What bow for a 73 year old Elk hunter?

[Charlie Brown]

I went to a Bowtech Carbon Icon a few years back. Weight was a big factor for carrying all day elk hunting. It's set at 62lbs

 

[LuvsFixedBlades]

Species would be mostly for Elk hunting but maybe some occasional deer or pig too. I have a Montana Combo tag for 23 so working and dieting to get in shape. I've lost 14 lbs and walking every day. I'm about 5'10 and was 199 but now down to 185. I want to get at least down to the 170's but 160's would be even better. Carrying 20lbs+ less every mile and be more fit would be especially helpful in the mountains.

I had thought about the weight and shaking and I really believe a lighter bow would allow me to shake a little less. Trying to hold 5 lbs out in front of me while also holding back the energy of the bow is part of the reason I shake. Very recently I saw a youtube video called" backyard bows" I believe it was and the Bow guy mentioned an exercise he does at the end of his shooting where he draws back his bow will hold the bow up on target for a full 60 seconds then shoots at the target. So I have tried my own version of that. But I could only hold for 30 seconds but I let down instead cause by 30 seconds I am not confident I could even hit somewhere, anywhere on my target. I did go 35 seconds tonight and will continue to increase the duration of the hold as I think it could really help me. I remember back in Boot camp we had to hold our rifles out in front of us palms up and no one wanted to be that first guy who let down and god forbid you actually drop your weapon! But it definitely strengthened us. We were using M14's at the time and they are heavy.
I am gradually getting used to the weight of the bow again and my groups have gradually gotten smaller.
Still, I think I can lift and hold a light bow better in place than a heavy on because the heavier weight makes me shake even more. Fortunately exercise works even for old folks and as much as I would like to think it helps lifting a beer up to my mouth over and over just doesn't seem to help that much?

Good job on your weight loss efforts! That's a great start and will serve you well in MT.

The draw holding drills are excellent practice, too. I like to incorporate those into my training as well.

I'd give you my background in the archery industry, but someone just told me in another thread that I come across as arrogant and as a "legend in my own mind", so I'm just going to make some suggestions and I'll leave it up to you to consider if it's qualified or not.

I'm not sure what causes your shakiness because I haven't watched you shoot. But, I will double down on my first comment that an ultra-light bow will make it worse. If you aren't already, I would suggest strength training your anterior and medial delts, as well as rhomboids, lats and traps. Nothing crazy, you don't have to do heavy weights or anything, but regular strengthening in those areas will help your hold tremendously. If you are doing that already, awesome.

If I was to make a recommendation of one bow for the type of hunting you have in mind from this years bow offerings, I would suggest trying the new Mathews Phase 4 in a 33" ATA. IMO, it has the best draw cycle and hold of the bows out, and the longer riser helps retain more torsional rigidity. Bows are all about feel and are highly personal. Just like people's preferences of music. Shoot as many different bows as you can and see which one speaks to you. Like you mentioned, brace height does affect forgiveness, but I wouldn't shy away from the 6" category because of that. There are a lot more mitigating factors built into bows now in addition to brace height that can make them more forgiving.

Whatever bow you decide on, I would recommend a 60lb limb set maxed out. Shoot a properly spined and well built arrow. In my work with various arrow manufacturers and personal research, I prefer an arrow build that puts your FOC in the 11-13% range. Arrow weights are a personal preference as well, depending on what your goals and personal preferences are. At your draw length and draw weight, as a generalization, anything 450 to 550 will be fine. I mention arrows because you said you already have your arrows built. Or, at least have decided upon the specs. Generally, it is best practice to build your arrows around what your known bow performance is. Even if you will be using the exact same componentry you detailed above, you may need to cut your arrows to a different length to achieve optimal spine.

If you do decide on a carbon riser and would like help determining how to stabilize it properly after it's set up, feel free to PM me.

Happy shopping and training!

 

[Roughwater]

Good job on your weight loss efforts! That's a great start and will serve you well in MT.

The draw holding drills are excellent practice, too. I like to incorporate those into my training as well.

