Min draw weight# for Moose?
Moose
So my 12 yr old drew a Cow moose permit for this winter. He is still new to bowhunting so hasn’t worked up draw weight yet. Shooting about 30# now.
*Edit- the tag is for November so he has 8+ months to exercise.What should the Minimum goal be by then?
What’s the minimum you would be comfortable with for him to shoot a moose with a sharp COC head and about a 26” draw?
45. The 60 year old woman I helped used a 45# longbow (at her draw length), 460 grain arrows and a sharp COC broadhead, and she killed her moose dead and quickly.
I helped packed out a moose for friend who is 30 years older than me with major shoulder issues. He shot it with a longbow in the low 40s. The 4 blade Magnus classic went all the way through the chest and the moose piled up in a few seconds.
With a modern compound, COC broadhead with a good angle of attack, and proper shot choice/placement, I would be confident with anything over 40#.
Everyone has a story of the guy who shot one with some 40# self bow and flint head and what not and the arrow stuck a foot into the ground after a complete pass through and so on but be realistic...i shot a cow moose with a 70# Mathews Helim and slick trick a few years ago and didn’t get a complete pass through. Not saying low pounds won’t work but they’re thick animals and aiming for what is considered the margin of what is possible or ethical is asking for trouble imo.
Ground hunter-
You are missing something, I edited the original post to explain. He has 8+ months to get ready, he is starting to grow and will be 13 by the hunt. Kids can put on 1-2 “ and 5-10lbs of growth by then. I want to give him a minimum goal to reach by the hunt to see if he can ethically use a bow. Otherwise it will be a rifle. I anticipate a closer shot in ideal conditions.
Thanks
I was shooting 55 lbs when I was 13. 70-75 lbs by the time I was 14. This was with compound bows when the let off was somewhere around 50-55%. Killed my first elk, a 6 X 6, when I was 14 and haven’t killed anything bigger yet, lol! I’m not a big guy 5’8” but I’m built like a freakin tank or a pit bull. Draw length back then at 14 was 27” and Now it’s only 28”. It can be done with the proper training and he has 8 months. If it doesn’t work then have him use a rifle just like you said you would. Good luck and have fun!
What is the minimum for the state he drew? Have him build toward that. If he can draw more all the better. If he is not confident or can't reach it go to the gun if it legal.
If he wants it bad enough he will get there. A 40lb compound with a heavier arrow out of a tuned rig will get it done as long as the arrow is in the right spot.
Good luck to you and your son!
It’s been a few years but I’m pretty sure I was shooting 45# recurves at 13. My son was shooting 45# recurves at 26” at 13 years old and he is pretty slightly built but shot bows since he could hold one. By 16, he was able to shoot 55# recurves at his draw length.
I’ve shot plenty of big solid critters - bison, moose, elk, oryx, hogs - with 55# to 60# longbows over the years. Had complete penetration with the arrow stuck in the ground 20 yards on the other side of the bison with a 57# longbow. Cut ribs on both sides. Pretty sure my arrow speed is about what you can get off of a modern 40# compound. The keys for effective arrow penetration from slower bows are perfect arrow flight, sharp solid broadheads, and arrow mass. Higher FOC also helps penetration.
With a compound bow, well tuned, heavy for draw weight (10gpi) arrow and a good, heavy (200 grain+) solid cut on contact broadhead, I would be very comfortable shooting a moose with that bow set at 40#. I would suggest using a 2-blade single bevel.
Of more concern would be how well your son can hold it together mentally for a good shot. That comes with experience around those animals. Over a lot of years of bowhunting, I have seen more extremely good shooters (compound or trad) fall totally apart when an elk comes in hot and either totally miss or wound that animal.
The more time you can get in the field with your son this summer spending time on hunting and stalking skills, the better off he will be when the hunt starts. Shoot some rabbits!
If you can get some opportunities with him to sneak up to bow range on moose this summer before the hunt, it will be extremely helpful when the hunt is on to keep his head in the game. Take a good laser pointer and use it on any moose you sneak up on to show him where that arrow needs to hit.
With your tutoring, he will be well prepared!
Good luck! You and your son are going to have a blast!
A 35# compound of modern design(New) and an arrow weighing 9-10 grains per pound of draw weight and a very sharp coc head will do the trick, keep the shot under 25 yards. Slightly quartering away would also be ideal so you cut through the diaphragm. A 35# compound is more efficient than most any trad bow and I know a bunch of folks who have killed moose with trad bows in that 45# range even with short draws like 26-27"s. Shawn
I should also say the more the better as long as he is accurate with it. Shawn
I agree with RickM, look at your states minimum draw weight and build from there. Good luck
Tavis- great Idea with the laser pointer! Will be good practice. Pretty sure we can find some moose this summer in a state park.
