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    Bow Hunting

    For hunters who feel they’ve mastered their craft, bow hunting can present an excellent new challenge. Similarly, hunters who are just starting out or those who have a distaste for firearms might find hunting with a bow a more appealing option. Whatever the case, bow hunting is an exceptionally popular activity among hunters interested in expanding their season, enhancing their skills and experiencing something new. To learn more about this challenging alternative to firearms hunting, read on.

    how to choose a bow

    First things first, you’ll need to choose a bow. Now, a gun hunter can waltz into a shop, spend a few hours feeling the weight of different pieces, assess them for weight and action and walk out of the shop with a new gun that suits their needs. Bow hunters don’t have it so easy. For starters, there are three kinds of bow on offer – the longbow, the recurve and the compound bow. Arguably, the most popular bow used by modern hunters is the compound bow.

    Once you’ve chosen a bow style, there are a number of other points to consider when choosing the bow that’s right for you, and it’s vital not to overlook any of them.

    Consider the quality of the brand ­
    Your bow will need to withstand a fair amount of abuse, ranging from inclement weather to the occasional drop from a tree stand. Seek out a bow that has a solid warranty, is made by a widely-known manufacturer and comes with recommendations from fellow hunters.

    Assess the speed of the bow
    For many experienced bow hunters, speed is the most important quality a bow offers. The faster an arrow moves, the more distance your bow can cover. The flipside to this is that speed can also lead to a drop in accuracy, even for experienced archers.

    Accuracy is key
    Above all else, you need an accurate bow if you’re going to succeed in hunting anything with it. It’s fair to say an accurate shot is just as much, if not more, down to the user’s experience as it is to the bow itself. The best bet is to find a bow that suits your style, and practice with it as much as practical.


    A little thing called forgiveness
    Bow hunters have a special name measuring the error in their grip and form plus the anchor and release of their bow – it’s known as forgiveness. Generally, the less experienced a hunter is, the higher their required degree of forgiveness will be. Generally, bows with a brace height near eight inches have more forgiveness than those with shorter brace heights. It’s important to understand the trade-off here as well, a larger brace height is often accompanied by a loss of speed.

    Does it look the part?
    At the end of the day, looks matter to most of us. Given the sheer variety of bows on the market, there’s bound to be one that you think is the absolute business – and plenty of others that aren’t so attractive.


    Weigh these characteristics up carefully as you research bows, whether that’s online or in person. And before ordering a bow from an online vendor, regardless of how well recommended they are, do yourself a favor and visit a local supplier to examine a similar unit in person. This will help you avoid disappointment, and ensure the bow suits your needs.

    bow care and maintenance

    Caring for a bow is just as important as practicing with it regularly. There are a number of products on the market to help you make the most of your bow, and all bows arrive with a clear set of instructions from the manufacturer with recommended service items and procedures. It’s best to follow the manufacturer’s recommendations at all times, to avoid invalidating the warranty on your equipment.

    However, there are a number of standard maintenance procedures all bow owners should consider. These include:

    Wax your strings and cables regularly
    In practical terms, this means after every third use. All you’ve got to do is rub wax along the string, then work it into the fiber until it’s absorbed.

    Keep the bow’s axles and bushings lubricated
    A couple drops of oil after each use is the best option. Failure to keep things lubed properly can lead to the axle overheating, which inhibits the drawing action. Also, if your bow has plastic bushings, the heat may cause them to crack. Check the manufacturer’s instructions as some newer bows do not require lubrication.

    Inspect the bow limbs often
    The best way to find cracks or damage on your bow is to rub a cotton ball along it, the fibers of the cotton will catch on any splintering areas.

    Check your limb bolts
    To keep your shots true, you need to keep that bow in shape. Do this by keeping the limb bolts tight, and keep an eye on them by marking them – a single glance will show you whether they’ve shifted out in the slightest and makes keeping things tight a cinch.


    What to hunt with a bow
    The truth is, you can hunt just about anything with a bow. In most states and provinces, the hunting seasons start a little earlier for bow hunters. This is because the bow isn’t seen as such a big threat to vulnerable populations, such as elk in the early stages of the rut. However, when in practiced hands, the bow is just as effective at taking game of virtually any size as a firearm.


    essential bow hunting equipment

    Apart from the bow itself, and the standard gear that any hunter needs, there are a few key accessories that many bow hunters seek out to enhance their chances during the hunt. Ultimately, these aren’t essentials – they’re things that a majority of bow hunters do find useful, but whether you feel they can contribute to your own hunt experience is a matter of preference.

    arrows

    The bulk of arrows in common use are either made from aluminum or carbon. Both have their strengths – aluminum arrows offer stable, consistent flight and are known for achieving adequate penetration. Carbon arrows, on the other hand, are lightweight, offering a higher speed and flatter trajectory than their aluminum counterparts, they’re also known for being exceptionally durable.

    Once you’ve settled on an arrow body, you can move on to the more interesting arrowhead. There are a number of different options available, and any expert will tell you that this is not the place to skimp or cut corners when making equipment selections. Arrowheads fall into either the fixed-blade or mechanical broadhead category. Both have their fans and detractors – fixed-blade heads are known for their consistent reliability and strength, whereas mechanical heads are popular for their ability to achieve better penetration. However, mechanical heads are viewed by many as unreliable, because the automatic deployment of floating blades doesn’t always happen, which leads to an ineffective shot.

    Arrow Rests

    The arrow rest is designed to support the arrow during your shot process. While choosing a rest is a matter of preference, there are a few agreed-upon principles that make for a good arrow rest. First, an arrow rest that clips to the arrow will provide added stability and keep the arrow from falling off it’s rest at a pivotal moment in your hunt. Second, a feature allowing the rest to fall away at the moment the bow string is released has proven invaluable – this eliminates all contact between the rest and the arrow, decreasing potential noise and interference. Experts recommend that beginning bow hunters use adjustable arrow rests, and move to a specific type of rest once they’ve established their hunting style.

    Sights

    Depending on what sort of game you’re after, your distance from your prey will vary. Working with multiple sight pins will enable you to have a consistent point of reference to work from. Hunters accustomed to working with a high-speed bow will often use a single sight pin owing to the flat trajectory high-speed bows typically display. Once you’re used to sighting game with your bow, you can adjust the number of pins to suit your own style. Also, in some areas you’re allowed to use pins that light up – handy when the light is low, but sometimes such sights are prohibited by law.

    Stabilizers

    One of the frequent problems beginning bow hunters face is dealing with recoil. Another is excess vibration that makes a negative contribution to your shot. One solution is using a stabilizer – a weighty extension that attaches to the front of the bow and helps the hunter’s stability when taking a shot. Experts recommend choosing a stablizer that will serve to balance your shot, as well as eliminating vibration and stifling the recoil you may struggle with. Apart from that, the consensus is that stabilizers are largely the same.


    Other bow hunting accessories

    Other popular accessories for bow hunters include: wrist straps, to keep the bow from taking a dive because of recoil; string and limb silencers, which work to eliminate noise and vibration; string loops, which allow for use of multiple release aides without realignment; and arrow quivers. There are also a variety of cases on offer in hunting and other specialist shops.

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