How very odd a question. Not aware of lighter bows in the UK. Of course our have-a-go are about 10 to 25 pounds and our reenactment longbows are 30lbs. However, When I was 12 my first bow was a 36lb Slazenger flat bow and my normal weight longbows are 50lb. 45/50 or so was normal at our Hungerford Longbow club with some also shooting 60/70. Admittedly the 70 I have does require getting back into training after a lay off but I like the idea of shooting the same weight of bow as my age.
Why does it seem Americans shoot bows with heavier draw weights?
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Robson Valley, I'm sure you know your patch better than anyone. Certainly forcing game over cliffs was an effective practice and done everywhere. Fishing seems to be the more reliable form to hunting game.
I am sure the advent of horses changed some bison tactics on the open prairie nomadic Indians further south. Maybe the Victorian paintings depicting Red Indians hunting Buffalo on horses with bows was more artistic licence but I can't see it not being effective.
Hunting on horseback with spears, as in pigsticking, was effective too.
The ability for humans to hunt out species is pretty common, heck the UK deer population has been at least twice. Industrialised slaughter being the biggest culprit with hunting for pleasure only a resent phenomenon. Hunters have also been the instigators of conservation with controls from Kings who enjoyed hunting, and protected stocks from the peasants, to the modern hunting and licensing seasons systems. It only works if law and order is upheld and enforced. No controls then people will eat everything.
Big subject.
Forgot frog hunting with light powered bows, similar to bow spear fishing.
Anyhow, I'm hopeless with a bow because I've never put enough time into it. Those who do look as if they are really enjoying themselves. Someone who is good looks pretty cool, as its a cool skill to have.
I am sure the advent of horses changed some bison tactics on the open prairie nomadic Indians further south. Maybe the Victorian paintings depicting Red Indians hunting Buffalo on horses with bows was more artistic licence but I can't see it not being effective.
Hunting on horseback with spears, as in pigsticking, was effective too.
The ability for humans to hunt out species is pretty common, heck the UK deer population has been at least twice. Industrialised slaughter being the biggest culprit with hunting for pleasure only a resent phenomenon. Hunters have also been the instigators of conservation with controls from Kings who enjoyed hunting, and protected stocks from the peasants, to the modern hunting and licensing seasons systems. It only works if law and order is upheld and enforced. No controls then people will eat everything.
Big subject.
Forgot frog hunting with light powered bows, similar to bow spear fishing.
Anyhow, I'm hopeless with a bow because I've never put enough time into it. Those who do look as if they are really enjoying themselves. Someone who is good looks pretty cool, as its a cool skill to have.
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Except the fact that it was the Europeans ( Spanish) that introduced the horse into the Americas, both North as South.
Guns too, shortly after the horses.
Guns too, shortly after the horses.
There's nothing wrong with starting on a low-powered bow, even as an adult - but 24lb definitely IS a low powered bow. As with all things, technique is key - practice technique and then move up.
That being said, I started bow-shooting in Scotland when I was about 7 and haven't noticed people using stronger bows here in the US. If I were to try and put a finger on why you've had that experience, I would say:
1 - hunting. Americans hunt with bows. Including big game.
2 - Most of the bow-shooters I've known in the US have been doing it consistently since they were young kids, often bow hunting as young kids too.
Tell you the truth though, while most American bow-shooters I know do so in the 40-70lb region, I don't recall having met one to go way up there into the crazy-heavy 100lb+ warbow region - whereas I have known folks in the UK to do that!
That being said, I started bow-shooting in Scotland when I was about 7 and haven't noticed people using stronger bows here in the US. If I were to try and put a finger on why you've had that experience, I would say:
1 - hunting. Americans hunt with bows. Including big game.
2 - Most of the bow-shooters I've known in the US have been doing it consistently since they were young kids, often bow hunting as young kids too.
Tell you the truth though, while most American bow-shooters I know do so in the 40-70lb region, I don't recall having met one to go way up there into the crazy-heavy 100lb+ warbow region - whereas I have known folks in the UK to do that!
