Geezer question
Equipment
To my great surprise, late season last fall I couldn't get my 63# bow drawn. Mind you there was no pain, no injury, no discomfort at all. I'm 63 yr old and very active, so it came with a certain amount of panic to say the least. I vowed to remedy that this year. Starting in spring this year I lowered my back-up bow to 55# and was able to draw it about 5 times. After a few months I went back to the 63# Carbon Element, a few draws were achieved, till it became unattainable. I opted to lower the Elements poundage to 58# where it currently sets. II can draw it at this weight 20 time before things get tough. I shoot a 422gn arrow including the 100gn broadhead, at 58# I'm pushing that arrow set-up at 266fps. I'm thinking of upping the poundage back to 63# and see if I can manage the bump up. If I can then , so be it. If not then here's the question. 1: "Should I leave well enough alone?" 2: "Is 422gn at 266fps fine?" I know 63# reaching 280+FPS is better, with the 422gn arrow, if I can get there and keep it.
Being over bowed is bad. Your not hunting Cape buffalo. Leave it were it is comfortable for you. Remember when your sitting in a stand on a cold morning it going to be a lot harder to pull.
I'm shooting a 38 pound Robertson longbow and have a Hoyt compound set at just over 40 pounds. Either bow would shoot through a deer. No need to hurt yourself with heavy weight bows. If I was hunting Moose or Elk I'd go for a bow that pulls at least 50 pounds.
Your setup sounds fine.
Shoot straight, best of luck !
I’m elk hunting with 53# and a 420gr arrow/bh combo and have zero worries. I’ve been killing elk for decades and have never shot an arrow over 265 fps. Work on your accuracy and put the arrow where it’s supposed to go and you’ll be fine.
with a well tuned bow there is no reason not to shoot a weight that is comfortable. your current setup should zip right through any whitetail. Good luck this season.
"Is 422gn at 266fps fine?"
422 grains at ONE hundred sixty-six is more than adequate to “zip through any whitetail” and you’re wondering about what happens with a 120% increase in velocity...???
Yeah, I think you’re good.
If you’re planning to hunt Elk, I’d go with a heavier arrow, rather than a heavier bow.
I’m starting to think that you guys have some really deep (and baseless) doubts about the lethality of a sharp, well-placed arrow.
From one geezer to another.....same story..66# compound for years and all of sudden I can hardly draw it anymore....shooting 56# now in total comfort with 425 gr. arrows...I am confident it will take down any North American mammal...if I place the arrow where it belongs (which is the case at any draw weight)..Stop worrying and be the best hunter and shooter you can.....time will march on even further!!
Just an old geezer who shot 70# dropped to 55#s now at 40# due to multiple shoulder surgeries.
I do not anticipate any problem shooting whitetails at current bow weight.
Best of luck
One old geezer to another
Well, at 75 YO perhaps I fit into the "geezer" category! I've shot at 60#-62# for years but, although still being able to do so, lowered my bow to 55# recently. I was kinda concerned that, on a very cold morning, I might struggle getting it back. It's my understanding that, all things being equal, you lose 3% muscle mass per year starting at the ripe age of 30! As I said, I can still draw 60#, and kept my bow at that for my elk and moose hunts, but I think I'm done with those two. Thus I cranked it down to 55# for deer...which is more than enough. I also lowered my total arrow weight from 428 gr. to 386 gr. via arrow shortening and changing from 125 gr. head to 100 gr. head. I also set my DL cam from 28" to 27.5". With all the changes I made re:poundage, arrow length, DL and point weight reduction (125 to 100) my HHA sight tape is the same 20 yds. to 60 yds. I was kind of surprised.
Almost 73. I work out all year with a bunch of bands attached to a pole in the basement. 5 shoulder exercises, curls, presses and pulls. Only a couple hundred $ involved and they allow you to increase weight by simply stepping away a bit more. Right now shooting a 58# longbow but can use a 63 without issue.
I think older compound shooters would benefit from a recurve or longbow to use for strength maintenance.
Having stand hunted ALOT in very cold weather....I can tell you if your over-bowed, you will have a hard time drawing back after sitting for a while. You have to overcome your muscles being at rest plus if you have bulky cold weather clothing on....you have to over come that too. You don't think about that until you have to draw down on a critter and then realize the bow string doesn't seem to be coming back and your eyes are bugging out from the strain.
Shoot everyday.
Start taking TRT.
