Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Bowhunting What is your draw weight?

I have been shooting between 63-65 lbs on the same bow for the past ten years. Past couple of years, I have been having some issues getting that bow back in hunting situations. Used to be able to do it with ease, now I have to really work at getting it back. Last year I missed a shot because I couldnt get the thing back in time. I am just wondering if it is normal that with age, a lesser draw weight becomes necessary. This isnt buck fever-I draw befor I go out on the stand a few times, and it is very difficult. I am sure the fact that it is colder, and I am just waking up has a lot to do with it. It is NEVER an issue when practicing.
So I am thinking of getting a 50-60 bow for next season. I am 38. Was wondering what draw weight is in relation to age of bowhunters.
Thanks

I am 42 and shoot about 67lbs draw.

I'm 38 and shoot a Bowtech General with speed mods at 70 pounds. I am 265 pounds and 6'3 and spend a lot of time landscaping. I could handle a lot more, but fun is fun. A trend the Bowtech dealer has told me about is that people are buying a lot more 60 pound bows. They're getting faster at lower speeds so people are buying lighter bows.

I am 48 and draw 61 lbs@ 60% let-off. I have been shooting the same bow for 9 yrs. I use 80gr broadheheads and carbon arrows.

I will be 46 in December and shoot a Bow Tech set at 70 lbs. I do draw the bow daily several times and try shoot "cold". What I mean by that is only about 10 arrows at the most several times a week plus just drawing and holding at full draw keeps me in pretty good shape.

This time of year I will go shoot 1 arrow at a time a few time a day if I can, at least one per day. That way my mussles are not warmmed up. If Im sitting for a long time on stand I will draw about once per hour.

Try drawing and holding you're bow in the house as much as you can, it will build you're back,sholder and arm muscles and you should have a much easer time drawing you're bow. Got to have those muscles in shape this time of year!! At 38 you should have no issue with the poundage you are shooting with a bit of conditioning.

I'm 39 and I have no trouble drawing 70+#'s. Unfortuantely my bow shoulder likes to disagree (bone spurs and bursitis). I dropped both my bows to 50's and couldn't be happier. My shoulder doesn't act up and I'm still shooting faster today than I did 20 years ago at 84#'s. I shot a doe this year right under my stand and my arrow went through the spine and liver without a hitch. I do have a 30" draw which helps but I'm very satisfied and now I'm able to postone surgery until my kids are older and I don't need to carry them around.

Thats kind of why I wondering if getting older, naturally makes one weaker. From what others have said it does not appear that this should be an issue. I am not someone who takes the bow out a couple of weeks before the season. Starting in march, I pretty much shoot every day, through the hunting season. I am pretty fit- I do twenty hand stand push ups, and fifty military push ups every day- in my youth I bench pressed close to 400 lbs. I wonder if it is a question of having to stretch before hunting, being that the cold is making my muscles tighter. I usualy practice at this time of year mid afternoon-so I have had time to stretch things out through normal daily routines.
Thanks for all of the comments, and I will certainly consider what has been posted.

While I think a person our age should have no trouble drawing a bow on 65lbs, its not nessesary to be a successful deer hunter.

out of the list of things that are involved with bow hunting the three most important are..

shot placement

shot placement

shot placement

Ill bet todays cool new bows shoot an arrow faster and flatter than my bow of 25 years ago did at 20 lbs less draw weight than I used to use. I certainly had no trouble killing deer back then. If you feel the need to drop to 55lbs of draw weight you have plenty left to kill a deer.

on another note. I have always excersized like a guy..lift.. run etc. As I get older I can see how some of that streching/balance crap my wife does might have real benefit.

I'm 40 and shoot between 73-77lbs, depending on which recurve I shoot. I've noticed more stiffness in my shoulders this year but figure that is because I haven't kept up with my daily push-ups and running.

My Trykon is set at 63 lbs 29" draw length. Shooting 28.5" axis 400's with 100 grain broadhead, I'm getting 266 fps which is plenty fast for deer hunting. Usually will back it down to 60 when hunting in December due to cold weather...

I'm 40 and shoot 58-60# on my hunting bows. Plenty of draw weight to easily shoot through elk- the biggest critters I hunt. And my shoulders are not all torn up from shooting heavy bows and I'd like to keep them that way.(not that I haven't tried heavy draw bows - I was young and foolish for a while)

I'm 62, and shoot my Mathews Drenalin at around 64#.
I think what's more important than your draw weight is what it allows your arrow to do downrange, in terms of KE (kinetic energy). I've chronoed my arrows, and my current setup gives me 67# of KE- enough to handle large (including African) game- see my pics on the Africa forum, Eland thread...

I took a Bear Truth bow as a backup on my Africa trip, which was set at the same draw weight, but which gave 10 fps less velocity with the same arrows. Efficient bows can allow for lighter draw weights with higher velocities, hence very acceptable KE values.

