Bow Hunters: Come on in!

[Hotrod]

Gotcha...

Wood shafted golf clubs if stored leaning against a wall warp quite badly. Wasnt sure if there was a dual meaning

 

[Watchful]

Well, actually, leaning anything wooden against a wall for a length of time will tend to promote warping. I store my bow flat down at the top of a tall shelf.

I imagine a crossbow, if sufficiently long, will prefer to be more horizontal than vertical as well!

 

[Hotrod]

Update:

Havent done much more reading on the topic... going to try and hit one of the local sporting goods stores that has a "test range" and see if I can get a crash course. With any luck I'll be able to get over there tomorrow.

 

[fixer27]

It depends on the manufacturer, but generally you're okay to leave a crossbow strung, since it can be a pain to remove the strings on many models.

However, if you're storing your crossbow for any length of time, you should wax the strings according to your manufacturer's recommendations. Some require a lot of lube wax, many do not.

That said, the biggest source of harm to a crossbow, I understand, is storing it cocked. It seems strange, but I gather a lot of people do this.

Wax? you use wax on a crossbow?Maybe that is why the little string thingys
came undone? Seriously thanks I would hate to re-string that piece of merde
again. I bought used and no instruction manual came with so thanx.

 

[proload9]

As for the string, always store a bow unstrung. If you store a bow with its string on, the bow eventually settles into that shape and you lose a lot of tension. The power of the bow comes from bending its natural unstrung shape into an unnaturally curved shape...so we want to preserve its tension as much as possible.

Do you have a reference for this or is this personal opinion? Recurved bows only? I'll asked around, but none of the bow-hunters addicts I know store their bows unstrung. The only advice is my user's manual is to avoid prolonged wet or extreme heat.

 

[faramir]

Do you have a reference for this or is this personal opinion? Recurved bows only? I'll asked around, but none of the bow-hunters addicts I know store their bows unstrung. The only advice is my user's manual is to avoid prolonged wet or extreme heat.

http://www.grozerarchery.com/index_m.htm

I know next to nothing about bows but i figured if he's manufacturing them and selling them (and offering warranty for them ) he probably knows what he's talking about:

"After use, take the string off."

Interesting old-style bows shown on his webpage too, definitely worth checking out.

 

[Nabok]

proload9 Re: Storing traditional (longbow & recurve) unstrung. My copy of the Martin recurve/longbow owner’s manual says “You should unstring your bow when it is not being used.” Same advice in The Traditional Bowhunter’s Handbook and from every traditional bowyer and shooter I have talked to. I do leave mine stung for a week while hunting and on weekends when I am home so I can walk out to the yard and shoot whenever I need a break.

HotRod check out the sporting goods store, unfortunately most of the clerks know very little about traditional archery, but maybe you’ll find one that does know something and at least you can try out a few bows. See if you can find a local traditional archery club, they will be happy to help get you started. Used bows can be a good deal, but find someone with experience to help you; some are not suitable for shooting (too old or damaged but collectable) but there are a quite a few that are fine shooters looking for a new home. If you want to make a traditional bow there are books and videos, and seminars, there is a traditional archery show here that has a weekend seminar with a bowyer where you make a bow. I like the book I mentioned above, the author also publishes Traditional Bowhunter magazine, it’s a good resource if you can’t find a copy locally let me know, if you are interested I can send you a copy. www.3RiversArchery.com has all things traditional archery, tons of books and videos, bows, arrows, accessories and tools if you want to try your hand a making a bow. You might be able find some of the stuff they sell a little cheaper, but these folks are very helpful.

PS Don’t Go to Anazon.com for the book, they seem to think it’s out of print and want almost $90 for a used copy. www.tradbow.com will take you strait to the source.

Todd

 

[Hotrod]

Thanks for the pointers guys!

I didnt know there was a difference between bow clubs. I guess traditional gets more into the re-inacting/historical shows? Or is it a style of shooting?

Lots of interesting stuff that had not occured to me at the start of this! P.S. Havent made it over to the sporting goods store as of yet.

 

[Nabok]

More what they shoot modern or traditional gear, you will find traditional bow guys in general archery clubs, but not the other way around, a traditional club is folks who shoot longbows and recurves, typically no sites, arrow rests, releases, etc. some are into the historical/reenacting stuff, but by no means all of them. The main difference I have seen is in the type of shoots they put on or attend. Traditional cub shoots I have been to are, like I said, limited to recurve or longbow, no sights, no mechanical releases, no mechanical arrow rests or overdraws and the targets are closer. General archery club shots have more classes, so you find folks with compound bows that are shooting all kinds of sights, mechanical releases, overdraws, and every kind of gadget you can imagine. Don't think I am bashing compound bows, I still have one, but I hardly ever shoot it, to be contradictory a traditional is both simpler and more difficult. As for style of shooting traditional bow shooters generally don?t use sights, I shoot instinctively, but there are other styles, indirect, gap, string walking, and more, plus variations.