50 pound draw weight from a G5 Prime bow.....8 yard shot
50 pound draw weight from a G5 Prime bow.....8 yard shot
A good idea is to always check the game laws for the state you are hunting. Alaska laws for 2019-2020 show the following: "Hunt big game with a bow, UNLESS: -- the bow is at least: - 40 pounds peak draw weight when hunting caribou, wolf, wolverine, black bear, Dall sheep, and deer; - 50 pounds peak draw weight when hunting mountain goat, moose, elk, brown bear, muskox, and bison; -- the arrow is at least 20 inches in overall length, tipped with a broadhead, and at least 300 grains in total weight; -- the broadhead is a fixed, replaceable or mechanical/retractable blade type and not barbed. "
Given that the law says 50#s minimum for moose, I'd say that is your answer. Good luck to you and your son!
Wilderness, let us know how the hunt turns out. Good luck to the both of you!!!!!
Just talked to my brother.
His son Trevor is 13 and shooting competitively with a 55# compound. That is for shooting 60 ends, so a lot of shots!
However, he has been shooting competitively for a number of years and is very big and strong for a 13 year old. He plays football and baseball and works out all the time.
My brother said that Trevor could draw his 65# hunting bow straight back and his draw length is 28” now.
I think with some work, your son should be able to get to the minimum draw weight by the time season rolls around!
Good luck!
40-45 lbs will be fine with a compound bow, it’s like a 60 lb trad bow anyway. Just make sure the broadhead is actually razor sharp
I don’t know a goal weight. If the kid eats healthy and has had an active lifestyle, he will be plenty strong enough to shoot enough by November. If he works at it.
Muscles are like a fire. Feed them well and they will grow if you work them. Things are very favorable for him at that age because he doesn’t have to worry about a lean diet. Lots of complex carbs and protein as fuel for a body that is working out, means a huge increase in strength.
Get him shooting as much as he can comfortably and go kill that moose. Good luck and God Bless
40-45# is fine. Not to mention it's a cow tag. Like others say a sharp COC and you're good to go with a decent weight arrow. I highly doubt he has any issues reaching that kind of poundage by that time.
Get him to the state minimum of 50# and you'll be just fine. Good luck on the hunt, should be pretty high success I'd guess!
It has always bothered me that “youth model” rifles tend to be chambered in things like the .243; yes, the recoil is lighter, but if whoever is in charge of bullet selection isn’t real clear on how these things work, you get poor penetration combined with sub-optimal placement and next thing you know the round gets a rep as a “crippler” when the reality is that the round - and the poor kid using it - were both set up to fail from the get-go.
Same with bows, IMO. A cool-headed and experienced archer can get by on fewer horsepower than a kid should be allowed to mess with, and what it really comes down to is how skilled the mentor is as far as tuning, arrow mass, broadhead selection and so on.
Somebody already looked up the regs and the requirement is #50, so start there. Personally, I think that’s a lot to ask of a 12-13 YO kid, and frankly, what’s the damn rush? Taking a moose at that age with a rifle leaves absolutely nothing at all to apologize for, and it’s not like this is a once in a lifetime tag.
Last thing I’d want for one of my boys would be to turn their shooting into work; and then if they don’t make it, they’d end up feeling like they fell short somehow, at an age where you just don’t know what next week will bring. If the testosterone hasn’t kicked in, that’s nothing but nature taking its unique course with that individual kid. His friends will abuse him enough for being a late bloomer (should that be the case); no sense making a kid feel like he let Dad down as well.
And take my word on this part - you’re coming up on some of the toughest years of his young life right now; everything you can do to let him know that you love him and you’re proud of him, PERIOD, is worth every bit of effort. He’ll be 14 (and convinced that he knows better than you about EVERYTHING) before you know what hit you.
Minimum draw weight means little since all bows are not created equal. Arrow weight, construction, and broad head choice are factors just as important. Assuming you have a heavy weight arrow with a cut on contact razor sharp broad head I would not suggest any bow that has a pull weight less than mid-40’s at the archers natural draw length. Moose are big animals and require a heavier setup than deer.
Minimum draw weight means a lots when there is a law regulating it for big game. He needs to make the minimum draw weight to be legal or both father and son could get in trouble. Alaska moose are big but 50# draw with a sharp broadhead and a good shot placement would be lethal.
Good luck with the hunt and I bet he'll get to the legal draw weight by hunt time, if not rifle is just fine. He can stalk within bow range for a coup.
B&C and 39 pound bow.
Bowmania