You guys had me scared. I am 62 and Haven’t shot my bow in several years and just had it restrung to start using again. Set at 65#. Went in to have the peep set After the new string/cable put on and was worried, but was able to pull back with little trouble! At least for this year I am good!
Blew through both scapula of a bull elk at 52yds. with a 430 grain arrow at 60 lbs.
Being 62 and trying to pull more than you need is a bad idea, could take you out of using a bow ,, and going to a crossbow or worse yet the airbow. Deer, elk will go down with 45 lbs and 50 lb will work just fine and lower the risk of an injury. 50 lb with a 500 gr arrow will kill all the game you want, gotta start thinking smarter. Don't risk future hunts because of a over bowing. Remember , cold weather is going to hamper your muscles to pull.
Not quite as much of a geezer as you, I'm 57. But the last few deer I've shot were at 50-55# and the result was the same as when I shot 60#. Two holes in the animals. Yes, I remember fondly when my arrows were going in the 260s. LOL. Trust me, you have plenty of oomph at 266 to drive a good fixed head through an animal. In fact, I was driving Steelheads through animals at your speed with regularity.
I'll be 67 in Oct. I've been shooting my CE at 65# since I got it in 2011. I also shoot a a 550 gr arrow at just under 240 fps. While I have no problem drawing and shooting at 65#, I recently lowered it to 60# pro-actively because after almost any physical activity my previously fused neck (C5/6) starts acting up. I'm probably facing fusing the two levels above, after a few years of trying to postpone it as long as possible. I haven't chronographed it, and I don't care how fast it is. I KNOW it's fast enough. I had no problem killing a bunch of stuff back in the day at 200 fps. when range finders didn't exist. I still rarely use one, instead relying on a skill that is more than adequate at bowhunting ranges. If you're worried about penetration, a heavier arrow will more than make up for reduced speed. In fact, my 100# wife has more bowhunting creds than most on here. She has never shot more than 50# and is currently down to about 43# due to advancing age. Doesn't seem to effect her success.
Bowhunting wise you're fine. But taking a bit different angle at this, I have no idea of a person's physical conditioning or state of health, can only speak to what I've experienced from injuries and illness etc. I'd be getting out and hitting some exercises, weights, etc. while I can. They have bow exercisers and there are some good weight exercises too. Get on some kind of program, training, diet etc. I would be hitting the gym and the range and get things back up to where you WANT them to be. Not really because you need the extra for bowhunting. You really don't need much, as well stated by several folks above. I'd do it because that's what I wanted it to be. What "I" needed. No such thing as aging gracefully. It's a fight to the death. Much like a government, you give it an inch it will take a mile..... =D
Seriously, it's not an age so much as much as lack of fitness for that age. You may be sliding down a real slippery slope I've seen so many go down that is far far harder to climb out of than it is at maintain. You lose a bit as you age, we all do. Then you ease up and do less yet because you get tired or sore faster, it hurts. Takes more work and commitment to just maintain at some level, but that's both uncomfortable and um, inconvenient. Then you do even less and fall apart yet faster, and then do even less because it's harder yet. The issue compounds itself. Fast. I know.
I'm near 65 and have several friends just in their 50's that have pretty much quit hunting and talking to them all you hear is how old they are getting and what meds they are on. Basically looking for a place to land and an excuse to do so. Tired? Resting isn't going to make you less tired. Often just the opposite. Turning that bow down sometimes is necessary, have had to do so at times myself. Doing nothing about it is not necessary. And if you don't, you'll never be back where you were and likely will be turning it down again soon. And again.... and again....
And in reality by saying "you" I mean me. I need a kick in the azz now and again to remind myself it's not about making things easier. More comfortable. Plenty of comfort and rest coming soon enough. An eternity of it and no recourse. Fight while you can, it will never be an easier fight than right here and right now. It's a fight we all will lose. But let life know it's in for a fight and not a unconditional surrender....
Good luck this season! Keep up the work and you'll be where you want to be.
I'm 51 and can easily pull back 65-70 lbs no problem. But I don't. I shoot 58-60 becasue it's all I need for deer hunting in thick swamps where 20 yards or under is the normal range. My last two kills were 15 and 12 yards. I'm shooting a 435 grain arrow through deer and my setup is very easy for me to manage in cold weather and is super quiet as well. Quiet is more important to me than speed at the ranges I hunt. I think you are fine as others have said.