I'd give you my background in the archery industry, but someone just told me in another thread that I come across as arrogant and as a "legend in my own mind", so I'm just going to make some suggestions and I'll leave it up to you to consider if it's qualified or not.

I'm not sure what causes your shakiness because I haven't watched you shoot. But, I will double down on my first comment that an ultra-light bow will make it worse. If you aren't already, I would suggest strength training your anterior and medial delts, as well as rhomboids, lats and traps. Nothing crazy, you don't have to do heavy weights or anything, but regular strengthening in those areas will help your hold tremendously. If you are doing that already, awesome.

If I was to make a recommendation of one bow for the type of hunting you have in mind from this years bow offerings, I would suggest trying the new Mathews Phase 4 in a 33" ATA. IMO, it has the best draw cycle and hold of the bows out, and the longer riser helps retain more torsional rigidity. Bows are all about feel and are highly personal. Just like people's preferences of music. Shoot as many different bows as you can and see which one speaks to you. Like you mentioned, brace height does affect forgiveness, but I wouldn't shy away from the 6" category because of that. There are a lot more mitigating factors built into bows now in addition to brace height that can make them more forgiving.

Whatever bow you decide on, I would recommend a 60lb limb set maxed out. Shoot a properly spined and well built arrow. In my work with various arrow manufacturers and personal research, I prefer an arrow build that puts your FOC in the 11-13% range. Arrow weights are a personal preference as well, depending on what your goals and personal preferences are. At your draw length and draw weight, as a generalization, anything 450 to 550 will be fine. I mention arrows because you said you already have your arrows built. Or, at least have decided upon the specs. Generally, it is best practice to build your arrows around what your known bow performance is. Even if you will be using the exact same componentry you detailed above, you may need to cut your arrows to a different length to achieve optimal spine.

If you do decide on a carbon riser and would like help determining how to stabilize it properly after it's set up, feel free to PM me.

Happy shopping and training!

I'm no pro for sure but it sounds like you know what you are talking about. As to the Matthews Phase 4 that is a awesome bow I have to say. I was able to shoot one I believe set at 60 lbs. very recently. A friend has a archery shop here in NC and the 33 phase 4 is what he chose to hunt with this year with me in Montana and he could have chose any bow he wanted. It is very quiet also. Maybe I should back up a bit though, the Phase 4 I shot was the 29" version so it was a little lighter I imagine than the 33. I liked it but it is a short brace height and a fairly short bow but the way the limbs set on it, it feels like a longer bow than it is.

But I'm not convinced a heavy bow is for me. I guess the only way to know is for me to shoot a light bow and find out for myself though. I think this next coming week I'll find a bow shop that carries a LH carbon bow and go shoot it. I know there is a bow shop in Jacksonville NC that is on You tube all time and they seem to carry a lot of the latest bows so I'll give them a call.

 

[Happy Antelope]

Maybe Consider an Elite Synergy if you want something really easy to shoot with an insane backwall. Not that fast though. You can hold it for days, I know that's not the best for accuracy, but for an older person the easy draw and backwall would be nice. Good luck

 

[LuvsFixedBlades]

I'm no pro for sure but it sounds like you know what you are talking about. As to the Matthews Phase 4 that is a awesome bow I have to say. I was able to shoot one I believe set at 60 lbs. very recently. A friend has a archery shop here in NC and the 33 phase 4 is what he chose to hunt with this year with me in Montana and he could have chose any bow he wanted. It is very quiet also. Maybe I should back up a bit though, the Phase 4 I shot was the 29" version so it was a little lighter I imagine than the 33. I liked it but it is a short brace height and a fairly short bow but the way the limbs set on it, it feels like a longer bow than it is.

But I'm not convinced a heavy bow is for me. I guess the only way to know is for me to shoot a light bow and find out for myself though. I think this next coming week I'll find a bow shop that carries a LH carbon bow and go shoot it. I know there is a bow shop in Jacksonville NC that is on You tube all time and they seem to carry a lot of the latest bows so I'll give them a call.

Heck yeah, have fun trying the new bows.

