loggerchas
WKR
Very experienced archery hunter myself. Getting my kid ready for her first archery deer hunt this year. She is pulling 40# but only has a DL of 22". She is shooting an off-brand compound, hard to find that short of a draw length in legal poundage configurations. Given the incredibly short DL I am concerned about speed/arrow weight and penetration (mule deer). I am confident we can get her a shot at <30 yards and that will likely be her max range.
Currently at 10 yds. in the basement she is hitting 5" groups consistently after only 2 weeks of a dozen arrows per day. She is consistently gaining skill and precision every evening. By October she'll be ready.
I have never faced this problem of weight versus speed versus penetration. Self-taught, I've always shot 50#+ with 31" DL and 500+ gr. arrows. SHot 145 gr. Bow Bullets and brass inserts before FOC was even a thing. Never had an issue with penetration whether recurve or compound - but had long arrow lengths (weight) to compensate for lower poundage of recurves (50#) and generally stuck with the same general rig for my compounds at 70#+.
I've never set up a youth bow for hunting purposes before. Researching the internet it seems there is a huge split on whether to go light and focus on speed or to go heavy and fight trajectory issues. Given her frame and genetics, she "might" pull up to 45# by season but DL isn't going to change. I would prefer she use a 125 gr. head, or at least 100 gr.
Has anyone fought the super-short DL issues before and what has been your experience balancing speed versus total arrow weight?
Part of me just wants her to shoot some of my old arrows (completely wrong spine- I know) sticking 7" out the end of her bow and though slower, should get a pass-through. They killed plenty of animals out of a recurve only 5# heavier. I also know that isn't the correct answer to have her shoot wrong spine and wrong length. The other part of me wants to get a dozen custom mini-arrows spined for her current DL and # but given the short DL and low GPI of low spine arrows, total arrow weight and penetration may be an issue.
Not sure where the sweet spot is on this new situation for me. Any insight from parents who have fought this dragon before is appreciated!
Currently at 10 yds. in the basement she is hitting 5" groups consistently after only 2 weeks of a dozen arrows per day. She is consistently gaining skill and precision every evening. By October she'll be ready.
I have never faced this problem of weight versus speed versus penetration. Self-taught, I've always shot 50#+ with 31" DL and 500+ gr. arrows. SHot 145 gr. Bow Bullets and brass inserts before FOC was even a thing. Never had an issue with penetration whether recurve or compound - but had long arrow lengths (weight) to compensate for lower poundage of recurves (50#) and generally stuck with the same general rig for my compounds at 70#+.
I've never set up a youth bow for hunting purposes before. Researching the internet it seems there is a huge split on whether to go light and focus on speed or to go heavy and fight trajectory issues. Given her frame and genetics, she "might" pull up to 45# by season but DL isn't going to change. I would prefer she use a 125 gr. head, or at least 100 gr.
Has anyone fought the super-short DL issues before and what has been your experience balancing speed versus total arrow weight?
Part of me just wants her to shoot some of my old arrows (completely wrong spine- I know) sticking 7" out the end of her bow and though slower, should get a pass-through. They killed plenty of animals out of a recurve only 5# heavier. I also know that isn't the correct answer to have her shoot wrong spine and wrong length. The other part of me wants to get a dozen custom mini-arrows spined for her current DL and # but given the short DL and low GPI of low spine arrows, total arrow weight and penetration may be an issue.
Not sure where the sweet spot is on this new situation for me. Any insight from parents who have fought this dragon before is appreciated!
