Question on bow length

[coaster500]

I'm working on my third bow. It's a Hackberry stave and compared to the Mulberry and Kentucky Coffee it's like carving butter.

My question is it is 72.5 inches long 1 3/4 at the fades to a 1/2 tip....  It has a 4" non-bending handle and 2+ inch fades in this picture. I am shooting for 50#@28....   is there any advantage to leaving the bow 72 inches long? What would you do at this point....  as it sits now it's pulling 50#s at 16"s..

The longest bow I have ever shot was 66"s and it shot great...

[Ifrit617]

The main advantage of leaving a bow long is that it will be less strained, therefore being more durable and taking less set. It will sacrifice a few fps of cast, which can be counteracted by making the ouer limbs very narrow. Also, many people think that a longer bow is more forgiving and more accurate to shoot. Hope this helps.

Jon 

[JW_Halverson]

Ever see those longbow shoots where they are flinging away at 6' diameter bullseye targets at outwards of 200 yds?  They are all shooting longbows, never seen anyone shooting a Lakota horsebow on those ranges!  Somehow those long narrow limbs just sweeten everything a little at longer distances. 

My ideal antelop hunting bow would be a 6 ft ELB.  Thank goodness they are on the open prairie and not in heavy brush or under treestands!

[Pat B]

Build your bow at the length you want it to be!

[bubby]

anouther advantage of long lenght is a longer draw length, but there are a lot of short flight bows, check out the primitive flight bow build in PA mag Aug/Sept copy, I say build what ya want, it's your bow, Bub

[MWirwicki]

Many will say, the longer the bow, the sweeter and more consistent you will be with it.  Especially for target shooting.  I am a fan of shorter bows.  Primarily because in hunting situations the longer bows tend to get in the way of tree stands, ground blinds, sticks, twigs and other noise makers that may spoil the chances of meat on the table.  Also, I'm kinda short myself.  A short bow fits me better. 

Along with the others, it's personal preference.  Of course, this isn't the only bow you'll ever make, I presume.  Make some long; make some short; make some inbetween.  You'll discover your personal preference and gain a bunch of experience doing it.

[coaster500]

Thank you for your coments guys...  I normally shoot bows 56 to 60 inches and at my slight 27" draw I think I'll cut it down a bit. I think I'll make it 66 or so and it will still be the longest kid in the rack....

[mikekeswick]

If you aren't using it for hunting then I would leave it 'as is'. One thing is for certain it will stroe more energy left long due to the lower string angle eg. the string has more effecient leverage. The trick is to keep the mid to outer limbs light enough to allow that energy to go into the arrow instaed of just moving heavier limbs forward. Another point is that the longer limbs act as stabalisers. It's definately easier to be pin point accurate with a longer bow.

[coaster500]

Well it's 66"s now and starting to bend...

 

[Matt S.]

One advantage of leaving the bow long is that you can tiller it out, see if you like it, and then pike it and retiller until you get it just right.
We have lots of Hackberry around here, so I'll be interested in seeing how this bow turns out.