archery

I'd be interested in trying a crossbow but not regular archery. I like the idea of using a small low-power scope for accuracy. Also, should the SHTF it's a good idea to have a way to shoot game without a loud *!! BANG !!* that broadcasts to others where you are and that you have guns/ammo.

 

A couple of years back, I decided to try my hand at archery.  Like you, I didn't plan to archery hunt, etc. but thought that the ability to do so would be a good skill to have.  Mostly, I wanted to target practice and learn to use the bow in case I ever decided to hunt with it.  With that in mind, I bought an older compound bow at a flea market for $25.  It was pretty much stripped - didn't have an arrow rest, sights or anything else.  Also, the string was worn and needed changing, along with the cables.

I took it to a local (now closed) archery shop and told the owner that I pretty much wanted what you want - just the basics to be able to shoot it.  First, he checked it out and said that I was lucky because such 'finds' often have a cracked limb.  Mine was solid.  He then said that I was extra lucky because the draw length of that bow just happened to match my own, personal draw length.

He then proceeded to set it up with just the bare minimum for shooting a compound bow.  It got new cables, a new string with peep, basic sights and a basic arrow rest.  They set me up with a handful of arrows of the correct length and I picked out a small, cheap quiver, cheap wrist guard and a release.  All told, iirc, it cost me just over $130 just to get my $25 bow into basic, working order.  That was still probably cheaper than having a place like Gander Mountain set it up as this guy tried to keep his prices reasonable because he wanted to get more people into his sport.  This still didn't include a stabilizer (someone gave me one) or a cable guard - which I still don't have and would need if shooting the bow a lot.

The shop owner also checked draw weight for me and said that the actual, peak draw of my bow is around 65 pounds.  He also let me try out (just for comparison) a newer compound bow that was about half as long as mine, weighed significantly less, was easier to draw but had a higher peak weight.  Of course, what I spent on my bow and accessories would still have gotten me only about half way to buying one of those.  

Honestly, I haven't shot it that much because when I have time to shoot I tend to break out my firearms, instead.

 

I used to practice with a bow a good bit. I never hunted though-- even with a lot of consistent practice I never really could shoot one very well. At best, any hunting would either be inhumane through a hit inflicted at random, or the deer would be perfectly safe!

Getting advice from me on archery would be like getting advice on clean living and self-control from a meth addict .

May have to try a crossbow sometime.

 

I'm actually going bow hunting for the first time this weekend. ;D Long time practicing, just never made it out in the field with one. Have both a compound and a recurve, though I think I'll use the compound since I don't have much experience hunting with a bow. In practice, a recurve is definitely more challenging to use, and IMO more fun too!

My only advice is be careful with how inexpensive you go for a recurve bow. It's true that with a compound bow you can spend a lot of money and only see small gains, but with a recurve bow, from my experience anyway, the quality and endurance of your bow is pretty closely linked to price.

 

I used to be extremely proficient with a compound bow, and had a 150 lb Barnett crossbow for the cool factor.

I tore my shoulder up in a ballast tank and had to give up drawing a bow. Someone took the crossbow and most of my tools almost two decades ago.

Lately I've thought many times about buying back into archery, or accepting a free compound bow from my brother who has every member of his immediate family able to cut Lincoln off of a penny from across the back yard; including the 12 yr girl.

HOWEVER, I've decided to forego the expense of archery AND subsequent mucle aches & joint pains from rehabilitation, and simply pursue the hardware necessary to make my rimfire bangsticks go PSST, rather than POP!

The cost will be about the same (licensing, tax stamps, Suppressor & machine needs VS quality bow + arrows + targets), but the body work is much less involved, AND much less painful.

ALSO: I think I might be able to write-off the Sound Suppression expenses by claiming a need for silent defense when Inspecting Urban homes. Yeah. That's the ticket...

GUNSMOAK.com
SC Certified Home Inspector