Saturday, July 20, 2013

Choosing A Compound Bow

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By Justin Phillips


It is recommended that you start with a compound bow than another type. The compound bow has eccentric cams on each of the limbs. The max force necessary is called the draw weight. The cams let the full draw happen at a smaller draw weight. This fraction is called letoff. It is often 50-80 percent. You can draw a compound for less weight. Great for hunting situations.

When you draw a bow in your right hand you aim with your right eye. The opposite happens with the left hand and the left eye. People say to use your comfortable eye to aim, and to buy a bow. Of course you know better which bow you should be using, and what is most comfortable. If you close one eye and the other opens by accident, you most likely know which is the dominant eye.

In choosing a bow, the draw weight is one of the main factors to consider. The minimum draw weight for hunting deer should be 45 lbs. Although you can kill a deer with a weaker bow, you will end up wounding many that you do not recover. Most bows used in deer hunting have a draw weight of 50-70# and are somewhat adjustable in draw weight. Bows tend to shoot best when at maximum draw weight. The major advantage of a higher draw weight bow is that the arrow trajectory is flatter. You have to estimate the distance to game when aiming, and a flatter trajectory makes errors less of a problem. When choosing a bow you should choose one with a draw weight that you can draw quickly and smoothly. Also keep in mind that a bow that you could easily draw in practice may be too hard to draw smoothly after sitting in the cold in a tree stand for an hour or more. To build up my strength for hunting I set my bow at maximum draw weight for practice and then adjust it down 5 lbs for hunting. This requires changing the sights of the bow.

Shopping for a bow means considering the draw length too. The draw length is when the limbs are fully drawn. You will find that most bows today have adjustable length. I'd recommend using an expert to adjust this for you if you are not familiar. Cams and cables can break otherwise. When shopping for bows check with the staff for holiday sales, or hunting season sales.

When you are just getting started it can be expensive, so if you can by a used bow on ebay. You will find them at a fraction of the price during the off season. When it is hunting time, expect to pay retail or even more. Make sure you look at the draw weight and draw length when shopping. If you are buying online, check out a sporting goods store just to hold them for fun. Remember you have to buy for the eye is that is most dominant as a recommended rule.




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