A couple of years ago I glued up a 68"NTN bamboo osage bow for a friend who thought he had a 30" draw. When I checked him he actually had a 27" draw so I put my first glue-up on the shelf and made my friend a 64" bow which fit him much better.
Out of projects, I decided to finish the longer BBO I glued up. I will probably donate it to one of the two Children's Hospital fundraiser auctions I participate in.
My question is; What kind of poundage do you long draw people prefer at say, 29" or 30"? I want to make a bow that appeals to the masses.
For shorter draws 45#-50# seems to be the ticket. I have this BBO strung and mostly tillered at brace but the poundage is really high at this point.
Same 45-50 @28. Which gives me 48-54 depending on the bow
55#@31
I shoot 54 pounds at my 30 inch draw.
55@29
48-51 @ 31".
Stick to 45-50 pounds and lots of people will like it.
I've dropped down to around 55@31 due to a neck injury. Don't see any reason to shoot heavier now. The deer doesn't care how far the shaft goes into the dirt after a pass through...or how fast it flies over it's back either.
Longer draw equals a longer power stroke so even at same draw weight as a shorter DL they gain an advantage.
At my 31.5" draw I usually like about 50-55 lbs. My go to bow is 45@28.
50-55 @ 29.5
31" draw, like shooting 45@28 but like the performance of 50@28 better and I shoot it easy enough to finish a 40 arrow round of 3d. For an avid shooter I think low fifties is a good weight
I draw 29.25" and prefer bows at rated at 50-60lbs at 28". I can draw a heavier bow and shoot well with a heavier bow but I like being able to shoot the bow I hunt with regularly and for several dozen arrows at a time. Also, I've never really has any issues with lack of penetration in medium sized game so I've not seen a need for a heavier bow. I guess I like to have my cake and eat it too.
My favorite bow is in my signature but I also regularly shoot and take out a 55lb@28" Tall Tines.
I like around 40-45, and I like for my bows to be marked for weight at my draw length, not at 28". I draw 30.75" on a high wrist recurve, less on a longbow with a locator grip.
Almost all of my bows draw between 50-55lbs at my draw length which is just a bit over 30". When I buy an old vintage production bow I am generally looking for bows that are marked 45-48lbs at 28". That will almost always put them in my sweet spot for draw weight.
50 @ 32 for me. I have a 60 lb ilf but liked my trinity longbow at 45@ 28 better.
My two bows are 54@30.5 and 55@30.5.
I shoot between 65-75 at 30.5 in dl
At my 29" draw my bows are 49lbs-54lbs. Going back to what Eric mentioned initially about his friend over-estimating his draw length, I have noticed this to be pretty common. In the relatively small group of people I have shot with over the years a number of them have been more than a little optimistic.
62 @ 30". 650gr arrow. Thumps whatever it hits.
I have a 29 1/2" draw. I prefer bows from 45-48#s @ 28. That gives me 48-51# draw at my DL.