Im sure wrong place to ask....

[one2bowhunt]

But my domestic advisor has infomed me that i will not be buying a new toy unless i sell the one i currently have. I hate change, so i am havin a hard time pulling the trigger on going all Trad. However I really want a new trad bow. I would like to hear from those of you that have made the jump to go all in and give up the wheels as to what I should do.

[DrenalinJunkie]

I haven't totally given into the dark side, but I do dabble.

I think it is a total commitment or no commitment. I have heard in certain circles that if you truely want to get good at it, you have to go at it full force. I may be way off base but this is JMO.

[ElWhompo]

I have a new compound but I pick up my recurve 10 to 1 over it. Somethin satisfyin about trad.

[huntinpool]

Gave up 10 yr highly competitive compound lifestyle. Now I have an even more competitive recurve addiction. The will to win is still there but shooting is much more enjoyable. If you want to get good with it , it will take practice. I look forward to getting home and shooting now as opposed to having to make myself practice the compound. If you are serious , you'll LOVE it. Welcome to the Dark side (enlightened side).

[Chunky]

You don't have to go one way or the other, I know several who still shoot both and do well. Heck, Fred Eichler is one of them.

You do have to practice more with the trad gear to get proficient and to stay there...so there is a larger time commitment. We all love to shoot, so that is not much of a sacrifice.

As far as the domestic advisor and cost goes, you can get into trad for as little as a couple hundred bucks. Find you a used bow in the 100-150 dollar range...add some new arrows with feathers, a tab or glove, and an arm guard and you are ready to go. Probably need to put a bow stringer on the list, but still think you can get in for 200 with a little shopping.

If you can't squeeze out that much....well, I will just let that go as I don't want to question your man card.

I don't know where you are located, but if close to the Houston area come to one of the events on the board.

[LostHawg]

For some of us the daddy card over rules the man card. My daddy card has been getting a lot of over work lately.

Oh, uh, well, what Mark said.

[2050z]

I shoot both and love it. Archery is a great sport.

[Live2Hunt]

Trad only for a few years now. I wanted to get good at the recurve/longbow thinig and figured jumping in was the best way. I still have my compound but have not shot it for a years.

... i could sell that sucker and call Bob for a custom long bow for my oldest daughter...

...hmm... Thanks guys!

[LostHawg]

I shoot rifles, shotguns, recurves and longbows. Most of my hunting is divided between rifle and longbow, but I really appreciate having the others to either diversify or fall back on as needed.

I see no need in alienating one in favor of the other. I quit the compound because I wasn't any good with it. No other reason. It just didn't work for me. I have no bias toward them even if I do like to tease Timm and Brad from time to time.

[woody]

I love traditional archery more than compound bows, but i absolutely love my Ben Pearson Diamondback compound. I love to shoot it and hunt with it almost as much as my Bob Lee recurve. If i didnt own this particular bow, i would shoot traditional only.

[duck'n]

I am one of the weird ones. I get fed up with tinkering on a compound and sell it and say I will go trad only. Then after a while, I get the itch to tinker on a compound again. I never get sick of the recurve/longbow, I just miss shooting a compound. I am going through this right now. A buddy is giving me his backup bow (compound) to play with since I am kind of broke. Although I have my eye on a real nice setup in the classifieds from a guy on here who is going all trad...I just need the money! Anyway, I can't ever make the jump all one way or the other, guess I am a fence straddler. Hopefully I will never get hung! I also still really enjoy hunting with my trusty old .270 and hope to never give up chasing waterfowl. Do what you like and enjoy your time outdoors.

[glen]

I'm not a good shooter but i had to get rid of my wheels before I got any confidence. I was carrying both in the truck and actually shooting my stick bow when at home and carrying my wheels in the stand. Sold the wheels. Had to cary a stick bow with me for a weekend and shot a doe. Never looked back since. Have about 5 wood bows now and probably add a takedown longbow this year.

[CaptJack]

I started in archery in the early 60s so I learned to shoot recurves before the compounds came out. Then I had a number of different compounds. But in the 90s I went back to shooting recurves.
I still have 4 compounds around here, and pull one every once in awhile, but I also have about a dozen recurves laying around that I would rather shoot.
I keep two recurves by the back door ready to shoot all the time

[paulvrana]

The first year I started shooting trad (year before last), I did not have enough confidence to hunt with the recurve and hunted with my compound instead. The next year, I kept my compound but never picked it up because I lost interest. I enjoyed shooting the recurve so much more than the compound. I never would have believed how quickly I lost interest because I am a tinkerer and loved messing with new gadgets on the compound. I hunted with the recurve for the first time last year, had some success and gained alot of confidence. I always limited my shots to 20 and under even with the compound so the switch has not really limited me in any way. In fact, I think I think I am a better hunter with the recurve than I was with the compound.

If I were you, I would buy the best used trad bow you can afford in the 45 lb range(doesnt have to be expensive to be a good shooter), make sure your arrows are matched well and get started. If you like it, you can always buy a new custom bow. If it is not for you, you can probably get most of your money back.

[tx_poptart]

I am new to Trad gear (3 or 4 months) and I can tell you I love it....At the same time, I have to keep in tune with my Compounds because of some of the competitions / hunts I participate in.....I have to flop back and forth and it may be tough but I think I can do it.....to each his own....

Shooting Trad gear to me is like a Sunday stroll on a Harley....smooth, easy going, very enjoyable, etc...

Shooting the compound for me feels like standing at the start/finish line at a NASCAR race.....

I still get a kick outta both........