Alright tough Guys Who has the highest poundage bow? "that you use"

[Stinger-Hunter]

65 lbs for me. Not too much, not too little. shoot flat out to 30 yards. Fast enough for me.

[Dakota]

My Alien X is at 72 lbs,my Cardiac SD is at 64 lbs and maxed. I am getting another Alien X when the 2010's are out and hopefully I can get that one in 80lb draw. It gets old all of these people that say you don't need all that draw,or you will blow your shoulder out.

I don't NEED big blocks in my trucks either,I WANT them. I have been shooting high poundage for years,with no ill effects. I hunt in some of the coldest weather around and have no problem drawing after sitting for hours. The bows I am hunting with this year are the lightest wieght draw I have used by 10lbs for close to 15 years.

Oh, don't get me wrong, if you can shoot 70+ and want to shoot 70+ by all means! More power to you! I'm just saying that don't let anyone tell you that you can't kill big game just as good with lower poundage bows. I can tell you right now, if I could pull 60, 70 or 80 I probably would. :robot:

Dakota

[fly]

I've been at 57 lbs. for years. This year I went ahead and increased to 61 lbs. I could shoot higher, but there really is no need in my opinion.

[Arkansas Boy]

61 and don't want to pull an ounce more!

[Ethan Givan]

66 pounds here. I can draw it comfortably setting down or after setting out in the cold with no problem. I see no need in increasing it though.

[ODH]

Mathews legacy set at 52#. i shoot more accurately with a lighter poundage. Sure im strong as a mule and i can pull 80# on up lol, but theres no need for that imo and my first compound bow was set at 80#

[Rhino]

My Bowtech Guardian is set at 65#. My backup bow (another Bowtech) is set at 64#. My recurve is 54# @ 28". The highest poundage on a bow I've ever shot was an 80# longbow.

No need to pull a lot of poundage with today's compound bows. Don't want to pull high poundage on trad bows anymore either.

[Strut10]

I gave that macho crap up about 15 or 20 years ago.

Used to hunt with a Martin Cougar Mag at 94 lbs. Could comfortably draw in the neighborhood of 105 lbs. and drew a guy's 115 lb. PSE Elephant bow numerous times back to back. That stuff's for the birds, now.....or at least not for me. I like my shoulder joints too much.

Currently shooting a Browning Afterburner at 79 lbs. but will be hunting with a Browning Eclipse SLX at 67 lbs.

[elkoholic]

I currently am shooting 70 lbs on my every day hunting bow, but it is maxed out at that poundage. My backup bow is 86 lbs and although semi retired it is the fastest bow I've ever shot. For about 15 years I hunted with a custom made bow that was really a conglomeration of various manufacturer parts and it was set at 104 lbs. It had Hoyt cams with PSE limbs and I'm not sure who made the riser, but with 565 grain arrows it only generated about 220 fps in arrow speed. With that set up you could shoot through both shoulders on an elk. Let off is not mentioned in the original question, but my preference is 65%. I will say that those who seem to question higher poundage bows simply can not or are not willing to shoot them. As one who prefers higher poundage I must ask those who shoot low poundage bows; why? Higher poundage will allow one to shoot heavier arrows at high speeds, greatly increasing impact force. Shoulder hits on deer, and even elk, are no problem. In a hunting situation even perfect broadside shots have a habit of being a bit off. Holding weight at full draw on 60#, 70#, and 80# bows are only 21,25, and 28 lbs at 65% let off and at 85% let off those drop to 9,11,12 lbs. With poor shot placement nothing helps but that perfect broadside shot does not always present itself either. Shoot what you are comfortable and accurate with, but there is no such thing as overkill, and if that soda straw you are shooting at high velocity fails to penetrate, well, you can always hone up on your tracking skills.

[archerjg]

74 lb Bear Whitetail Master. It was a 70 lb bow that came from the factory at 74lbs and I left it maxed out. I still shoot fingers and aluminum arrows.

Archerjg

[J.ALLEN.IA]

My Guardian will go 60-70 #'s, but I have it about 63#'s in order to pull sitting.

[Tom2008]

Shooting a mere 60 lbs and getting 290 feet per second with my Hoyt Vulcan. Trajectory of my arrow is just as flat if not flatter than some 70lb bows. At 27" Draw length I am not complaining.

