Not too long ago I got in a trade here a hybrid longbow at 58", Dryad Bushwacker and I was instantly impressed on how well this short longbow shot. Over the course of recent time I have added to my short hybrid inventory a 60" Kanati and a 56" Striker hybrid. I am impressed with how well they shoot, very quiet, smooth draw and great point ability. I draw to 28" and neither of these bows has felt like they stack and they all seems to like shooting heavy arrows as well. This all started when I was making myself an Osage selfbow that ended up shorter than what I initially was working towards. That little selfbow is a kick to shoot. I get that short hybrids are not for everyone but for me they are absolutely the most fun to shoot and hunt with. In my experience they shatter the notion that a longbow needs to be 66" and over to be comfortable to shoot and forgiving.
A couple years ago, my friend Ken Bullman built me a FHLB using KennyM's design. It's 57" and 47lbs @28 but I'm only drawing about 43lbs. It's smooth to draw and shoot and fast considering my short draw length. It works great in a pop up blind too. Killed a couple deer with it right after I got it...what's not to like? I think it's great!
My best shooting bow to date out of the 15 I own is a 56" Treadway Black Forrest. I also do not consider 60" to be short. Intermediate or as I say, normal....
I do own 64" traditional "Back to Basics" D style Treadway that is also a phenomenal shooter.
The 56" is just a perfect symphony for me at my 27" draw length. Perfect riser window, length, weight. It just plain shoots.
I recently built a 3 piece 66" longbow at 42lbs , 40 at my draw length and if my form is perfect, it will bust knocks, but with the lighter weight draw, my form errors result in left shots.
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This little bow was custom made for me.
It's 52" 45#@28"
It's my primary hunting bow.
I'll play!!!!
Not a longbow... But when I ordered my Bear Kodiak T/D (after wanting one for over 40 years)
I ordered an A-handle, with #1 limbs, for a 56" bow. I just always liked a shorter bow!! :archer:
This combo is working out real special. Striker STDL and POC arrows
I'm with you guys! I have a Fox High Sierra 64# at 29" and a Bear TD with the short riser and limbs 60# at 28". I draw about 29.5 " on both. I love the way they shoot. At 73 I've been told that I ought to start thinking about a lighter draw-weight bow so I got 50# limbs for the Bear. But I still love those 64 pounders! So far I am holding up with the 64# bows if I make sure I practice at least a dozen shots every day or so. On good days I get in two or three practice quivers (10 arrows). Getting ready for October!
Stick a big one!
JMC
Two piece Primal Tech. 58" long, 55#@28". Quiet and quick. Deadly from a blind or spot and stalk. I really enjoy shooting it.
I was a little surprised how well my Widow PSAX 58" shoots. I think in my case the weight of this bow helps the stability factor. I must be at about 11 gpp. I would like to get to 9-10 but the arrows are flying nicely.
I'll be honest I really didn't think the Striker would work well for me because it is so damn light, but it does and it feels very stable at the completion of the shot. I traded for it because I really wanted the most portable bow I could get my hands on but I am very happy so far with the performance.
Can't say enough good about my brand new Toelke Whistler 58". Nicest shooting bow I've owned so far, makes me want to shoot nothing else :bigsmyl:
I can't shoot them personally with my long arms, but my wife's 56" slammer is amazing.
Personally I find them rather easy to shoot, but it is all about design. I shoot a 58" Thunderchild and draw a firm 32"s with no issue. I shoot it pretty well If I must say so myself.. :archer:
BigJim
Big Jim,you ROCK. As you said it's more a design thing and I think a lot of people has misconceptions about bow length,IMHO.
52" Toelke Pika...My go to bow...tippit
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I loved taking my 68" HH to the big woods, but usually shooting 58-60". I hunt too many thick places and stay it too many thick places to carry one much longer most times. Never had an issue as far as accuracy vs length. BTW, I need to go hunting!
I have always stayed away from any bow under 58". My opinion on short bows has changed now. I recently acquired a 45 lb Shakespeare 52" bow from the early 70's and WOW, I am impressed. This little bow shoots like a dream and doesn't stack at 28" draw like I thought it would. I really want to take it out to the woods this fall.
Quote from: tippit on May 19, 2022, 07:38:50 AM
52" Toelke Pika...My go to bow...tippit
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That's a great looking stick!