I shoot a 60# bow with the bolts torqued down. I too have had trouble at times drawing while on stand. I am a 160# wuss. I know my longtime hunting pard has also. He is a broad shouldered former Marine and boxer. It seems that the colder our bodies get the harder it becomes to draw. It probably has something to do with our bodies diverting blood flow from our extremities to keep our core warm. While I stretch often and believe in its benefits, I don't believe that stretching before a hunt will necessarily help. Keeping warmer does help.

I have also noticed that how I draw the bow makes a difference. When I practice, I tend to raise my bow arm slightly above horizontal while I draw. That works the muscles a very specific way. On stand, to minimize movement, I often try to draw while pointing the bow down toward the deer. It takes significant more effort that way. I try to compensate by practicing drawing as I am likely to on stand.

I read an expert who claimed that most archers are over bowed. He was probably right.

44 and shoot 71 lbs.

Been shooting the same Darton Renegade for 10yrs set at 75#. I had elbow surgery back in July and haven't recovered fully so I had to drop it to 60#. The buck I killed 2 weeks ago didn't seem to mind.

I am thinking that the problem is I am not warm enough, and the solution is to "get warmer". I began having this difficulty 3 years ago. This coincides with me losing a lot of weight-140 lbs.
I never had issues drawing the bow when I was 140 lbs heavier. I also never felt "cold" sitting in the stand. I originally thought that with the loss of fat, I must have lost muscle, though I felt stronger than I had in a very long time. Now I am starting to think it wasnt muscle loss that was causing the problem, but loss of insulation. I certainly feel colder since the weight loss-but did not consider that being cold would have any ramifications beyond "feeling" cold. It is beyond just being a bit uncomfortable-it is affecting how my body functions.
Bottom line, I guess I have to get warmer. Thermals, heat packs, insulated gloves and heat packs will definately accompany me on my next trip to the stand. Have to start practicing with the extra layering.
Thanks again for all of the help.

That makes sense to me. I have pockets on the back of my long underwear tops, roughly adjacent to where my kidneys would be. When it is cold, I pop a handwarmer into each pocket and put a third on the back of my neck. It helps a lot.

I'm 31 and with my limbs maxed out my bow scales at 71.5lbs.

I'm shooting a 50-60lb bow. It's maxed out on the limbs and it's around 64# I find I can shoot this bow much eaiser than my previous bow set somewhere above 70#.

Haven't seen a deer stop an arrow from it yet.

Tom

+1 but mine bottoms out at 62#s. I have long given up on shooting 70#s. For deer, anything heavier is not required.

RH

39 years young.....67 pound pull.....Browning Bow.

41 Years old shooting Bowtech Guardian set at 70lbs.

27 years old....was shooting Mathews SBXT at 64lbs......

Just bought a Hoyt Katera 60# model so I'll be shooting it maxed out.....

6347

I'm 38 & my draw weight is 162 pounds.

I shoot an old Ford Bow.


Yeah, I got a long bow made out of a rear leaf spring pack from a 1976 F250 hi-boy & a piece of aircraft cable for a string.

The carbon fiber arrows do OK for me but I have to use titanium nocks.

I wear a hernia belt when I practice with it.

One time my elbow locked over center at full draw, I let go of the string (I shoot fingers too, no tab) and I filleted my left arm with the string. It was pretty gross. I just duct taped it back together though & kept shooting.

My bow is noisy but it don't matter cause it's fast.

Yeah, last thing the deer hears is that leaf pack slapping shut & he's done.








OK, I got an old martin with like no let off & I suppose it's at just over 60 and then a big long ugly bear that's maybe at around 55.

70 lb Alpine and when i buy a new bow next year, going to get one at 80lb!!!

60 and shoot a 56# longbow

48/62lbs.

I'm 21 and my compound is set at I believe 65 pounds, it's an older PSE Elite and I think it goes a good bit higher but, that's what it was set at when I took it to the shop. The limbs on my recurve now are 62#, and have I some that are about 68# or 70#, though I've never used them yet.

38 yrs old and shooting 72 lbs.

2004 Hoyt XTEC XT1000 60/70 set at 65 lbs.
2007 Trykon 60/70 set at 62 lbs.

Trykon was set at 65 lbs when I purchased the bow. Drew back on a young buck and couldn't get it back. Shoulder pain. I had to back off 1 complete turn. Both bows are fully loaded with bells & whistles and must weigh about 8 lbs each. After a spot & stalk my shoulders ache. Time for a lighter bow I think.

I start shooting my bow in July. My routine is 12 arrows every morning before I leave for work at the block. It does help to draw the bow back easier when it comes to crunch time.

Ken

PS. I'm 56 years young

I shoot a Mathew Outback set at 60 lbs.

