How do i get over this?

strothershwacker

Senior Member
My trad skills are getn' better. I always base my shooting on my 1st shot because i was told by an ol' timer years ago when i first started bowhunting that the first one, before you get "warmed up" is the only one that matters. I been trad for bout 7 months now. I feel like I'm crushing it at 15-16 yards. Should I push for longer range? Or accept my new range of spitn' distance? All I can think is i can hold this pattern at 50yds with my compound. How do I get over this?
 

Dennis

Senior Member
Well all I got to do to get over it is step back to 25 and beyond and I can't hit my back yard!!!! This is a close range sport most kills are around 10-12 yards some longer some shorter. Our bows are so slow it's not so much the matter if we can hit a deer at longer ranges but they won't stay still and there's not many inches between a lung shot and a gut shot. I like to practice long shots it makes the close ones easier.
 

John Cooper

?Now I Got One A Them Banner Things
My Max distance is 20yrds not because I can't hit past that, I am just not consistent past that. Focus and concentration is the key, but really how many shots in the woods are going to be much over 20-25 ? When I started shooting way back when, it was said if you can consistently keep 6 or so arrows in a pie plate at 20 you would kill a deer.

RC is probably the best hunter I know and he gets it done year after year and seems to rarely shoot over 20.

Dendy(sawtooth) is another one that is the same way.
 

jbogg

Senior Member
The couple of trad shooters I know limit most all of their shots to 15 - 17 yds max. If you are consistent at 15 I think you will have plenty of success on bears. Deer at close range from the ground are much tougher since being a prey animal they are wired differently than a bear. You may need to try out my tree saddle and get up off the ground once you start hunting Bambi.
 

Stump Shooter

Senior Member
Inside 12 is my sweet spot, and try and limit myself to 15 yds now days when hunting deer. I usually hunt below 12ft and keep them close. The more you hunt with traditional gear the more confident you become. Get right mentally and you will have it down, I'm not the best shot but I know what's gonna happen when one steps inside my wheel house.
 

frankwright

Senior Member
I can safely shoot out to a 3D target in my yard at 26 yards. My deer target is at 19 yards.
I try to set my stands for a 13-15 yard shot because a lot can go wrong in the woods and there is a lot of stuff in the way early season.
I wish I could shoot farther just to make my close in seem easier but it is amazing that I have been shooting in a residential area for 20 years and keep targets out all year and have never had a single negative response from anyone. Pretty amazing considering where I live but my neighbors are all keep to themselves types.
 

strothershwacker

Senior Member
Whats funny to me is the fact that I kilt my 1st deer with a Jennings & a full length autumn orange xx75 shooting with my fingers 27 years ago. Truth is i'm probly more accurate with this stickbow now than I was with a compound then. Them 1st old wheel bows wernt too impressive. Wish I'd have started with a stickbow instead of upgrading my compound every couple of years.
 

Clipper

Senior Member
If you are getting consistent on the ground it's time to take the next step. If you are not practicing from an elevated position you should, and shoot at a foam deer target. You'll see why when you try it. I think it also helps to get in the woods and stump shoot. Your brain kinda gets used to the same picture in your back yard. Judo points are the thing for stump shooting.
 

Todd Cook

Senior Member
"how do I get over this?" In all honesty you may not. Would you rather shoot a doe or a small buck with a trad bow or a whopper with a compound? For me its the doe at 12 yards any day of the week. To me it matters HOW I do it far more than what I kill. It wasn't always like that for me; I killed three deer with a longbow before I completely quit with the compound.
The last deer I killed with a compound was in the midwest and it would make pope and young if I entered it. I shot it at 25 yards, watched it run 50 more and tip over, and then realized I wasn't particularly excited. I came home, sold the compound and never looked back and have never regretted it. That was about 2005.I have shot one or 2 with a rifle since then when the freezer was empty.
For me it didn't happen overnight, but when I decided, I decided. And that's the way it should be. Hunt how you're happy doing it. You should come out and hunt with us on a couple TBG hunts this fall. You'll have a blast.
And P.S. guys- lets quit with the "training wheels" thing. All that does is stir stuff up. We're all sharing the woods together.
 
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NCHillbilly

Administrator
Staff member
20 yards is my maximum distance for confidence. I don't really care that I can hit a cigarette butt at 30 with a compound, because I haven't shot one in about 20 years. Nor do I want to.
 

bowhunterdavid

Senior Member
I have battled between my compound and trad bow for about five years until this year when i DIVORCED my last compound about four weeks ago. There has been a compound bow in my house since 1978 and many north american animals have fell to them but i started loosing my zeal after many years of hunting with it. For several years i would start the season with my recurve and then switch to compound when the leaves fell off the trees because i could see and shoot farther and many times a deer would pass less than 10 yards from my tree and i would say why didn't i bring my long bow today. For me its not about killing the biggest buck any more are how many i can kill. Traditional Bow Hunting has sparked new life in my hunting now that i can't explain but there are a lot of you that know what i'm talking about. I will be heading to Kansas in november again this year and i told the outfitter i was bring my trad bow this year, and he said have you lost your mind. My reply was maybe i have but in a good way. I will never look back from now on only i will be looking ahead. Only two and a half mounts left till tree climbing time.
 

Todd Cook

Senior Member
I have battled between my compound and trad bow for about five years until this year when i DIVORCED my last compound about four weeks ago. There has been a compound bow in my house since 1978 and many north american animals have fell to them but i started loosing my zeal after many years of hunting with it. For several years i would start the season with my recurve and then switch to compound when the leaves fell off the trees because i could see and shoot farther and many times a deer would pass less than 10 yards from my tree and i would say why didn't i bring my long bow today. For me its not about killing the biggest buck any more are how many i can kill. Traditional Bow Hunting has sparked new life in my hunting now that i can't explain but there are a lot of you that know what i'm talking about. I will be heading to Kansas in november again this year and i told the outfitter i was bring my trad bow this year, and he said have you lost your mind. My reply was maybe i have but in a good way. I will never look back from now on only i will be looking ahead. Only two and a half mounts left till tree climbing time.

Tell him you haven't lost your mind, you've simply cleared it.
 
I have never owned or hunted with a compound I started with a shotgun then rifle. The reason I switched to the bow, I was killing deer at 10 yards with a 7mm Rem Mag. I started with a Bear Grizzly because I didn’t want all the sites and gadgets the compound required. I had to pass a few good bucks in easy rifle range but mostly I have no problem getting 10-15 yard shots so a compound and its range are not needed. A little adjustment of your stand setups and using the recurve or longbow should not be a handicap
 

strothershwacker

Senior Member
Thanks for all the good feedback. I've got a couple trees here and there that bring deer within' spitn distance sometimes. I'm like a kid again waitin on bowseason. Trads done revived me in a sense.
 

AllAmerican

Senior Member
You just need to find a routine that works for you, some folks it's faster and easier to get the feeling down, for me took about almost two years to readjust and learn my style that fits me. Aim, don't aim, shoot instinctive, gap shoot, just make sure you do the same successfully sequenced shot over and over and over.

Dedicated Trad years below:

First year trad- stuck 2 does, no recovery
Second year trad- went 3 for 6, 2 doe in one night, 1 8 pt a month later
Third year- 0-6 missed every deer (GA/OH) (stuck a half rack 8pt buck, nonfatal shot dedicated myself to learning a new method and got coaching
Fourth year- 3-5, (1 6t, 1Fallow buck, 1 big doe)

Good luck it's a humbling and satisfying journey.
 
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