I would ensure that your arrows were matched to your bow. By this I mean you want your arrows to have straightened out as soon as possible after leaving the bow. If they have not straightened out when they hit your game a lot of penetration will be lost. This is because the arrow would hit when it was slightly side on and not dead straight on. This is very important when you are shooting at close distances. When shooting pigs I find you often can get close, well under ten metres. Your arrows have to straighten up quickly.
Lastly, and this should really have been number one. Pick your shot!!! I like slightly quartering away shots. This keeps the shoulder out of the way and if your shot is a little low you are likely to get the heart and if a little high you will still get the lungs. To me this shot gives the biggest shot placement area and it will result in a quick humane kill.
Sorry to be so long winded but I hope some of this may help.
Jeff
As others have said 55# will do the job but I don't believe you have much to spare when it comes to a good size boar. Here are a few suggestions you might consider.
Firstly consider using a Dynaflight or similar string on your bow if you don't already. This will improve the performance of your bow equal to around 4 - 5 pounds of extra draw weight. This is an average figure we have found from testing. Another plus with this type of string is that the bow will feel much nicer to shoot - IMO anyway.
I would try a different shaft material - one that gave a higher finished arrow weight. By doing this you can use a heavier broadhead and still maintain good forward of centre balance with your finished arrows. As Mark has said it is good to work on at least 10 grains of arrow weight per pound of bow weight. I actually shoot heavier than this as my bow is 59# and I shoot around the 700 to 750 grain arrows. The extra weight increases momentum which I have found relates to a big increase in penetration!
Next I would ensure that your arrows were matched to your bow. By this I mean you want your arrows to have straightened out as soon as possible after leaving the bow. If they have not straightened out when they hit your game a lot of penetration will be lost. This is because the arrow would hit when it was slightly side on and not dead straight on. This is very important when you are shooting at close distances. When shooting pigs I find you often can get close, well under ten metres. Your arrows have to straighten up quickly.
Lastly, and this should really have been number one. Pick your shot!!! I like slightly quartering away shots. This keeps the shoulder out of the way and if your shot is a little low you are likely to get the heart and if a little high you will still get the lungs. To me this shot gives the biggest shot placement area and it will result in a quick humane kill.
Sorry to be so long winded but I hope some of this may help.
Jeff
SHAFTING
Gday Ozlongbow
Regarding shafts mate give this fella a ring
Kevin Cullen
Copperhead archery
pob79 Officer VIC 3809
03 59414255
He has the best shafts i have seen !!!
HEAVEY,STRAIGHT,and individually spined and strong shafting material real strong.
Regarding shafts mate give this fella a ring
Kevin Cullen
Copperhead archery
pob79 Officer VIC 3809
03 59414255
He has the best shafts i have seen !!!
HEAVEY,STRAIGHT,and individually spined and strong shafting material real strong.
TOTALLY ROOTED AND STILL HUNTING
yeah, you see how you a wimp
sounds like someone is just looking for a reason to buy a new bow? you don't need a reason, just put the foot down and tell the missus how it is.......................... then find a comfy part of the garage to sleep in!
Stupid TV! Be more funny!
- Stickbow Hunter
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