Changing to trad

[aggieland]

Best hunting decision I have ever made. I gave up gun hunting years ago and then went trad only 5 or 6 years ago. Biggest advice I can give is get lessons and take your time, it takes time to build up the strength to hold and shoot a traditional bow accurately. Also Know that you won't have as easy a time getting game but I truly love using the stickbow.

 

[aggieland]

Also I wanted to mention a few other things I have learned or believe. I personally believe a heavy arrow 600+ grains helps a lot with traditional equipment. The other thing is this, when i started shooting my first tradbow i would go out and shoot over and over. My first shots would be off the mark by let's say 6" at 10-12yds but the more I stood there and shot my shots were good. I did not realize the tune of the bow was off 6" and I was mentally compensating the more I shot. After getting help from Rick Welch "a professional shooter and teacher" with tuning and form my world was changed completely. We were hitting 3d targets at 50yds with ease.. if I had continued to try it by myself I'm afraid i would still be lost and struggling.

 

[Newtosavage]

Does "suited for compound" mean simply longer shots, or are there other factors that you're thinking of?

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That's what I mean. You know the deal - there are spots that the nearest good tree to put a stand in might be 25-35 yards off the trail instead of 12-20 yards. Or open areas where a guy might sit because he can see more area and have "more" shot opportunities (which by definition means longer shots on average). Those spots are great when you have a compound in your hand, but not so great when you really need a shot under 20. I've also had plenty of spots in thick areas where a shot over 20 yards is just not practical but they are still great spots. That's where the stickbows shine. When I stopped worrying about how much ground I could "cover" with my bow, and started really honing in on those trails and stands that offered me 14, 17 or 21 yard shots, my success went way up with the trad gear. Trouble is, that sounds so limiting to most compound hunters today that they aren't willing to "give up" all that ground. But to be a successful trad bow hunter, you need to think and scout differently just like you need to think and scout differently when going from compound to rifle.

 

[Beendare]

That^ is a great post Newt....stick bow hunting takes a whole different mentality.

Funny story, Back in August I was hunting a buddies ranch for hogs. I was with a relatively new compound guy. We spot some hogs rooting around in a big meadow and told him, "You go for it"...he just looked at me quizzically. He didn't think it was possible.

So I made the stalk....12 yd shot on a avg size boar- drilled him. Later my buddy said this opened a whole different avenue for him...though he said he is scared of getting that close to these hogs.

"Just make sure they don't know you are there..." ...he has yet to try it....why? I can only guess. Hogs are made for bowhunting....


...

 

[Newtosavage]

That^ is a great post Newt....stick bow hunting takes a whole different mentality.

Funny story, Back in August I was hunting a buddies ranch for hogs. I was with a relatively new compound guy. We spot some hogs rooting around in a big meadow and told him, "You go for it"...he just looked at me quizzically. He didn't think it was possible.

So I made the stalk....12 yd shot on a avg size boar- drilled him. Later my buddy said this opened a whole different avenue for him...though he said he is scared of getting that close to these hogs.

"Just make sure they don't know you are there..." ...he has yet to try it....why? I can only guess. Hogs are made for bowhunting....


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Back in the 90's, on several occasions I stalked into a pack of hogs that were heads down, rooting in tall grass. I literally emptied the quiver on my recurve shooting pigs, and once I even picked up two arrows that had already gone through pigs, and used them on other pigs in the group. Sounds hard to believe I'm sure, but it happened. Stalking up on pigs isn't actually that hard of a fella goes slow and plays the wind.

 

[Beendare]

Yeah, I love stalking hogs....

There was a case on a ranch in Norcal Mendocino where one of the rifle guys was stalking on a hog and didn't see another big hog in the tall gras....that hog charged him and beat him up pretty good. Why that hog didn't run away...I dunno. It could be that some of those dominant boars feel like they are at the top of the food chain...like a big grizzly.

I used to hunt them and do depredation with dogs and we had the Park Ranger with us once and he got charged and cut by a boar pretty good.....had another buddy get knocked down and almost died from a bad gash on his inner thigh...and another buddy following us in on a boar fighting the dogs in the dark...get run over by a hog, knocked him out from rolling down a steep bank but the worst part was it tore all the ligaments in this knee.

I've had easily 20 of them charge me back when I was hunting with dogs...but only 4 while hunting them with a bow [2 were already wounded]

Yeah, those hogs can be a handful sometimes. If they can escape, they usually do...but you never know.


All in all hogs were made for bowhunting
...

 

[Where's Bruce?]

Save the CB and get a bow that's much lighter than a Satori. Trust me on this, I have been walking in your shoes all year.

 

[neverquit]

Zero regrets.
In a world where any/all jack wagons are seeing how far they can shoot. I’m happy to get close

 

[Newtosavage]

Zero regrets.
In a world where any/all jack wagons are seeing how far they can shoot. I’m happy to get close

I remember when it was a point of pride to get as close as you possibly could. "Shot him at 7 yards" should carry more weight than it does these days IMO but then, that's hard.