[earnhardts12000]

60# hoyt trykon for me last yr i could had alot less when bucks only 7 yrds from ya on ground can we say zippppppppp through him

[rhine16]

73#

[bghunter777]

74 # Mathews Legacy but to be honest i cant really tell the difference between a 60 and 74lb draw weight they feel the same to me sitting lying in a stand hot cold however you want to twist it. I train and stay very active though so that probably helps.

[Jorden]

I have my hoyt set at 60lbs and really see no real need to pull back any more.

Edited September 27, 2009 by Jorden

[Michiganbowhunter_SQ2]

70 pounds for me

[JKAPP01]

i am at 64......could easily pull more.......but this is the most comfortable for me. shot placement over poundage.....sounds like a discussion i see at the gym.....how much can you BENCH!!!! doesn't have much relevance if it's not functional.

[Straight Shooter]

61# on my tournament bow and 67# on my hunting bows. Highest I've had, was a Pearson Striker on 82#.

[Doc]

As one who prefers higher poundage I must ask those who shoot low poundage bows; why?

I think either extreme can be over-done, but one thing that probably should be factored into how much bow weight you are willing to draw is the fact that excessive bow weight might just shorten your bowhunting longevity. Human body tissue, muscle and joints do have limits, particularly when heavily abused over long periods of time. Such abuse can bring on early onset of arthritis, bursitis, etc., that puts an end to bowhunting far sooner than might otherwise be the case. Most of these maladies are irreversible and cannot be undone later on by simply cutting back on poundage. It's too late then.

Also, there comes to mind a situation that I encountered back in my younger days. I was shooting 80#+ on a regular basis in preparation for an upcoming moose hunting trip. It was not a problem as I was regularly shooting in NFAA field course competition along with a weekly midweek league and also nearly daily target practice, throughout the entire summer. During a hunt in the later part of deer season, I was on stand for an exceptionally long period on a horribly cold day. I spent most of the time with my hands jammed into my pockets, my shoulders hunched up with every muscle clenched tight trying to brace against the cold. A deer did finally come along, and I found that my body's reaction to the cold prevented me from pulling that bow back. On the third try, I finally got it broke over and the deer, seeing all this commotion, took off. It's probably just as well because at that point I wouldn't have been able to hold steady enough to hit anything anyway.

Another problem with excessive draw weight, particularly with new archers is the tendency to develop some terrible shooting habits due to the stress of being over-bowed that are all but impossible to break later on. Target panic is also a common result of being over-bowed.

Also, I have to mention some of the comical wild motions that I have seen some archers go through just to be able to draw their bow. Generally they start by pointing up at the sky somewhere and almost making an audible grunt as the horse the string back and drop the bow down into a horizontal position. Any deer that will put up with those flailing kinds of gymnastics is really too stupid to shoot.

Still another potential problem is the fact that a lot of archers never know just how well they could shoot if only they were not struggling against draw forces that simply are not natural to their build.

Obviously there are problems with choosing a draw weight that is too low to do the job on whatever sized animal you are hunting. There are also performance give-backs as you lower draw weight. That end of the spectrum can't be ignored either. But choosing draw weight is not just as simple as picking some arbitrary heavy poundage that psychologically makes you feel good either. There has to be some honest self evaluation that goes into the decision, and a good comfortable safety factor is always a good idea just to make sure that your decision is proper for ALL situations and conditions. Heavy poundage is ok as long as the decisions are made with honesty and a complete understanding of potential problems of the present and the future.

Doc

[ruttinbuc]

Well said, Doc! I also get a kick out of watching people draw heavy poundage bows. Whatever reason they choose to struggle against the weight its on them. Some are trying to keep up to those friends that can. Others truly think that is what you need to pull.

[clrj3514]

i'm shootin 58.5 lbs

[CamoGuy]

Been shooting 72# for 11 years and my shoulder is fine.

I have no problem drawing it and can hold it at full draw for about 3 minutes with no problems.

[ny_gun]

My new bow is set at 60 lbs. I know I can pull back a lot more but I find my accuracy decreases the higher I set it.

[The_Kat]

70 here...don't need anymore to do the job.