Sounds like you'll have a helpful friend going along with you as well.

The season it coming up fast. I can't believe it's almost the solstice.

 

[Roughwater]

Heck yeah, have fun trying the new bows.

Sounds like you'll have a helpful friend going along with you as well.

The season it coming up fast. I can't believe it's almost the solstice.

The shaking. My mother is still living at 91 and she shakes terribly to the point she has problems keeping something in a spoon. So It's possibly hereditary. I don't shake near as bad as she does and I've noticed I shake less the more I work my arms. I don't just shake when I shoot I have a slight tremor all the time. But trying to hold something heavy for an extended time definitely increases it. Now when I shoot a rifle and can put it on a rest or up against a tree allows me to make accurate shots but I can't do that with a bow of course. Still, I can get pretty decent groups when I concentrate. My eyesight isn't the best and wearing glasses and looking through a peep is problematic for me. Just a few days ago I find I can shoot just as well if not better by removing my peep. I just use a kisser button and touch the string to my nose while looking at the appropriate pin on my sight. It works much better than I expected it would.

Someone suggested using the Botech Icon but there is also the Zion which is a newer model using the same Riser. I feel like that is a possibility but again I will try some bows out and. When I shot? the few bows I shot so far neither had a scope so I was just going buy how the bow felt and not really how well I might be able to hold it steady for a shot. Honestly I don't really care that much about how a bow feels as long as I can draw it back. I have been wondering though that if a bow does feel easy to draw back might I be able to actually pull more lbs on a bow like that than with a lighter bow that's hard to draw? I really don't know

 

[Elk97]

I'm not sure that a pound or so is really going to make that big a difference for you when you consider everything else you'll be carrying. I'd say get the bow that you think draws the best and shoots the best for you. I tend to shake too (72) and a heavier bow is steadier for me. I shoot a Mathews Traverse with a 10" stab, 5 arrow quiver and MG three pin slider. The weight doesn't bother me carrying it and I'm not a big guy, 6' 170. Good for you for losing weight, that's going to pay big dividends in the mountains at altitude.

 

[Roughwater]

If you are 6' and 170 you are apparently a exceptionally fit person especially for your age. I probably wouldn't want to try to follow you up a mountain. I guess a person has to be in my shoes to completely understand. When I am aiming a bow, when I need to lift it up a little higher to be right on target it feels like I'm lifting 50 lbs to move it an inch and when the pin is there I want to hit the trigger fast because I don't feel like I can hold it there long.
So I am hoping a lighter bow would let me hold over the target a bit longer so I won't be as tempted to pull the trigger as I'm passing through the target. I feel like I am gaining strength and my groups are gradually tightening up. Possibly, if I get a little stronger a light bow won't seem as important to me but for right now I sure don't see a light bow as a handicap.

 

[ResearchinStuff]

think less about #'s of draw, and more about what draw force curve you can manage while still getting adequate arrow velocity

If you are 6' and 170 you are apparently a exceptionally fit person especially for your age. I probably wouldn't want to try to follow you up a mountain. I guess a person has to be in my shoes to completely understand. When I am aiming a bow, when I need to lift it up a little higher to be right on target it feels like I'm lifting 50 lbs to move it an inch and when the pin is there I want to hit the trigger fast because I don't feel like I can hold it there long.
So I am hoping a lighter bow would let me hold over the target a bit longer so I won't be as tempted to pull the trigger as I'm passing through the target. I feel like I am gaining strength and my groups are gradually tightening up. Possibly, if I get a little stronger a light bow won't seem as important to me but for right now I sure don't see a light bow as a handicap.

What you're describing is not a physical strength issue, but a mental issue known as target panic.

 

[Roughwater]

Heck yeah, have fun trying the new bows.

Sounds like you'll have a helpful friend going along with you as well.

The season it coming up fast. I can't believe it's almost the solstice.