Todd

 

[proload9]

What I was asking was if the unstrung advice was 1) referenced anyplace 2) for compund bows. The way I read the posts, it was being said that all bows, including compund bows should be unstrung when not in use. I couldn't find specifics in the other posts, and none of the followups post said anything about compund bows. I've never heard of anyone unstringing a compund bow after each use, which would require a press and are of synthetic materials.

 

[beyondmyken]

Hotrod, I would suggest that you go to a traditional archery shoot and then you can ask, hold, fondle, shoot many bows in a short period of time. Let people know you are new to the art and many will bend over backwards to help you get started. Go to 3 rivers archery website and they list the trad shoots calender. People often sell some knives at these shoots too.

 

[beyondmyken]

Keeping a longbow or recurve could potentially induce a set in the shape of the limbs, moreso with a selfbow or any bow without fiberglass. In fact, most self bows will develop some "string follow" after they have been strung and shot for a while.

 

[Nabok]

proload9, sorry it was getting a little confusing about what type of bow was being talked about sometimes in this thread. You are correct, compound bows are not unstrung to store, unless maybe you plan on storing one away for a long time. I have "helped" change the string on compound bow and it is substantially more difficult and takes more equipment that unstringing a traditional bow.

Todd

 

[proload9]

Thanks, Nabok. This is a very helpful thread.

 

[Watchful]

proload9...You are correct, compound bows are not unstrung to store, unless maybe you plan on storing one away for a long time. I have "helped" change the string on compound bow and it is substantially more difficult and takes more equipment that unstringing a traditional bow.

Todd

Sorry. I took a couple days off for the holiday, and this thread suddenly shot out from under me.

Yes, Proload9's assumption was correct. We'd been speaking about recurves for so long that I assumed that was the source of the question. I would not advise removing strings on a compound, simply because it doesn't really stay under tension.

I would advise removing the strings on a recurve or a longbow, however.

Thanks to all those who took the time to answer this question on my behalf.

 

[Hotrod]

Makes sense...

What kind of distance can you get out of a recurve? I've got... I dont know, maybe 200 feet to work with. Is this far enough or will I pop an arrow into my neighbors house? Or can I get a wiffle ball (Golf/baseball) equivelant in an arrow?

Pretty cool topic. Amazing that somebody came up with a bow and arrow way back when. Really easy to overcomplicate it!

 

[Watchful]

Hotrod...

You can get just about any distance out of a recurve. All you do is lift the point of the arrow up, and you can go for hundreds and hundreds of feet. Consider the 1992 Olympics torch lighting ceremony... didn't that guy shoot a flaming arrow (which is pretty difficult to do, by the way) a few hundred _meters_ into the torch, with a recurve? Perhaps somebody with better memory can correct me.

The effective power of an arrow is limited pretty much by you. There aren't too many people who can pull a recurve far enough back to break the limb: so it's a combination of your pull strength and arrow speed.

For maximum effect--which is a little different--you will do very well within a 200' practice range. Any shot over 100' is going to become very subject to windage, gravity, and eccentricities. Under 100' and you're at a very respectable range for practicing.

By the way, save yourself some time if your space permits it: put a target at each end of your range. That way, you can walk to the other end and fire your first load of arrows back. Save you a lot of walking time.

 

[Hotrod]

Well, one end would be the road front... I'm not sure I'd like to drive by with a beginner pointing a high velocity sharp pointy stick my direction!

I'm right at 6'1... But I notice that some of the youth bows are rather... cheap! What is involved with the sizing of a bow?

 

[Watchful]

Hotrod,

Recurve bows are all basically the same height. It will come down to draw strength: what you're comfortable with. Generally, youth-bows are less expensive only because they have a light draw. Although there are a lot of "mini archery" sets for very young children, generally a youth or beginner's bow will be pretty much the same height as a standard recurve.

As a result, you might not do too badly to teach yourself the fundamentals with an inexpensive youth bow set, even at 6'1"! I would carefully look at the product specs to ensure its length is around 60" unstrung.

There are a bunch of websites out there that give advice on picking out a bow; but basically, they all boil down to the same thing: find a sporting goods store that will let you hold and draw ("dry fire") a couple of recurves. You don't have to buy that expensive bow: just try a couple out to see what you like in terms of pull.

I hope this helps.

 

[Hotrod]

Help? Sure does!!

Thanks a bunch