As others have said there's a minimum weight legal for hunting here. No, not every archer hunts, but that has indeed been the driving force in the rise of bow shooting since the 1970s and the hunting bows drive up the average draw weights.
Once horses were common among the Plains Indians they probably did very little bow hunting from horseback as they also began acquiring firearms about the same time. It would have also been easier to stampede them over the cliffs from horseback rather than lighting the Plains afire as previously.
Once horses were common among the Plains Indians they probably did very little bow hunting from horseback as they also began acquiring firearms about the same time. It would have also been easier to stampede them over the cliffs from horseback rather than lighting the Plains afire as previously.
Don't forget that Fred Bear killed an elephant with a 75 pound recurve and conventional broadheads (no poison)
Yeah but Fred was superhuman = he dropped everything with his bow.
Fred Bear developed and marketed some really good hunting bows, starting back in what? early 1960's??
Fred Bear developed and marketed some really good hunting bows, starting back in what? early 1960's??
Good British fur trading company kept meticulous records from the fur trading posts in Canada. The various forts, aka posts, had quotas for producing such foods as pemmican
which was to supply the actively travelling fur trading employees. For Rocky Mountain House, the Hudson's Bay Company records show that the annual quota expected for pemmican
was 44,000 lbs, done up in either 90 lb bison hide bags or 60lb bison hide bags for the really good stuff. (Jeez! You ever made real bison pemmican and tried to eat it? I have.)
That 44,000lbs quota was prepared in just 9 days. Dried meat. What? 10-15% of wet weight at most? So you gotta kill enough bison to see maybe 300,000lbs wet meat?
Then you have to render some 15,000lbs bison fat? The nuts and berries thing is a myth.
Horses could never help to match the bulk slaughter with a buffalo jump.
Now if you want to dispatch as many bison as possible with a rifle, you sure as hell don't want to be chasing them into a stampede on some silly horse.
They will be scattered all over the plains, rotting in the sun.
Instead, you lay back with a Sharps and kill everything out to 300 - 400 yards. Bison having "dirt-naps" and their pals don't get too upset, they all just standing around
which is freakin' exactly what a sharp shooting bison killer needs.
I still have family homestead photographs from a city originally named "Pile o' Bones." Now, the city is . . .. . . . . .. ??
which was to supply the actively travelling fur trading employees. For Rocky Mountain House, the Hudson's Bay Company records show that the annual quota expected for pemmican
was 44,000 lbs, done up in either 90 lb bison hide bags or 60lb bison hide bags for the really good stuff. (Jeez! You ever made real bison pemmican and tried to eat it? I have.)
That 44,000lbs quota was prepared in just 9 days. Dried meat. What? 10-15% of wet weight at most? So you gotta kill enough bison to see maybe 300,000lbs wet meat?
Then you have to render some 15,000lbs bison fat? The nuts and berries thing is a myth.
Horses could never help to match the bulk slaughter with a buffalo jump.
Now if you want to dispatch as many bison as possible with a rifle, you sure as hell don't want to be chasing them into a stampede on some silly horse.
They will be scattered all over the plains, rotting in the sun.
Instead, you lay back with a Sharps and kill everything out to 300 - 400 yards. Bison having "dirt-naps" and their pals don't get too upset, they all just standing around
which is freakin' exactly what a sharp shooting bison killer needs.
I still have family homestead photographs from a city originally named "Pile o' Bones." Now, the city is . . .. . . . . .. ??
I think You will find that most archery clubs will start you off on low powered bows and as you progress build up the draw weight. this all boils down to amount of arrows shot in a target competition where several dozen will be shot over a day, a beginner would not be consistent shooting a 45lb bow all day long, yet most adults would be fine drawing the same draw weight a few times over the period of a hunting trip.
When I started in field archery i started out in the standard trainer bows that most people will use, my first bow i bought was a 35lb flat bow, used this for around 6 months before moving on to my current bow which is 45lb. From what I have seen most adult men will be shooting 40-50lb bows on a days field shoot as the extra power makes for a flatter trajectorie over a lower powered bow, a bonus when having to shoot between trees.
