Tuesday, February 21, 2006
Is There An Ideal Draw Weight?
A well-muscled young man came into my archery shop several days ago, and was looking to buy a bow. I showed him new and used C.P. Oneida Eagle bows, and he felt a new one would be best.
I invited him to shoot one of the new Black Eagle II bows, and he asked me what the ideal draw weight should be. He seemed to want a precise draw weight.
He was asked if he’d shot a bow before, and he said he had. I asked what poundage he was comfortable with, and was told he could shoot anything up to 75 comfortably.
“Do you want a bow set at 75 pounds?” I asked.
“Not necessarily,” he offered. “I want something set at the ideal draw weight. What is it?”
There is no ideal draw weight that will suit every target archer or bow hunter, and that is what he was told. I said he should shoot a draw weight that he is comfortable with, and he should keep from drawing so much weight that it endangers his arm, back or shoulder muscles.
I tried to explain that I can pull and shoot 80 pounds but tend to favor 60 pounds. He wanted to know if 60 pounds was an ideal draw weight for him, and I kept trying to explain the ideal draw weight must be determined by the shooter ... not the salesman.
It seemed to be difficult to work him out of this ideal draw-weight rut. Finally, the answer came to me. He would shoot every book we had in stock. Some were set at 50 pounds of draw weight, another at 55 pounds, one at 60, another at 65, another at 70, and finally a bow set at 75 pounds.
“Shoot four or five arrows with each one,” I suggested, handing him the 50 pounder. He shot five arrows with excellent accuracy, and told me “this bow is too light for me.”
He then shot five arrows at 55 and 60 pounds, and announced they weren’t stout enough to suit him. He could ease them back to full draw without effort.
Next came a Black Eagle II in 65-pound draw weight. He pulled it back, and I noticed the first tiny bit of a pause.
“What do you think about 65 pounds?” I asked. “Does it feel right?”
He shook his head that it was still a bit easy to draw. He wanted to try 70 pounds because he thought it would easily shoot an arrow through a deer.
“I know people who shoot two-blade, fixed-blade broadheads at 40 pounds and shoot slam through a deer,” I said. “You don’t need to shoot 70 pounds to do that.”
“Let’s try a 70-pound draw weight,” the customer said. “I want to know what it feels like to draw that poundage.”
He drew the 70-pounder back but it required a bit more effort than was needed at 65 pounds, and he shot five arrows. He said it seemed like therewas a big increase in arrow speed.
I next offered one at 75 pounds, and it was maxed out. He had to work hard to come to full draw, and I saw a tiny twinge of pain when he reached full draw. He shot the arrow, and I strongly suggested he stop.
“You’ll hurt yourself with this bow,” I warned him. “ You’ve shot everything in five-pound increments from 50 to 75 pound. Where is your comfort level? Where do you feel your ideal draw weight is?”
He thought about it, and decided that 65 pounds was about right. My next question was whether he hunted with a bow in December. He did.
I dug through some clothes that were laying around, and bundled him up with enough clothing to keep him warm in December’s cold temperatures. He was invited to shoot the 65-pound bow again.
It was a strugger for him to reach his anchor point. What now, he was asked. Is this a comfortable draw weight, and he admitted it was not easy or fun to draw at that poundage wearing heavy clothing.
He tried the 60-pound bow with the clothing on, and had no problem drawing, holding, aiming and shooting.
“OK, what is the ideal draw weight for you?”
“Sixty pounds,” he said. “I can draw more weight without winter clothing on, but it’s difficult. This draw weight is easily handled in warm weather and in cold weather. I’ll take it.”
A salesman’s trick? Not necessarily. Instead, what it turned out to be was an exercise where he decided his own preferred draw weight. I told him that it’s not necessary to be a strong man to kill a deer. He was plenty accurate enough at all draw weights, but he needed to find his own comfort level.
Few people go to such extremes, but if you are in doubt as to what is best for early fall or December bow hunting, try adding more clothing. You’ll soon learn your comfort level.—The Whitetail Wizard