wondering what yall think of my setup

[recurve shooter]

i use my pearson recurve for hunting. it is extreamly low poundage at 35# at 28 inches. i only shoot 20 yards or less. i use the lightest tips and arrows i can, and i can place my shots well. i am an amature bow hunter but a skilled outdoorsman. what do yall think of my setup?

[Kegan]

If your arrows weight about 350 grains, and are good at stalking/calling/whatever, you should gbe perfectly fine. Especially, if as you said, you can hit well out to twenty yards.

It follow legal limits in your area?

[recurve shooter]

yeah, its legal. i prefer to still hunt, and i hunt from the ground and use a ghillie suit. it is not unusual to have birds land on me , so i guess im good.

[Kegan]

If that's the case than you should have no problem with anyhting from squirrel to deer !

[mullet]

  Personally I think shooting at that distance with that light of bow and light arrows is too far for penetration on large animals.I don't see a problem on small game.

[hawkbow]

Sounds like youhave a good set up, I don't claim to be any sort of expert at anything but have harvested several hundred aimals with a long bow. My only advise would be get as close as you can, shoot only within your comfort range and hunt safe... Good hunting... Mike 

[Justin Snyder]

  Personally I think shooting at that distance with that light of bow and light arrows is too far for penetration on large animals.I don't see a problem on small game.

What Hillbilly said.  I would try a penetration test before I shot over 10 yards with that light of a bow.  But then it wouldn't even be legal here for anything other than small game. Justin

[recurve shooter]

cool, how could i do a penetration test?

[jamie]

sorry to disagree but you should be fine at 20 yards, also disagree with the weight of the arra. id go heavy rather than light its not about getting the arra there fast its the weight driving the arra in. i took a doe from a seated position on the ground with my first stone tooled bow. that bow was in the low 40"s for poundage. doe was 15 yards away and i couldnt move to draw the bow so i shot it from the hip with a short draw. arra was stone tipped and weighed in the high 500 to 600 grain. i later measured  how far i had drawn the bow and figured i only drew about 37lbs. the arra punched a hole through both sides of that deer. shot placement is more crucial with the lighter setup because you have less chance of breaking bone. on the bright side shot placement is also easier with the lighter setup. peace

[adb]

Personally, for hunting, I like to use HEAVY arrows, with 2 blade broadheads. Light arrows fly nice and flat, but they don't penetrate very well. If you're limiting yourself to 20 yard shots anyway, the difference in trajectory will be negligible. There is an excellent article in the latest edition of Trad Bowhunter magazine... check it out.

[billy]

I think your set-up will do just fine.  I probably wouldn't shoot past 20 yards though.

I actually just submitted an article to P.A. about testing bird points, and in the test I used a 40 pound osage self bow and shot my arrows into a freshly killed deer.  It'll be coming out in the next few months.  Shot placement and perfect arrow flight are the most important factors.  Bow weight isn't as important as you might think.  Based on my results, you can get a deer no problem.  If you have any doubts, just read my article when it's published. 

[Little John]

I was wondering why you hunt with so light of a bow? Is it physical limitations, or  just what you happen to have to hunt with? While I agree that it can kill deer size game, I would try to work up to a heaver bow if possible. While your set up can slip an arrow thru the ribs a deer might jump or you might not shoot a perfect shot and end up with a poorly placed arrow and need to break bones or get more penetration. Just my two cents. I agree that  perfect arrow flight is very important, but at short distances is where arrow flight often suffers  the most. Definatly tune your arrows for perfect flight and read the article in traditional bowhunter on arrow penetration.  Kennetyh

[jamie]

billy i had a deer hanging in the garage this year that hadnt been field dressed. i decided to do the same as you. i took a25lb recurve and a 400grain arra with a magnus broadhead and took a few shots . at 15 yards it was poking out the other side after breaking a rib when it entered. now this is a dead deer and i feel that the contraction of the living deers muscles will effect penetration but i was shocked none the less.

[billy]

Hey Jamie,

Yeah, it's amazing what a light poundage bow is capable of.  I tested 2 arrows, one made of reed and weighing around 315 grains, and a rivercane arrow weighing 460 grains.  I'm not gonna give away the test or results because it will be in the article, but I think the results will surprise a lot of people when they read it.  By the way, everything in my test was totally primitive: wooden self bow, sinew bowstring, and totally primitive arrows with very small stone "bird points".  That's all I'm gonna say about it!!! I gotta build some suspense 

And if any of ya'll read it, I'd like some feedback on what you thought about it.   

[recurve shooter]

thanx alot guys. i am trying to get the feel for my hickry 45#long for next year, but i still like the recurve.