When I started in field archery i started out in the standard trainer bows that most people will use, my first bow i bought was a 35lb flat bow, used this for around 6 months before moving on to my current bow which is 45lb. From what I have seen most adult men will be shooting 40-50lb bows on a days field shoot as the extra power makes for a flatter trajectorie over a lower powered bow, a bonus when having to shoot between trees.
Where did you read that? Because I'm absolutely certain it wasn't from experimentation.
I can tell you that the penetration power of an arrow does not fall off with range. Actually, it is less at 20-30 yards than it is at longer ranges; this is because at the shorter ranges the shaft of the arrow is still vibrating quite a lot and when it goes through something like plate steel or leather, this causes it to jam in the hole. At further ranges the arrow is not vibrating so much and penetrates better. Why can I state this with so much confidence? Because I've tried it. Many, many hours of messing around with arrows and annoying my father by shooting holes in the half 44gallon barrels we had out in the fields as feed bins.
To answer the original post; we shoot light draw weight bows in the UK because we don't hunt, don't often use compound bows and heavier weight bows are simply not an advantage when learning to target shoot.
Again, some great info here guys!
It's been said here and in the shop that with my 24lb bow I can shoot a high number of arrows repeatedly to practice form and technique without getting tired and being unstable.
It makes perfect sense. My range is in my garden too (15 - 20 yards max) which is where I am going to be doing most of my shooting, I think it was the right purchase (for me.)
I'm not using a sight so I need to get my shots perfectly repeatable every time to allow my brain and subconscious to do the calculations. Committing every single motion to total muscle memory. This is clearly going to be easier with a low powered bow. Once I am proficient I can always upgrade the limbs because it is a take down bow.
I'm loving the learning curve already!
It's been said here and in the shop that with my 24lb bow I can shoot a high number of arrows repeatedly to practice form and technique without getting tired and being unstable.
It makes perfect sense. My range is in my garden too (15 - 20 yards max) which is where I am going to be doing most of my shooting, I think it was the right purchase (for me.)
I'm not using a sight so I need to get my shots perfectly repeatable every time to allow my brain and subconscious to do the calculations. Committing every single motion to total muscle memory. This is clearly going to be easier with a low powered bow. Once I am proficient I can always upgrade the limbs because it is a take down bow.
I'm loving the learning curve already!
Matt, it sounds like you received good advice, particularly for shooting at a short range.
A low draw-weight bow is excellent for perfecting your release (which is very important for decent shooting). It will not disguise bad habits and it will enable you to practise a lot without exhausting muscles, as they said.
A low draw-weight bow is excellent for perfecting your release (which is very important for decent shooting). It will not disguise bad habits and it will enable you to practise a lot without exhausting muscles, as they said.
- indeed, but equally, the Waliangulu - all those years ago - had no technology to assist, no high-end metals. Their bows were solid pieces of wood with strings of gut and their arrows were wood with detachable heads of timber too.
They apparently, were greedy meat-eaters and killed more elephants than they needed too.
Some of the less strong hunters would stalk the elephants and lie prone on their backs, using both feet to fire their bows.
A great thread, Matt - all the best with your bow shooting - keep us posted!
Couple of months tops and that 24lb bow will seem pathetic to draw. Hope it has replaceable limbs or they have part exchange service at the archery shop. A friend of mines daughter, now 11 had one with that draw for Christmas and is now very tired of it. Was shooting in our wood weekend before last and easily managing a heavier bow.
Remember that with a light bow it is so easy to over draw with the danger of the arrow getting trapped behind the bow and splintering.
Remember that with a light bow it is so easy to over draw with the danger of the arrow getting trapped behind the bow and splintering.
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Overdrawing because of the bow being too light? Sorry, that's ridiculous.
You draw back to an anchor point, your chin, corner of mouth, jaw, something like that. You don't just keep pulling on the bow.
That is a real problem and one I watch out for when doing have a go with the public, So not ridiculous and I have overseen over a thousand people starting out with archery. Two hundred plus have a goers at the last Green Man Festival at Mount Edgcumbe, Cornwall, for example.
If you have a problem overdrawing to the point the arrow point is behind the bow, you really need a longer arrow.