Who consistenly harvest game every year with bow weights between 40 and 45lb bows just curious?

never used a bow lower than 46@27 my draw bob lee recurve and had complete pass threw at 25 yrds 2 blade magnus 1916 @ 28". will let you know how this year goes widow 43@27 wood arrow about 500gr same head.

About a third of those on this site I bet.Hope you get some good pics with this thread.

I do, thank the good LORD. (whitetail deer)

And i hope those who have never used this weight,would refrain from comment,or lecture of their perceived ethics of doing so...

Every year for the last 8 years since I went down in weight.

I've had a lot of luck with my 46# St. Joe River longbow but this year I'm going large. 47# Howatt Diablo. I've been working out.

T4

I normally hunt with bows 45-55lb. But 2 seasons ago I kept seeing threads pop up about hunting with lower weight. So I carried one of my White Wolf longbows that was 40lb with easton axis traditional arrows and 2 blade magnus stinger broadheads hunting . I shot a big mature doe, complete pass through . she ran about 75 yards, my shot was a little far back but not bad. So the next afternoon I went back out hunting and carried the same setup. Once again I was blessed with a big mature doe, pass through again but this one didn't go 20 yards. Made a perfect hit. I did this so I would know first hand what a lighter bow would do. Use a good broadhead and make a good shot placement and you will have no problem using 40lb bow on deer.

I do.

Been there done it many times. This has been discussed at length by those of us who have actually done it....dozen's of times. There should be a healthy archive regarding same. And several folks on here have shown that sub 45# bows will kill moose and elk quite effectively. Great googly moogly. Most naysayers are ones that never hunting with those weights enough to know better. Frankly I don't know how folks can keep up this questioning in light of how much it has been discussed, and how much proof has been presented.

My wife does with under 40 pounds so that won't count. Most of the people I know that shoot 45 pound bows and under are very good shots and excellent deer hunters.

Good friend I met on leatherwall shoots a 45lb widow. I've seen him pass thru deer with everything from a snuffer to zwickeys on 2016's.

Interesting that when I started in this game (early '60s) 40 - 45# was the average bow used for deer hunting. Somewhere along the line we began shooting 60 # for the same animals. Worth some thought as to why that happened.

The op did not ask how, why, effectiveness or any of the bs normally found on these threads. That being said, I set up a 45#er yesterday for this season. 515gr POC and Razorheads, I expect pass throughs.

BTW the question was simply who?.........Me

40 to 45 during the last 7 years (after shoulder surgeries)

Coyote a lot was chasing the compound. heavy bows shooting faster arrows would shoot pretty close to the first compounds that came out. then I think it just became a manly thing LOL. my first hunting bow was a 45# recurve Person signature still have and use it. also have a 70# saxon recurve but do not shoot it any more.

I've shot several pigs and deer the last few years with bows between 41 to 45#. Those Grizzly broadheads shoot thru all of them. :^)

You do know, of course, that if a broadhead pokes thru the opposite side, anything beyond that is just wasted energy. :^)

I never cared how deep it stuck in the ground on the off side;^).

I hunt with a grizzly that weighs in at 43 lbs and have no worries about hunting deer.

Due to two bad rotator cuffs, I dropped down from 60 pound bows to a 50 pound bow a few years ago and I see a 40-45 pound bow in my near future. The biggest game I hunt are whitetails and black bears, but from what I've experienced with the 50 pounder, I'd have no worries about dropping down to 40-45. I know a guy personally, that has killed several Elk with a well tuned 45 pound bow and sharp, cut on contact broadheads.

In my experience most archers shoot 40-45 pounds better than they do heavier ones. I expect that is a big factor in their hunting success. - lbg

Just my personal look at it. But I believe perfect arrow flight is much much more important then bow weight. I would rather hit a whitetail thru the ribs with a 30# bow and a finally tuned arrow then a 70# bow that hits the deer with an arrow at 45 degrees.

46 lb Predator by Hunters Niche

Before I used switching to right -handed to follow becoming RED as an excuse to buy too many bows, I was a two-bow guy for 43 years, both 45#, a Grizzly for hunting and a Bear Polar for the range. I killed a lot of critters, big and tiny, mammal, reptile, fish, amphibian and fowl, with that Grizzly. Then I traded it to Denny Sturgis for a lefty 45# Kodiak Magnum.

I've been lucky enough the last 10 years to harvest deer or two yearly with a Bear Kodiak Magnum 45#, (stolen) a Bob Lee TD Hunter 43#, and a Bob Lee Hunter Signature 54" 1pc. 45# (several deer). I've had pass thrus with a cedar arrow tipped with Bear Razorheads, and GT carbons tipped with 3-blade Wensel Woodsmans, 2-blade Grizzlys, Bear Razorheads, and Magnus Classics. This year I plan to use my 40# self bow with similar results.

Over 40 years for me. I can handle more but it's my happy zone.

Just another way of asking if 40 pounds is enough to hunt with

Omega original 45#@28

I do also

Yup as well whats the issue? Sharpen your heads and place the shot all that's required.

44lb. Frankenbow built on a Black Bear riser, with SF Premium limbs. Stone cold deadly. Anything inside 30 yards is on borrowed time.

Rhett's a big boy and understands there will be some "self" put into the responses....I suspect he isn't just looking for monotone answers either. History is our friend on such things.

So count me as one who took his first deer with a 40# Ben Pearson, and a 3 blade Hi-Precision head in 1967....my third year of hunting. Only thing that prevented a pass through...at somewhere near 30+ yards, was the feathers hanging up on the opposite side of an adult doe.