My 58" Widow PCH is turning into quite a hunting tool. When I first got it I didnt like it. It was sensitive to form, I needed a special glove to shoot it etc. Well my storongest quality is being stubborn so I kept at it. Eventulally because of being in a blind constantly it became the number one bow. Now I dont even think about it just grab it and go. Taken more game with this bow in the last few years than all my other rigs combined...With a thirty inch draw shes smooth as can be. Love it.[attachment=1]
Very nice Bryan! Although I was expecting to see something quite different.
Remind again me what's on the grip?
Leather grip saddle from three rivers
I have a 56 inch, 46# Pronghorn that is a really nice shooting bow. It will see a lot of time in the woods.
D.P.
I think of all the shorties i've played with out there the one that impressed me the most was Ron La Clairs Shrew..... I just love that design. Years ago i talked with Ron about loving his design and wanting to build something similar myself. He said that copying his design would be the highest compliment he could get from a another bowyer. That guy was an incredible man....
I did in fact build a few 52" bows rather similar to Ron's Shrew design that i called The "Yeti". I hunted with one for several years myself, and it was really nice in the brush. I have a 30" draw and it didn't come close to stacking this little bow either...
Here she is at about 29" draw... The picture got snapped before i hit anchor point here. That is a full length 32" shaft with a broad head.[attachment=1,msg3001060]
I still have this bow hanging in my shop. This was the first prototype and lasted a couple years before developing a noise i didn't like when drawing it. So i retired it to a wall hanger. The bows i built after this one, i used power lams extending the fade tips and it increased the draw length capasity even more.
I haven't built a Yeti in quite some time now, but still have the forms. The demand for shorty bows and popularity come and go like the tides, but never were real big sellers even though they are excellent shooters. The 58-60" bows were much more popular. Kirk
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My "short" bows have all been Shrews, both longbows and recurves. Thanks to proper design, I have never experienced finger pinch or any other negative often cited. I find them particularly handy in the way I hunt....sneak in, hang a stand, hunt that tree one time, pull the stand and move. Not only are they easy to maneuver in brush, but they really shine when you can't trim a treestand site as much as you would if it was permanent.
I like them fairly heavy in poundage, my lightest Shrew being 57#, with several of them at 60# or more.
I've had a few bows 58-60" but typically shoot longer lengths. This year I got a super mag. I love that bow. Really love the small out of your way riser. Not that I fist anything. Gotta be honest I see little to zero difference in longer or shorter bows. My DL though is only 27-1/2"
I had a short longbow that I didn't get along with super well with my draw length, however it wasn't really designed to be drawn that far to begin with. I'd like to try something that is actually made to fit me and see how it performs as I can definitely see it being an advantage with all the ground hunting in thick brush that I do.
Love the short bow now days after many years of 58 plus inch. Great for sitting down. Jess Stuart made my last bow I'll be ordering since I'm an old fart hiding out in the desert. Some short bows shoot awesome an I got one. :thumbsup:
Most of my longbows are 68" long, but back in the days that I shot recurves, they were 56" or shorter. I liked them just fine.
I have a 56" Stalker Coyote that i am shooting really well at my 27" draw length. I will be ordering a 56" longbow very soon.
My go to shorty bow is my 60" 40#@26" Liberty Edge TD (bow bolt) by the late Allen Boice. It travels well and its compact size allows me to bushwhack the sometimes dense terrain here in Hawaii. It is smooth, fast, and a joy to shoot. I own other Liberty Longbows, but I always gravitate towards this one.
I have a decent selection of bows to pick from when I hunt, but my 'go-to' bow is definitely my 52" K-Mag. It's quiet, no stacking at 29" and light and nimble.
I've owned and shot several compact recurves, Bear Super Magnum 48, Kodiak Magnum 52" and currently sometimes hunt with my 56" 50# Kodiak takedown. It's great for hunting in blinds, stands and the spot and stalk game. Took 2 deer last year with it and got pass throughs on both deer no problem. I won't go any shorter than 56". Definitely not a 3D competition bow I'd choose but for hunting, it served me great last year. Looking forward to using it for years to come.
I just got this 1971 Bear Super Magnum 48 (55#@28") the beginning of this year. It's the shortest bow I ever owned. I do like it and it shoots nice for me. I'm going to bow hunt with it this year. I haven't decided if I'm going to shoot my german spruce or aluminum arrows off of it. Both arrows shoot good. I can shoot the german spruce and the aluminum together and they group together.
My short bow is 64".
I have a Browning Cobra that is short. 50@28 and I'm pulling it to 30, it'll sling it and I shoot it pretty well