Bow Hunting - What Does It Take?

[DRH1175]

You really don't have to spend a fortune. Some of us have $1200 for our package. But honestly you could go to a good bowshop or like Gander Mountain. There are many entry level bows that are quite nice. You could totally get into a nice bow for around 400 with arrows, tips, sight, rest quiver etc... The Guide Series bows are nice as well are like Parkers, jennings, Fred Bear etc... I wouldn't feel bad one bit for shooting this type of Equipment. As far as stands I really like climbers. You can haul them in and set up in minutes. I have really come to enjoy archery hunting. You have way more oppourtunities and no doubt will see more deer and have more chances at Bucks and does. I still do Gun hunt however I enjoy my bow kills more. Hope this helps.

[eyepatrol]

So it's okay to eat a big bowl of chili the night before going out?

Set up location is definitely something that I'll need advice on, etc. I'm also not sure what kind of tree stand would be good, whether it be a climb up stand or one with a ladder, but I'm leaning towards the ladder type.

My one cousin sure does get into the deer good out in SD. Here's a pic of a muley he got recently with a bow I believe. Man! I need to get into some of that!

[eyepatrol]

Thanks DRH. I'll have to look more into the stands. I'm not the young, athletic buck I used to be plus I have a bum knee, so I'm not sure if a climber stand is something that would be in the cards for me. I did some browsing around on cabelas last night and there sure are a lot of options out there for all kinds of equipment! It's just so hard to pick one piece of candy!

[doser]

Eric,

Let me know if you have any ?'s also . You know where to find me. I live and die bow hunting in the fall and have been doing it for 17 yrs. If I don't get out for more than a couple days in the week I start have withdrawls. Don't get me wrong it is an adrenaline rush to shoot a deer with a gun, but nothing compares to getting one with a bow. I bow hunt so much that when gun season rolls around I almost feel like I'm cheating. That's just my personal opinion though. Once you start you'll love it. One thing some bow hunters tend to forget is to keep practicing during the season. I haven't shoot at my target in almost two and half weeks . I feel like it's been ages. Not that I'm a great shot but tonight I will be practicing again before I climb back in the stand this week. If you don't find the time to practice as much during the week before you get on stand. Always take a practice arrow with you and pic out a leaf or something and just shoot at it right away . That why at least you feels some sort od confidence in your stand that your keeping up on your skills. One mor ething. I use a guy down in Henderson that runs the local hardware store down there. I feel loyal to him becasue he got me set up yrs. ago and really knows his stuff also. You can't find a nicer guy either.

[DRH1175]

Climber stands actually are way easier if you get a good one than any other stand out there. I bought a Goliath from Summit and it rocks. It was quite a bit of doe but every bit worth it. Also check into the Cabelas climbers they are less expensive but are made by summit. Honestly these rock. And are very easy to use. I am also 300lbs so not as nimble as a athletic type and It is a joy to climb in my summit and they are as solid as a rock!

[Steve Foss]

Basscatcher: The start inexpensive and grow theory appealed to me when I got into bowhunting years ago. I now shoot bow and gun for deer and love them both equally for different reasons.

I bought a used Martin compound bow that fit my draw length and was adjustable to 55-70lb. It was a two-wheel, with a 50% letoff. I still shoot it. I got it at a garage sale for $50. Yes, $50. It's heavy by the standards of today's bows, and 50% isn't much letoff, either, but you only need the 55lb draw to shoot a deer. I shoot it at the 70 lb strength, but you don't need to.

I bought half a dozen Easton XX75 arrows, half a dozen broadheads, and the rest, silencers, sights and a few other things already came with the bow.

I knew I'd like it at the time, because I'd shot a bow a lot at targets with good success, and had always loved being in the woods.

So I figured I'd start cheap and work my way up. I still shoot that bow. I've never bought a new one. I've taken many deer with it. I also never shoot from stands, because I don't like heights, so all my kills have been from ground blinds or from whatever cover was available.

My first camo was a pair of army green 8-pocket cargo pants and a green chamois shirt. I used black, gray and brown permanent magic marker to "camo" them, and used the camo makeup on my face and hands (this was early in the season).

I now have a ton of great camo, which I used for many things, not just hunting (nature photography, for example), but I've never had a better time shooting deer than I did those first two years.

The lesson that taught me, and it's one I continue to need taught, is that I don't have to spend mega bucks on gear to be successful and have a great time.

Good luck, and have a blast!

