Elk hunting gear questions

[Stringman]

I have a trip planned with Mr Riley in ID this Sept and it's getting close enough I need to be making some decisions. The goal is elk/bear and my brother, Tell and I will all have tags.

Bow - I was gifted a beautiful custom lam bow from Thad and while I have never been a fiberglass bow guy, this bow was built for this hunt so I would have a hard time leaving it home. I will probably bring an Osage self bow as backup, but plan to hunt the soy bow primarily.

Arrows - speed v momentum. Old question, not sure there is a hard answer, but give me your opinions anyway.

Huntin heads - stone v steel. Both are legal in ID; both are proven. I know how I feel, but want to know if there is something or some aspect I'm overlooking. Let's here your feelings.

[lebhuntfish]

Congrats on the elk hunt bud!
Let's see,  if I had your talents,  especially with flint knapping I would definitely go with some stone points.
I've hunted elk on Colorado several times. Only a few times when I shot a wheelie bow. I shot a cow with my bow the first time and only had about 8 inches of penitration. The next year I got me some heavy arrows and shot another cow and buried it clean to the fletchings.
So I would go for hard hitting and a heavier arrow.

It would be cool to see you take an elk completely primitive. But I would us the best possible setup. If that means using more modern equipment then that's cool. Because some people only get to elk hunt once in their life. I've been lucky,  elk hunting is part of our family tradition. Just my 2 cents.

Patrick

[Stixnstones]

never been elk huntin but know guys that have kilt moose and caribou with selfbows and stone points. your points are more than worthy of the task. and i agree with Patrick, prolly a heavier arrow.

[Pat B]

I hunted Colorado 2 times and both times with selfbows or sinew backed bows(55#@26"), arrows were either hill cane or sourwood shoot arrows with trade points or Wensel Woodsman(stone illegal in CO). Arrows weighed from 550gr to 650gr.
 Shoot heavy arrows and between now and your hunt practice, practice, practice and learn the trajectory of your arrows.

[Stringman]

550, or 750?

[nclonghunter]

Scott, first CONGRATS! on an ID elk hunt. I love elk meat. Had some steaks on the grill the other night. My friend and I will be heading to Colorado again this year. Last two weeks of archery season. Been running 2-4 miles every other day for the last month and hope to continue up to departure day. Mountains will kick your backside.

I truly admire your determination to stay primitive with your gear. What a fantastic reward you will have. Elk as you know are big animals but put that arrow in the right spot and it is done. I would think the 560 weight arrow would be perfect but I put more into being FOC or weight forward arrows. I would be curious to know the weight of the stone points compared to the steel ones. If they weigh in about the same then there shouldn't be much difference in performance. If the steel is considerably heavier then that could influence me to use them.

I also know you are spirit guided and you should always follow your instinct. It always guides you where you need to be. Looking forward to your story of the hunt! Good Luck to you and your hunt party!

[Stringman]

My stone points weigh what I want them to. There is no difference in weight.



You're right on about the mountains kickin our butt. My brother and I are making regular hikes with packs on. I do t run anymore, but figure I can walk bout as far as the next guy.

[Pat B]

What's the draw weight of your bow?

[Stringman]

About 52#@28"

[Wolf Watcher]

My Opinion:  In the old days when I lived on a ranch half way between Cody and Yellowstone I hunted with stones, Port Orford cedar select shafts, and a fiber glass recurve I made.  It was 65# at 28". I still have that bow and am going to go today to shoot carp with it.  I managed to kill mule deer, elk, black bear and moose with that set up.  My points were crude compared to the ones you make but very effective.  In Wyoming points both steel and stone have to be one inch wide and I think they should not have bases that point back as that keeps the arrow from coming back out (my ethics)!  My points now weigh the same and are fairly short as longer points break more easily on impact and wind plane more.  I really like bugling elk and recommend you learn to cow call as that can be more effective than a bugle.  Hawk Huston killed a lot of elk with his set up and claimed he believed elk go up in the morning and down in the evening. Also if you can possibly stop by for a night on your way to Idaho I can give you some help with the calls and would love to have you and your friends for some show and tell!  Joe

[lebhuntfish]

What a great gesture Joe! I personally was looking forward to seeing you respond to this post.

Patrick

[PEARL DRUMS]

Scott I think the number one thing here is how you want it to go down. I go through the same mental struggle every summer before archery deer season starts. Just how primitive do I want to hunt? How far do I want to go? My usual answer is: I love wooden bows and that's good enough for me no matter what shafting or head I carry along with me.

I think arrow weight is irrelevant and over-touted. If your around 9-12 gpp, you are good to go anywhere in our great country.

[Stringman]

Thank you, Joe for taking the time to respond to my post. I appreciate the perspective gleaned from your years of hunting and hope to benefit from all of y'alls opinions! I have been shooting the heavy arrows (760 gr) for a couple months, but I'm leaning more toward the 560 gr arrows for their enhanced performance. Even though they are lighter they shoot flatter, have smaller diameter, and still fly cleanly from this bow so I believe they will penetrate just as well with a sharp hunting point. Also, you have talked me into using my stone points (wasn't a hard sell) my biggest concern being general fragility during transport. What quiver do you use? I will have a day pack on my back so a back quiver is not ideal.

Joe, I would love to stop by for the night, but it doesn't look like my route will go your way. If something changes I'll let ya know.

[Stringman]

I believe you've nailed it, Chris. Whatever limitation I put on myself is the level to which I will perform. I believe I drawn my line, now just need to train for it and practice self discipline.

[PEARL DRUMS]

Something tells me you will do just fine my friend