 

[jpcolt]

I started around 1972 with Bear and wooded shaft arrows did the recurve to cross bow
About 5yr ago while picking up new arrows saw a Fedora bow. What a work of art. Had to have it. Would just shoot it in the back yard. Took it to a local 3D shoot did very good at distance up to 40yd. Now it’s the only bow I hunt with

 

[ODB]

Fact: you can use your compound and hunt like you will with a recurve. Take all your sight pins off but the 20 yard pin. Limit your shots to that and that only.

Do that for a season before you dump all your stuff. I’ve shot recurves for 35 years and have seen way too much “going trad” as though it were an answer to something. Lots of wounds and regrets later, most went back, humbled. I get the impulse to sell your gear to dedicate yourself to a recurve, but that won’t make you a better shot. A lot of people think they can just “pick up” a recurve, as though since our ancestors shot “trad” we must have some inborn skill just waiting to be released - not so.

Hunting with a recurve changes the way you hunt. Success will follow once you learn what that means and stick to very short shots. If you gain the discipline to do that, you’ll likely succeed. The fact you shoot to 80 yards with a compound indicates that even as a follow up, you are a long range shooter. Cure yourself of that habit before you walk in the woods with a recurve. It’s a lot harder than you think. Good luck.

 

[Brucebarker024]

Fact: you can use your compound and hunt like you will with a recurve. Take all your sight pins off but the 20 yard pin. Limit your shots to that and that only.

Do that for a season before you dump all your stuff. I’ve shot recurves for 35 years and have seen way too much “going trad” as though it were an answer to something. Lots of wounds and regrets later, most went back, humbled. I get the impulse to sell your gear to dedicate yourself to a recurve, but that won’t make you a better shot. A lot of people think they can just “pick up” a recurve, as though since our ancestors shot “trad” we must have some inborn skill just waiting to be released - not so.

Hunting with a recurve changes the way you hunt. Success will follow once you learn what that means and stick to very short shots. If you gain the discipline to do that, you’ll likely succeed. The fact you shoot to 80 yards with a compound indicates that even as a follow up, you are a long range shooter. Cure yourself of that habit before you walk in the woods with a recurve. It’s a lot harder than you think. Good luck.

My impulse is not to get closer, if I wanted to get closer I would just use the compound and hunt closer. I am just looking for a new trail to follow with archery. I’m not challenged with shooting the compound so it has lost its luster. That’s why I’m looking to get into the traditional archery side of things. I would get real training and if I am not shooting at a level that I would consider “ethical” with a trad bow then I won’t hunt with it. If I’m not performing the best I can with it then I don’t deserve to take it into the field.


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[Beendare]

Baxter, great comment....and true.

In my case, I just don't enjoy shooting a Compound anymore....but I still like the higher kill rate...so I will probably vacillate between a compound and stick bow.

I'm not a "Traditional life" guy....thats not for me. My way of life is hunting...I like carrying a stick bow in the woods but its the being in the woods part that is important to me. I don't wear the trad thing on my sleeve. I still like to pick up a rifle and call coyotes....kill stuff with a compound, etc.

If a guy wants to completely resitcit himself to stick bows- fine....to each his own. But as Baxter insinuated....you are letting a lot of animals walk. Thats the truth. If you are OK with that....great. Sounds brutal but sometimes I just like to shoot these critters...no matter the weapon.

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[traviswdalton]

I’ve always wished I could shoot trad well enough to hunt. Granted I’ve never fully committed to it. What I have done is limit myself to 30 yards max. Which hasn’t been very hard to do since 99% of my hunts are whitetails from tree stands. Although when I went on an elk hunt this year I did set a 40 yard pin. For me it’s more about seeing how close I can get vs how far can I shoot.


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[ODB]

My impulse is not to get closer, if I wanted to get closer I would just use the compound and hunt closer. I am just looking for a new trail to follow with archery. I’m not challenged with shooting the compound so it has lost its luster. That’s why I’m looking to get into the traditional archery side of things. I would get real training and if I am not shooting at a level that I would consider “ethical” with a trad bow then I won’t hunt with it. If I’m not performing the best I can with it then I don’t deserve to take it into the field.


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If you truly are looking to be challenged, skip the ultra-forgiving heavily deflexed and center-shot recurves. They exist mostly to help overcome bad form and inconsistencies - they are crutches. I would recommend a Howard Hill longbow with a straight (not locator, not dished) grip, a B-50 string and cedar arrows. Shoot this with a glove Mediterranean style (split finger) with a middle finger in the corner of the mouth anchor.

you learn to shoot that way well and you have REALLY learned something. When you meet great shooters who shoot with that type of equipment (Scott toll, John Shulz) it’s like being among deities.