[BLACKJACK]

Basscatcher, lots of good ideas here, I'd like to add a few more.

Definately goto a good archery shop (or two) to get measured and get some advice.

Don't buy a bow that shoots too heavy a poundage for you. Anything over 70 pounds and you better be a big young stud. Accuracy is more important than poundage. Also, a bow shoots better when its adjusted to the top end of its range vrs the bottom end, as in setting a 55-70 pound bow at 65 pounds.

You don't have to go for a big buck bow right off the bat, most of the know brand names like PSE, Fred Bear, etc will shoot just fine at a fraction of the cost.

Shoot carbons if possible, they're more forgiving when you bounce them off the edge of your archery butt.

Find a source of cardboard and make yourself an archery butt, no need to spend big bucks on foam or portable targets.

For camo, I'd highly recommend a pair of army surplus clothes just because of all the pockets, and then you can add coveralls over it as it gets colder. Besides, holding still is almost more important than the color camo you have on.

Join a winter indoor league if possible, lots of good practice and advice.

Subscribe to Bowhunter and Deer and Deer Hunting.

Get out in the woods scouting as much as possible. In December and in the spring shed hunting are great times.

If you like other types of hunting you'll love bowhunting. And yes you'll have to make the decision whether to duck hunt or bowhunt, or whether to bowhunt or pheasant hunt! Good luck.

[eyepatrol]

Great advice guys, thanks for the tips! I had been wondering if ground blinds or hunting from the ground would be a viable option. As I mentioned before, I got a bum knee (torn ACL for the 2nd time) and it can really be a pain when climbing up and down ladders, etc. when just doing work on the house. I'll have to weigh the options when it comes to that.

With all the equipment that I'm going to need, I might just set $300 as my upper limit on a bow and look for something in the $200 - $300 range instead. I don't know anything about bow hunting, but it seems I wouldn't want to short myself on the arrows...probably get the carbon arrows as being mentioned here.

I'm really excited about taking on this new sport. I think it's always fun to try new things, and this is a new facet of hunting I could really enjoy since I love the sport of hunting so much.

I'm pretty pumped for hunting this year too. I just found out today that one of my uncles last weekend shot himself a nice 12 pointer and has some other dandy deer located. So that's promising to hear. Maybe next year I can get down there during bow season and get my first big deer! (glass is usually half full for me)

[eyepatrol]

doser...could you send me an e-mail again? I'd like your addy.

[email protected]

[harvey lee]

Eric

I would not use the guy in Henderson.I went to him for many years,maybe 15 and when I bought a new Mathews bow from him he set it up wrong and then couldnt fix it.I had to go to another shop to find out some things done were really wrong.

He is a great guy but I would not take my rubber dart bow to him.1300 for a bow and assc and he could not get it set up.Never again.I had to call Mathews and they told me how to fix it,I took it back to him and he still couldnt get the job done.

When I took it to Cabin Fever they asked me who set up the bow.They told me the wrong cam was in one end and the other guy couldnt figure it out.Like I say,great guy,but stay away.

[LakeDocktor]

A good beginner package that you could get is a PSE Nova. It is really quite adjustable, draw weight and length. A good friend of mine wanted to get back into bowhunting a couple months ago. He called me up and asked me what he should get and I walked him through his internet order at Cabela's. Personally, I wouldn't buy something over the internet if you have no experience. If you went into any sporting goods store and look at bows, tell them you want to shoot it and see how it feels. Shoot a couple different ones while you there. He ordered a Fred Bear Instinct. It is a real nice bow for the price, $399. It comes in 50-60 lb or 60-70lb and different draw lengths. His whole package came to around $800. That was with the bow, a dozen arrows, rest, broadheads, field tips, release, quiver, sights, peep sight, bow sling, silencers, and a hard case. Not a bad price for a quality package. Good luck in getting into bowhunting, you won't regret it!

[harvey lee]

Stfcatfish has got it right.Many of us who have bow hunted for some time have alot of money wrapped up in gear.Its something new every year.I have 2 blinds,11 hang-on stands and three climbers.Do I need that many ,No.

He is also right about the clothes.As stated above,I have all the new fancy stuff,but for years I had the pretty simple clothes and played the wind right.Its not a fashion show out there and the deer dont care if you have grandmas dress on.

As far as arrows go,dont buy any until you find a bow to purchase as you will need to know your draw length to fit your arrows.Yes,the ones you asked about in your e-mail to me are fine.

