archery elk

[gotcoues]

My daughter has drawn an archery bull tag and we are already in preparation for her hunt. She is very petite and at fourteen only weighs about seventy pounds. She has been shooting for about 6 years and is a very good shot at shorter distances. We have already started a workout routine I believe will help to improve her draw weight on her bow which is currently set at 42 or 43 pounds. Her bow goes to 50 but she is maxed out at her current bow weight. I believe she can get a little stronger before the hunt, but I want her to be able to shoot from a sitting position incase we sit water in a blind, which will probably put us back to what she is now. Her arrow speed is currently 162 FPS and the Kinetic energy is too dismal to talk about. I checked into a brand new bow and the arrow speed change was only about 18 FPS, not enough in my opinion to spend $400 to $500 dollars.

I'm definitely looking for opinions and possibly some reassuring stories of successful bowhunters shooting less than 50 lb set ups. For anyone who is wondering her max shot would be 30 yards or less. I feel confidant she can make a good shot at this distance. I would like her to have a great experience with the best oppurtunity to harvest an animal.

[thunderbolt]

Congratulations on your daughter getting a tag. A friend of mine and his wife received a tag a couple of years age and she shot her elk with a 40 lb. bow. A complete pass through. She was using gold tip arrows, and i think they were falcon arrows. They were thinner than the 5575 arrows

[thunderbolt]

Oh,,,,,,,, and GOOD LUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[coueshunter84]

Quite the interesting "fix" your in.. Congrats!!! Been there and done that. And its not a "fix" at all. If shes a good shot then her set up should do just fine. Only thing you have to add is a very very very sharp broadhead. If she can add a few lbs. thats great but dont let her overdo it. I have had several folks in the medical profession tell me not to let them strain themselves. could cause lasting cartlidge and joint problems. So up the poundage slowly.

 

My 13 year old shoots a 42# recurve. Her arrows are alot heavier, but probably the same KE as hers is running about 150 fps. We have magnus 100 grain 2 blade heads for her set up. My wife shoots a bow tec stalker lite. Pulling 44 lbs. Shooting the same gold tips listed above. Added some steel force titanium heads and her set up has taken 2 javalina with pass throughs, one at 31 yards.

 

If shes shooting well then she should be fine. Just work on shot placement. Up the poundage slowly enough that she can still draw without straining, and go from there. Then put some pics on here when shes done. LOL.

[mattys281]

What is her draw length? I've got a PSE Spyder that goes 40-50 lbs, & I'm confident it'll whip 'em out there a bit quicker than that. If you're interested, I'll let it go for my wholesale price to get ride of it. Send a pm.

 

If she's going to hunt w/ what she's got, set her up with two blade heads. I think that what you'll gain in penetration will outway what you'll lose in blood trail, for a low energy set-up. Good luck.

[coueshunter84]

One other thing I have found with the light set ups. Its more cost effective ke wise to trade speed for weight. You might go with a heavier set of arrows, Maybe put 125 grains on the tip. You will lose some speed but the impact will get a little more penetration. BUt again with anything else shot placement is key. And with the kill zone of a big ole bull. I bet she will do just fine.

[TwoGuns]

I think she should be fine shooting the setup you described. I have several elk hunting videos with guys shooting stick and string bows with wood arrows and they have good success, and I cant imagine that they have more KE than your daughter will. Just make sure she is pretty close and that the broadhead is a very very sharp cut-on-contact head. Good luck, I cant wait for my kids to get to hunt. I will be buying my daughter her first bow for her bday next month. Cant wait.

 

Darren

[Noel Arnold]

Use two bladed broadheads,like somebody said above.Magnus are good.35 yards would probally be a max distance for me.

Noel

[Coues Sniper]

Another vote for two-blades. And the draw length question is a good one. Seems as though you should be getting a little more speed than you are.

[elkhunter]

ndaniel will know a thing or two about this situation, my sister got into archery and he did a whole lotta research on this topic for her, he'll be on here soon

[ndaniel]

There's a reason that the minimum draw weight is 40lbs. Everyone here has pretty much hit it on the dot, if she's at 40lbs she's fine if she's not shooting further than 35 yards. Another good point that was made was the 2 blade broadheads, Magnus are very good blades. As long as she has good shot placement at the right distance then she should have little to worry about. Good luck to you and your daughter on that hunt, should be a great time.

[gotcoues]

Thanks for all of your input everyone. To answer one question my daughter's draw length is 22 and I'm sure thats a big factor in the slower arrow speed. I will definately check into those broadheads though, we were going to try some sonics which are cut on impact very small three bladed broadheads.

Sorry for the delay in responding to everyone, the family and I have been in Denver visiting family for spring break. Can't say I enjoyed the wheather though. A couple days it was around freezing for the high!

Thanks again, Desert Rat for life, Justin.

 

P.S. My daughter will be very excited to read all of your posts.

[coueshunter84]

The Magnus heads are quite inexpensive compared to most other heads out there. If you have the chance pick up a pack, and put a tape measure on the targets after the shots. See which heads give you the most penetration. it might only be a slim amount but I bet the 2 blade will be the winner. Something else to concider. And with the season being a while off, you will have time to play with the set-ups to find the one that works the best. I would be willing to bet there are a bunch of folks on here who will either donate equipment for you to test, or pick up the extras after you get done playing with them. I have a bunch of Magnus 100 grain heads. PM me if you want a couple to try out, I have a whole bunch of stuff left over from my experiments.