When I was first learning to shoot a bow, I wanted to shoot high poundage just like all the other guys.

I went to the local archery shop and told them what I was looking for he gave it to me and had me pull it back. Then he sat me down on a five gal bucket and told me to pull it straight back. Holy cow what a difference. That is why I shoot 60lbs and not more.

Of course this is only important if you are sitting in a tree stand.

I would like to know is if anyone else has tried this ?

I'm 49, shoot a Reflex Extreme set at 65 lbs and have no issues with drawing this bow.

I bought a 2006 Hoyt Trykon Xl in August and it says on the limbs, "55-70" lbs, yet with them cranked all the way down, my bow weight peaks at 58 Lbs??
I still purchased the bow because I got a good deal and it was in great shape, but if this bow had any less it would of been a deal breaker!! I can handle a bunch more.

I had my old bow set at 68 lbs and it's slower than the Hoyt, so I still "win".

31yo and draw 55# w/Saxon Longbow, 62# w/Wes Wallace Recurve, and 72# w/Mathews Legacy.

I am 55 and am shooting 60 pounds. I had to work it back up to that this year. I was diagnosed with a lung dease that is incurable but treatable. The problem was the treatment affected my bones and I worked to get the strenght back. I am back now and shooting well again. However the emergence of this stinking desease seems to be coming back. But not to worry, I' be out there hunting again next year.

60 yrs young and shoot 2 longbows 54-5630"

57 years old - stubborn and cheap - still shooting my Bear Whitetail Hunter - used to be set at 50#, but like its owner, it's probably lost some strength over the years - we know each other's limitations and work fairly well together

Where is Ashford in Wa?

I'm 68, with both shoulders compromised by football and a tree stand fall, and shoot a 175 lb draw, with 20" arrows, that weight 425 grains, and chron around 355 fps. It's a crossbow, of course. I can relate to your topic very well and understand your game, just couldn't play it any longer. My crossbows (3) changed everything. I'm back at 'em...even in tree stands, for now. Passed up a half dozen bucks this year looking for the photogenic Mr Big (he's a light sleeper, comes out at 1 and 2 AM). If I don't get him, that's OK. Just being out there again is what's important to me now.

cossack2 - happy for you to be back in the game - enjoy. Best, John

I'm 29 and have always shot a 60# limb bow with them maxed out making my Bowtech Guardian at 61# and change. I can draw smoothly without making a scene in the tree and hold for a relatively long period of time. The arrows are pretty darn quick and flat flying. I have taken a good number of deer with no problems being that shot placement is key.
A colleague is 61 years old and shoots anywhere between 80# and 86# depending on which bow. How likes it that way....so to each his own.

I prefer being able to draw that bow back as smoothly as possible without large movements and being able to hold and wait out a deer. The less nervous a deer is, the less they will jump the string. If a guy is up in a tree spinning in circles trying to draw his bow, they tend to tense up.

The new equipment doesn't require a lot of poundage.

I got started in archery with compound bows about 20 years ago. I'm a big and tall guy, and started by shooting an 80 lb bow with a 32" draw. Bows were slower 20 years ago. Since, then I've noticed that both my draw weight and draw length have continually shortened as I learned more about bowhunting. I went down to 70 lb bows maxed out, to 70 lb bows at about 65 lbs and finally down to 60 lb bows maxed out. My draw length went from 32 to 31 to 30 to 29. Although I can still draw a heavier bow, I can't find a reason to do so. A 60 lb bow maxed out is operating at peak efficency and is more than enough bow to do all the hunting I normally do. I can draw the bow in any conditions and at any angle without a worry. The shorter draw length makes me more consistent, especially from hunting positions and with hunting clothes. When I started shooting a recurve, I went with a 55 lb bow and it's all I need for whitetails.

I'm 43 an shoot my compound at 82lbs.I've backed it off over the last few years.Its an old High Country and the let off isn't much.I like my bow heavy for stability and my draw weight and arrows are the same...heavy.
I get consistent pass through on deer and black bears and thats what I'm after...and probably why I still shoot 80+ when I know I can be effective at a lower draw weight.It's what I'm used to I guess.
my recurves on the other hand run around 65lbs and do the job,no reason a compound wouldn't.
humane kills with a 55# bow are the same as with a 80# bow.It's not a contest of strength.It's a matter of whats comfortable for the individual and allows him/her to perform at their peak.

I've always believed that in bowhunting,simplest is best.If you can't get your bow back to shoot,you won't get your deer...simple!

I am 54 years old and coming off of surgery on both shoulders. The muscles around both had atrophied pretty bad by the time I could start back at training.
I'm pulling 51 lbs right now on a Mathews Switchback and struggling at that when it gets cold out.

I had no idea that they would be so slow at coming back. Some things about getting older really do suck.