I dont know if you can hunt with a hang on type stand,but if you can,I will give you a couple that I dont use.There is nothing wrong with them,I just dont need them all.I would have to go through all my gear but there could be some other items that I would probably be willing to part with to help you get started.

[eyepatrol]

Ahhh...so the arrow length has to do with your draw length....makes sense.

Thanks for the offer on the equipment. If you're "cleaning house" a little, I'd be happy to take a look at some of your gear. I'd feel guilty if I got something from anyone without making some sort of "contribution" though.

As for camo, I'm in dire need of some new stuff for duck hunting also, and was thinking I could kill two birds with one stone and buy camo for both waterfowling and for bow hunting. It's been years since I got anything, so I'm due.

[harvey lee]

If there is something that I have and you can use it there will be no money exchange.If you really feel that you would owe me something,then we might have to take your boat to a local lake next spring and do a little fishing as I know you enjoy that.I will go through all my stuff after archery season which will end for me in a few weeks and I will give you a call.Its only a 10 minute drive from your house to my house.

As far as the camo goes,I do believe you could get something to work for both.Another great place to find cheap camo would be a army surplus store.

[Steve Foss]

Bass, I just got a set of Shadowgrass camo (from Mossy Oak) at Cabela's. It's GoreTex, and the heavy duty duck gear. It's a thinsulate jacket zipped into a heavy insulated parka shell, and the insulated bibs, too. It's pricey for sure, and is the first premium waterproof camo I've ever owned. The pattern is great, and is darker with more green, black and brown than most of those yellow grass/cattail patterns for duck hunting. Since I'm a nature photographer as well as everything else I do, I paid close attention to the versatility of various patterns. I'll be using this for cold-weather fishing (including ice fishing), for gun hunting, for cold/wet bowhunting and for shooting images during three seasons, as well as for duck hunting if I ever can get back into a duck blind (not since the heyday of return of the wet in North Dakota in the mid and late 90s).

Shadowgrass is that versatile a pattern. The whole package is less than $500, and it's never money I'd have felt I could spend on myself. I got lucky. See, it was me and Mrs. Catfish's 10th anniversary a few weeks back. I got her diamonds, she got me premium lifetime warranty GoreTex camo. Sweet? SWEET! We understand each other. It would be hard to decide which of us babbled on with more enthusiasm over our present.

But give it a look if there's a Cabela's nearby. There are pants that are half as expensive as the bibs in that line, too, and the parka is long enough to go well below the pants waistline. Even if that line of gear feels like it's out of reach pricewise, the pattern, being Mossy Oak, would be available in other lines of gear.

[doser]

I guess I never had any problems with the guy in Henderson. I bought my Mathews from him. Never heard any other complaints from anyone else , but I guess it does and can happen everywhere. I guess I've heard more complaints from the other store than the later. With that being said I've always had good service from Jeff though and can't complain. I guess you can choose you you want.

[eyepatrol]

Sounds good. Mossy Oak camo will work great for both fowl and deer. Mostly it's just holding still, not making any big radical movements that is important.

[eyepatrol]

Sounds like a plan Tom. Thanks!

Btw...was on Washington Sunday, graphed plenty of suspended fish along with some on the bottom in 15' - 25' of water, but no takers. Talked to a guy who said when the northwest wind blew, he caught a number of nice 'eyes. A 19", 23", 27", 28" and a hefty 29"....all between 3rd pt. and grassy island.

[eyepatrol]

I was talking with a co-worker who used to shoot league and deer hunt. He mentioned the need to wax the strings on the bow. Is that still needed with today's equipment? It's been years since he last used his bow, and he wasn't sure if that's needed anymore.

[harvey lee]

I wax mine 2-3 times during the season.I dont know if it is needed that much but it only takes a minute.

[eyepatrol]

Interesting. I had never heard that before. My co-worker said the same thing, only takes a couple minutes to rub it in and you're done.

I guess dry firing is a bad thing too.

[harvey lee]

I have never and will never dry fire a bow.The closet I ever came to a diaster is one time I had a cable break while I was at full draw.The bow was brand new.Scared the #### out of me.

[lawdog]

Ya, if you never pull it without an arrow in it, you'll never dry fire it.

Dry fire = BAD!!!

[Shwangman]

When I wax my bow, I will take a Blow dryer and slowly go up down to the point of almost melting it into the string. The guy who helped me in me sight in my bow, showed me this process.