I'm with Jeff in exactly that order.

Thanks for the input guys. I'm just an ole wheelbow shooter with an inquiring mind. I just can't shoot a bow without knowing how fast that arrow is traveling. PS: I don't like cars without speedometers either.

LOL I,d put looks at the bottom she hasta perform what she looks like is irrelevent when it comes to getting the job done.

Kinda like going out to buy a used truck I look for the best bargin and how well it runs my wife says "what color" LOL "who care's"

This isn,t really a fashion statement now is it?Please don,t get me wrong I like a purdy bow same as the next guy/gal but if it doesn,t do what I want looks don,t mean nothin unless maybe your buyion 1 of those 75$ BW arrows for the wall LOL

For me feel is #1 with any bow.After that performance.Looks I can live with if it shoots good.Quiet has to be a given or I will not hunt with it.

"Speed is Good.....Accurracy is Final"

(Wild Bill Hickock)

Here's my take.  The slower bow needs a heavier arrow to get the same penetration, making it even slower.  From 20 yds. it doesn't make any difference in trajectory but from 30+ yds. you sure can tell.  If someone wants to shoot a really slow selfbow because they made it, they can get the same penetration as a really fast compound if they shoot a heavy arrow (refer to above post about Dr. Ashby's findings) which will, most likely, restrict the yardage they are able to shoot.  So, it's more a matter of how far away you want to be from the animal you're hunting.  Close and slow or far and fast?

Bottom line is.....

To be effective, the arrow must at least clear the shelf upon release!!!      :rolleyes:

Re difference in penetration between your arrow and your brother-in-laws.  Arrow diameter has a lot to do with penetration, as does the type of point.  Smaller diameter arrows/points penetrate better  Of course, how well the bow/arrow combination is tuned for good arrow flight also affects penetration.  Is your bow 48# at 28 inches or 48# at 29 inches.  Does your brother-in-law draw his bow to 28 inches?  Otherwise, the draw weight marked on the bow at 28 inches may not be what he's actually pulling.  In short, there's a lot of things that may explain the difference between penetration.  Speed is one of them, but not the only one.  You may not be comparing apples to apples.

All else being equal (noise, feel, stability etc.), I'll generally take the faster bow over the slower one. What I won't do though, is start buying and selling bows, spend thousands of dollars and go to extremes chasing an extra 3 or 5 fps.

Oh make no mistake about my take on slow bows and heavy arrows. I'm not knocking either one. My brother-in-law has taken 6 african big game animals and 2 nice bucks in the mountains of Arkansas. Proof that fast bows and screaming arrows arn't required to produce bow kills. But I sure have enjoyed ya'lls take on speed and penatration vs quiet and smooth.

I have one Osage bow that is so slow, I shot at a doe one year during the rut, she dropped two fawns and had them weened before the arrow got to her. Okay it just seemed that slow when I watched her move out of the way of the arrow. She just stood and watched it fly by after moving out of the way. There was no way I wasn't going to try again. That was the last time I ever took that bow hunting.

I want to at least had a fighting chance when I launch an arrow.

Thats my point exactly Darkegreen. I have heard it said many times when you go after whitetails you better have all the odds stacked in your favor... even then its a tough challenge.

I guess we get conditioned to what we know. With that being said, I shoot GT's out of my Border TD and it is the most consistant shooting bow that I have ever owned and it is also the fastest. I also have a 65 Kodiak that I can shoot well. It's not nearly the barnburner the Border is but I can shoot it well.

To me, shooting qualities/accuraccy is number one priority. If I can't hit what I'm aiming at, whats the use of having it?  Not saying that bow won't be the cats meow for another fella, as we are all different, just not my cup of tea.

If a fella has always shot a 175fps bow and then lets one go from a 210fps bow, I would think that would make a pretty big impression. There are a lot of different bows out there.

I spend more shooting time on stumps/targets with the kids then I do in a treestand. We enjoy shooting year round to keep sharp come hunting season.

JL

The longbow I shoot now is in the 170s to maybe 180 fps range(depending on the arrows I shoot)and I think it's perfect. That's not to say I wouldn't shoot a 45 or 50#@28" 300 fps osage selfbow if that were possible.  

Lord, I hope it doesn't matter. My self bows, on a good day, probably shoot 160 at best...but I have no problem putting arrows where they need to be and thats what matters.   Pat

to answer the original question pointedly

Does speed matter?

sure it does but it isn't the ONLY thing that matters like many folks make it out to be.

Question: would you rather get hit by a baseball travelling 45 miles per hour or a racquetball at the same speed?  Or look at it another way - would you rather me throw a baseball or racquetball at you (and hit you with it).  I'm pretty sure I can throw the racquetball a little faster than the baseball, but which one packs more of a wallop on the other end.

speed doesn't kill......well placed sharp broadheads do.

Racquetballs hurt!

Guess it stems from my wheelbow days. I have a phobia about them dang string jumpers. I was out stumpin the other day and had a robin jump string on me!

Question:  Does Speed Matter?

Answer:    Yes....

kyle said it best!!!