Do trad bows lose any draw weight poundage after 20-30 years if yes how much? At what age is a bow to old to trust to shoot? Are any bow woods better at ageing than others? What about wood arrows ? Do you retire your wood bows and arrows after many years?

No...

Yes, sometimes they do but it may be from leaving strung too long. I have seen them drop from 5 pounds to close to 10 pounds. But one taken care of properly, may be what it is supposed to be.

My oldest is a 53 k4. I shoot it a couple times a year. Not many of mine have dropped any.

The biggest thing you should worry about is old glues in laminated bows will sometimes delaminate. If they were made prior to the late 1950 I would hang them on the wall and admire their beauty.

Bob

I have a Wing that I am pretty sure I have had for over 50 years. I use it for a warm up bow & leave it strung. I got curious & weighed it the other day & it is exactly as marked. I couldn't begin to estimate the thousands of arrows that have been through it. It has always been kept in the house when it wasn't shooting. That is the only care it has had.

I weigh lots of old bows & most are very close to what they should be. Within the allowable differences for weighing them anyway. >>>-----> Ken

Common Man! Look at old buck. Some old bow. Even Lemon wood ones. Defy the odds and just keep shooting. Do some old bows blow up? Absolutely! Do some new bows blow up? Absolutely! Shoot that old bow. That’s what they were made for:)

Common Man! Look at old buck. Some old bow. Even Lemon wood ones. Defy the odds and just keep shooting. Do some old bows blow up? Absolutely! Do some new bows blow up? Absolutely! Shoot that old bow. That’s what they were made for:)

In the "Limd twist" thread I showed my old Browning Safari II with some twist before I got it. Straightened it out and refinished it. Markings said it was 45@28 but actually 40@28. Odd so far off. Hasn't changed in 5 yrs I've had it. Here's the kicker...through my chrony with 10gpp arrows it's hitting low 180s fps with FF and low 170s with B50 at my 30" draw. 1964 bow. If it did lose speed it certainly didn't lose any performance. And it has zero fractures in the limbs anywhere like so many other older bows.

A zipper strung lost a pound after 20 years, so I would say, no they don’t lose weight.

K -

Yes and no, depending by what you mean by all wood bows. If you mean glass laminated wood core/riser bows, then generally no, unless abused or came with a factory defect. If you mean all wood self bows, then I wouldn't trust them from the get go, but that's just me. Ditto on wood arrows, I don't care how well they are sealed, time can take a toll.

Viper out.

I'm sure a couple of my old bows have increased in draw weight, LOL.

LOL @ YH2268! A couple of mine have too!

If you're not sure of an old bows integrity hand it to your mother in law to draw.

Old bows with cross weave glass backing are more prone to taking set, and losing poundage, and breaking in my experience.

Rooty x 2!

My 1940 York Osage ELB is stamped 65#. RMS gear, from whom I bought it, weighed and shot the bow, listed it at 70# @28”. So in 80 years the Osage gained 5#.

Shot bows 60 years old plus. Blew up a few old lemonwood bows that dried out. Record is full draw.... blew up, 5 pieces, found 4 pieces. Laminated in good visual shape usually good to go. Since I blew up a few lemonwoods, wood Ben Pearsons from 50's, I now designate the wood bows as wall hangers from 1940"s and 50's. They look good in a collection on the wall. :))

I have 100 bows or more with the youngest one being 50 years and the oldest going on 70. Not a one scales less than it's marked. However, about 3 of them scale higher.

Thanks for all the info. I had old longbow let go at full draw and top limb bounced off my head a inch above my eye bow snapped at the handle right above my hand. Another was a old Greyling Bear super Kodiak 48# snapped into like a twig upper limb while stringing.Both snapped in the blink of a eye quick. I felt bad about the ?? Bear it was a dandy.

2 bears, what model Wing is that that’s been strung for fifty years?

Grizz it is a Gull. I believe I have had it that long. I just got old & weak the last 10 years & felt the need to shoot a lighter bow to rehab & warm up. It was originally my wifes bow. I leave it strung now. It was not left strung before I started using it to rehab & then to warm up with. >>>-----> Ken

I also have a Damon Howatt Hi-Speed that was left in a closet, braced, from 1963 till 2016. It's marked 43# and that's exactly what it scales today. It did have a wickedly twisted lower limb that I managed to fix.

I regularly shoot a 54 compass Kodiak that scales 65# @ 28". I draw 29" with that bow, and have never had a problem or concern.

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