Great F&S Article on Bow "Rules"

[Loneaggie]

I came across this series of articles when I was researching my new bow purchase to death. I don't remember seeing it linked from the Green Screen, so thought I would provide it here.

http://www.fieldandstream.com/blogs/whitetail-365/2013/06/your-perfect-bow-part-1-does-brace-height-really-affect-forgiveness

If you want some of the quick the spoilers, here it is in summary (all based on shot distances to 60 yards)

1. Longer Brace Height - No appreciable advantage
2. Longer ATA Bows are more accurate - there is some truth here, but seems to be more dependent on mass weight combined with that ATA, but anything but ultra short didn't have a quantifiable advantage.
3. Does Too Long of DL affect shooting - absolutely, in fact if you read all 7 articles, it probably had the single biggest effect on accuracy for everyone involved.
4. Short stabilizers are only good for dampening, and do little to nothing for accuracy. Longer stabilizers provide noticeable accuracy improvements over 40 yards.

[Kirby86]

http://discussions.texasbowhunter.com/forums/showthread.php?t=384129

Can't say I agree with all of it, but I have to say that the longer AtA bows have always agreed with me. At 30' DL I can't shoot short/lightweight bows really well.

[Loneaggie]

Well guess I fail at search. Sorry guys.

[Pushbutton2]

Great F&S Article on Bow "Rules"

30' (foot) DL oh my!!!! ;-)

I think I like a longer ATA bow.
I've only owned one.
It's a Strother Valor.
My DL is 32" but the bow maxes at 31.5" :-(

[Mudslinger]

Disagree with the longer brace height statement, at least in my shooting and experiences.

[Rat]

I came across this series of articles when I was researching my new bow purchase to death. I don't remember seeing it linked from the Green Screen, so thought I would provide it here.

http://www.fieldandstream.com/blogs/whitetail-365/2013/06/your-perfect-bow-part-1-does-brace-height-really-affect-forgiveness

If you want some of the quick the spoilers, here it is in summary (all based on shot distances to 60 yards)

1. Longer Brace Height - No appreciable advantage
2. Longer ATA Bows are more accurate - there is some truth here, but seems to be more dependent on mass weight combined with that ATA, but anything but ultra short didn't have a quantifiable advantage.
3. Does Too Long of DL affect shooting - absolutely, in fact if you read all 7 articles, it probably had the single biggest effect on accuracy for everyone involved.
4. Short stabilizers are only good for dampening, and do little to nothing for accuracy. Longer stabilizers provide noticeable accuracy improvements over 40 yards.

I love these backyard tests! Totally inconclusive, except for that specific environment!

1) Longer Brace Height-No advantage when shooting in your back yard! In the real world, leaning out from behind a tree, kneeling down to shoot from cover, steep upward angles etc there is a DEFINITE advantage to having the forgiveness of a longer brace height. Remember, it isn't just about "twitching or grabbing" at the shot; it's also about torque and rotation on those awkward shots!

2) Longer axle to axle-If it's more accurate at 60 yards it is more accurate at 20 yards; physics is physics! The question is; is it accurate enough for you and the hunting you do?

3) Draw Length-I beat this to death, but yea, I agree with their conclusion.

4) Short Vs. Long Stabs-Longer (and heavier) is more accurate at 60 then it is also more accurate at 20! again, hard to get around physics. I would go a step further and say that overall mass and balancing would go much further for accuracy than just a longer stabilizer. Even a small amount of weight toward the shooter (front of the bow) and opposite the release hand will help greatly.

My biggest pet peeve is that they NEVER do these tests under any stress or in real world hunting scenarios; just standing in at the range, perfectly flat, good weather, etc...

For example, in the other thread, someone posted about shooting short brace height bows in short sleeves Vs. a bulky coat; in the real world the longer brace height wins in this scenario.

Back when I taught archery lessons I would do this: make everyone run around the practice range twice to get the heart rate up, breath heavy and maybe even sweat a little bit. Then immediately shoot a three arrow end; the results are eye opening. If you aren't shooting a forgiving set up, you will see a huge difference in accuracy while under stress.

If I were a Hooter Shooter I could shoot any bow and be perfectly accurate, but I'm not.

[Mudslinger]

Rat, great summary there sir!

[Loneaggie]

Rat for the most part I agree. What I would like to see is a hooter shooter setup to shoot badly and compared to same rig shot correctly. Like groups with torque applied to grip vs neutral.

[Bearkills]

ata should be considered with draw length and height. Peep to pin angle does indeed affect accuracy and that is why most longer bodied and draw archers do better with longer ATA bows. I'd also consider the source and who advertises in their pages. It would suit one or two of the big four for people to think longer ata and bh doesn't help.

[Csmith52779]

Rat hit the nail on the head.

[muddyfuzzy]

I prefer a bow to be at least 33" ata, brace I am completely indifferent about. a bow with 30" draw length is still a 30" draw length regardless of the brace and power stroke measurements. the difference in string angle between a 6.25" brace vs a 7.5" brace is so minimal its hardly even matters. personally I think a bow with a tall brace is a placebo to some extent but if the archer perceives it to be beneficial then so be it.

[Kirby86]

30' (foot) DL oh my!!!! ;-)

Lol... whoops. At that point I'd just have to shoot a ballista.

Solid point Rat!