I wanted to let you all know what bow I ended up with for this season anyway and it turned out I bought a bow that I wasn't aware of that even existed.
Due in part to the fact I just bought a new truck but still needed to equip it with a Shell/Cap to get all my and my partners gear to Montana this year I felt I couldn't easily afford a new bow. But I did find a Cheap new bow (old stock) that best fit my budget and solved my sub 4 Lb bow weight preference. It is a PSE Evoke LT bow. It's a roughly 3.8 lb 31.5" axel to axel, 60 Lb bow. A Ohio bow shop somehow had acquired 6 of them in LH and put them up for sale on Ebay. I bought # 2 of the six they originally had up for sale. I had never heard of this model and it's a model that came out mid season of 2019. This bow was never advertised on PSE's website but the "Archery Supply" guy on youtube gave a great review on it and I have come to appreciate and trust his reviews. But overall not a lot of reviews on this model. But I was able to use Paypal credit at zero percent so long as it's paid for in 6 months which was helpful also to finance it. So this way I still have my old heavy bow if it turns out heavy is what I really needed and I have a shorter lighter bow as well that I'm already pretty familiar with being it's a PSE Evoke like my present bow only lighter.

 

[rufe]

Hi, I am 76 and just bought a Bowtech Carbon Zion, 60 lb. Draw wt. I really like it, very light bow. My last bow was a Bowtech Destroyer 340 70 lb. Draw wt. Keep shooting, it keeps you young.

 

[Point Man]

I'm 76 and most recently bought a Bowtech SR 350. Wonderful draw cycle and hold. I am coming from a Mathews Switchback XT.
edit: I just recently moved on to a PSE Fortis 33. I am liking the draw and hold much better.

 

[dony]

If you use a stabilizer and quiver the option archery quivalizer can shave some weight. The only thing I don't like is that it's so far out front you can almost induce a balanced wobble side to side and loaded with arrows in the wind it's not the best.

 

[Point Man]

Have you handled any lighter bows yet and actually shot them to see what they are like? The reason I ask is since I am 76 and a little unsteady myself,I had to hang up my Mathews Switchback XT and went with a Bowtech SR 350 for the easier draw cycle but it is also a bit heavier and because of the weight,I am better at holding it a bit steadier.

 

[dony]

Have you handled any lighter bows yet and actually shot them to see what they are like? The reason I ask is since I am 76 and a little unsteady myself,I had to hang up my Mathews Switchback XT and went with a Bowtech SR 350 for the easier draw cycle but it is also a bit heavier and because of the weight,I am better at holding it a bit steadier.

Yes. The hoyt draw cycle is usually my favorite. Tried all the new bows at 3 different bow shops across the country this summer, went with bowtech ss34 because the draw on comfort setting is so nice. Helps with shoulder issues. Most carbons especially pse have sticking points near the back wall. States with 80% letoff rules need to get with the times. How are you gonna measure that in the field? And it's one of the few that works for my 31.5-32" draw. And it's quieter and deader in hand than a Mathews Phase IV!!! But no sponsored people will admit that. Yes, it's a heavier bow but that makes it less wobbly I feel. More inertia or something. More forgiving. Easy to move the cams. We'll see how the adjustable cam thing holds up with dirt dust and sand though. Felt like it's been getting in there.

 

[dony]

Yes. The hoyt draw cycle is usually my favorite. Tried all the new bows at 3 different bow shops across the country this summer, went with bowtech ss34 because the draw on comfort setting is so nice. Helps with shoulder issues. Most carbons especially pse have sticking points near the back wall. States with 80% letoff rules need to get with the times. How are you gonna measure that in the field? And it's one of the few that works for my 31.5-32" draw. And it's quieter and deader in hand than a Mathews Phase IV!!! But no sponsored people will admit that. Yes, it's a heavier bow but that makes it less wobbly I feel. More inertia or something. More forgiving. Easy to move the cams. We'll see how the adjustable cam thing holds up with dirt dust and sand though. Felt like it's been getting in there.

The hoyt ventum was nice but too short on draw. The lower stabilizer mount requires less added weight. The carbons are gonna need more added weight to dampen vibration and stabilize. I'll update if you remind me in a couple months to see if the heavier bow performs in the mountains or causes fatigue.