I was unable to harvest a deer in the Maine archery season. Even though I got lucky with a rifle my bow is still calling to me. Maine's expanded archery season runs till December 9th in designated areas so there is still time to harvest a deer with my new bow.

Before I head out in the cold (mornings are in the 20s right now) how do traditional bows handle the temperature fluctuations from being inside at room temperature, then being taken to the woods in below freezing? Is there anything I need to look out for? Will the bow perform differently?

My bow has Maple limbs with fiberglass. Being new to this I would hate to snap my bow while drawing it in the cold.

Thanks in advance,

Jeremy

I never noticed a problem between the heat of summer down to freezing.  

Once the limb woods are encapsulated in the resin I doubt they much notice the temperature.

But I must say if it got into the below zero range I might worry a bit.  I have small-game hunted down to 20°F or so.

The bigger problem is the bulkier clothing.  ;-)

   


2014 JLMBH
   

Most on here will tell you there is no effect. I once asked how other's bows are effected. And all said no. The answer is yes some bows are a bit louder or have a sharper sound when fired in extreme cold vs summer weather and possibly slightly sluggish maybe enough effect tune. Also string length but that is probably do to humidity. I had a BCYx string that got shorter one day this fall. Summer here can be high 90s and humid and winter can be below zero and crisp. So yes there is some effect.
Also your shooting glove, body and clothing are all different. It can seem like you are stiffer than a bear coming out of hibernation when trying to draw a bow that is normally effortless. I am referring to long treestand sits.
Tedd

Glass bows are unaffected, at least not to a point you will ever notice it. Lots of folks hunt sub-zero temps every year. Polar bears and musk ox to name a few critters.

I believe the sharper sound you refer to is a result of the cold air being very dry and the way it affects sound travel. I don't think the bow itself can get louder because its cold. Perhaps an arrow on the edge of too stiff could gain a pound or two and as a result smack the riser on the way out.

Note - I currently have a Kanati longbow and it's the first bow I have had that really doesn't seem to be effected by anything.

I also think short drawing is quite common with heavy, bulky clothes and a cold, stiff body. That will also make the bow louder as the spine required changes every inch you short draw.

Minimal effect at hunting ranges.

The hardest part is the bowhunter trying to get the bow to full draw in cold conditions.  I sat in a tree stand in British Columbia in a snow storm with the wind blowing on my back for 4 hours.  When the bear came in, I could not get my bow half way back.  Those were crazy days and high poundage bows.

Mike

My daughter, son and I decided to hunt yotes on our farm one afternoon.  I wanted to use my Bear TD.  This was several years ago and we had a huge cold spell.  It was -37 that day and we lasted less than two hours.  My bow was (and is) fine.  I on the other hand froze.