Since then, I've taken dozens of deer and only one didn't have two holes in it from the shot, and that was a quartering shot that hit the off shoulder. The deer was still dead within a hundred yards. Many shots were pass throughs, and all after that on were complete side to side penetration.

I've shot heavier bows from time to time also, but never found an advantage that made me want to stay there, and the lighter bows will let me shoot for a lot longer.

OP didn't ask for a moderator either.

I do. 43/44# bows for me. Pass throughs, even on big stuff like elk and moose. 500 gr. Arrows with sharp 2 blade heads.

N.Y Yankee i harvested game with these weights i was just curious to know how many people hunt with that!!

For most of my bowhunting life I have used 45# recurves and longbows. In the early70s I bought a 55# recurve and everybody I hunted with thought I was nuts for shooting such a heavy bow. I now shoot a 45# longbow almost exclusively but late last fall I bought a 50# longbow for a specific purpose. Considering buying a 40@28 for my next bow to make things easier on my aging shoulders.

Last fall I used a new to me 44# Black widow PCH, CE Heritage 150 with a magnus stinger to kill a nice doe in the woods behind the house. It was an 18 yard shot, complete pass thru and a 30 yard recovery.

In 2015, I posted 2 pictures in the harvest thread, of a buck and doe I shot with 45# Samick Sage. No shot last year but maybe this year. Carrying same bow.

Me, for the last 10 years.

My 42# Toelke Whip. Beman mfx600 with 125 grizzly single bevel for 490gr total. Pass through. Have also used 125 stingers and woodsmans. This year ive dropped down to 430grs heritage 75s and 450 gr cedars. Ill get a bit flatter trajectory. Sharp broadheads, well tuned arrows and well placed shots equal success. Best of luck.

Nice pictures, thanks.

My wife has killed several with her bow in the mid 30s.

Yep I do 45#@29" for all my bows

Not all bows are created equal.

Poundage - how much force it takes to draw the bow, is 'input'. What matters more is 'output'.

Given a choice between a '45 pound bow' and a '50 pound bow' that both shoot the same weight arrow at the same speed, why choose a bow that requires more muscle strain?

Hey, if you like shooting them, go for it. But modern bows have gained a lot in output - what used to be called 'cast'.

Well said Dana. Their are some real high performance bows out there. But even the standard ones have enough power to do the job for most. I wish I could still shoot my 65-75 lbs bows, not because I have to, but because my joints would be still in great shape. And knowing what I know these days versus 25 years ago, I probably never ever had even used these weights and my joints would still be in much better shape.

Yup. Just came back from the range, shooting two very different bows. One was an old 'Black Bear' at 45, the other is a Morrison ILF at 47. Both throw a good arrow but the latter is so much easier on the joints. The 'feel' is way smoother through the draw. Would still hunt with the oldie though. Spits 'em out there pretty good.

Rhett, I get it, your trying to figure out if it's ok to hunt Moose and Elk size animals with a bow 40 to 45#. And no I have not taken an Elk or Moose yet. I think that weight is fine for Black Bear, deer size game and smaller. I my self would not use anything under 50# for Moose and Elk. Yes, I see the posts above where it is mentioned about killing his moose with 43# bows. I am also sure that there are more elk and moose taken with bows in the 50 to 65# range than there are with light bows. I believe that we MUST be proficient with the bow weight we choose to hunt with first and foremost. But for moose and elk I think that 50# and up would be a better choice.

Have in the past with 45lb bear & 47lb Wapiti recurve. Have shoulder problem for several years,just getting back to shooting this August.Hope to get out by early October this season.

I shot two chipmunks at 25yd today with my 42# Samick Sage one piece recurve. I got a groundhog last week with a 42# Greatree longbow.

You didn't say what kind of game. ;)

I know a longbow shooter that used a 51#@ 26" longbow and has taken a number of elk. Either using a Schulz Hunter's Head or a Grizzly on Rogue River wood arrow. He said that he always got two holes and a couple were pass throughs. A 45# recurve with a 27" or greater draw would have more power than he was using.

How about ASL bows? I see a lot of recurve shooters here but wondered about straight limb and stringfollow bows?

I do Rhett. And have for a few years now. Every bow I own is in the 45-52 pound range- except for one- and you know about that one. I have a martin X200 45lb'er and it does not play well with others! I shoot mostly wood from it. I think the magic is in the arrow for the most part. The right arrow is so important.

I have for the past 10 years!!

Redbeastmaster wrote...

"...I shot two chipmunks at 25yd today with my 42# Samick Sage ..."

If you didn't get complete pass through with your arrow, you probably need more draw weight for Chipmunks. 42# may not be enough. May need 50-55#. :-)

Its all I shoot.....

This season:

41# Drake Hunterflight (for my tree stand in dense foliage)

&

44# 1967 1/2 Super K

Rhett, 40-45 pounds is probably THE most popular weight to hunt deer with since the sport of bowhunting was legalized. Probably 60 percent of those here who hunt shoot between 40 and 45 pounds so yes, it is a good draw weight for deer and other smaller big-game. I have not hunted moose but from everything I understand about it and what I believe is that penetration is the name of the game here and 40-45 pounds does not seem to me to be an advantage if you are going to hope for maximum penetration. Especially if you shoot a 3 or 4 blade head. That being said, have people killed elk and moose with a 40 pound bow? Sure! Probably a lot less too. Question is how long did it take the critter to give up and how far did it have to be followed/packed out too. I just wouldnt recomend it is all. Guys catch lunker brown trout on 1.5 pound tippets too but its not a good idea. See what I mean?

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