Elk Archery Equipment Question

[Joe2Kool]

Posting this in the Elk and the Archery forums.

Gonna update my 20+ year old bow in preparation for an upcoming Arizona elk hunt. (Positive thoughts!) For those of you that archery hunt elk with a compound bow:

Draw weight?
Total arrow/broadhead weight?
Arrow speed?

Thinking my current whitetail setup is a little light at 55#, 380 grain, 250 fps, for 53 ft lbs energy.

Thanks.

 

[HntHrdr]

I Shoot a 70lb bow with 28.5 draw, 505 grn arrows 125 iron will up front, I need to crono my bow but I have had two pass throughs with that set up. One at 6 yards and one at 40. A new(er) bow will suit you well, that said anything 2019 and newer will be a huge step up, smooth draw cycles, nicer let off… ect but then again guys shoot stick bows and kill elk all the time. Preaching to the choir I’m sure but it’s all about shot placement and a sharp broadhead. Good luck with that Az draw!

 

[jdmaxwell]

Strive for minimum arrow weight of 450 gr. 280 fps or higher. But as mentioned arrow placement key And don't shoot beyond your effective range

 

[wweaver79]

Thinking my current whitetail setup is a little light at 55#, 380 grain, 250 fps, for 53 ft lbs energy.

Ya time to upgrade that for sure. Go at least 65 pounds, 70 if you can shoot it well. Around 450 grains is fine. Start now and you have plenty time to tweek it and practice. I shoot a Matthews VXR at 75 pounds 518 grain arrow and Matthews Heli-M 70 pound at 430 grain arrow weight. The VXR is quieter with the heavier arrow and about the same speed due to heavier draw. I use Iron wills for elk but my cousin has used the Sever narrow one I think last two years and they worked really well on two bulls. Good recommendation is 280 FPS or more. Shoot a couple brands, things have changed in 20 years for sure.

 

[c3]

I'm getting to the point at 62 where oldmanitis limits what I might want to shoot. I'm now down to a 60 lbs draw with lighter 390 grain arrow so I can keep sight tape flatter at around 285 fps. All my misses over the years have been due to misjudging distance in the heat of the moment. Range over here then they come in over there and your off by 10 yards in the bone some where instead of the boiler room.

My last bull went down 33 yards from where I shot !!! 45 degree down hill with a 1.5" dead meat broadhead that was touching the opposite side skin low next to the sternum. The one before that was a 400 grain arrow at 245 fps that stuck in the opposite side leg bone 3/4" with a wacem 3 blade. Hitting your mark and having the arrow perfectly in column is the key.

90% of the game is getting the arrow in the boiler room with the bh and vanes in perfect alignment to the flight path. Everything else is almost irrelevant IMHO.

I know these kinds of discussions can cause a chit storm, but for alot of us who are starting to get up there in age, the 70 or 80 lbs 500 grain arrow thing 'just aint happenen no mo' and it's ok.

Just my $0.02

Cheers, Pete

 

[JCbowhunt]

65lbs 450 grain arrow i'm 67yo and shoot through most elk.

 

[Joe2Kool]

Thanks for the info guys!

 

[trophyhunter]

Posting this in the Elk and the Archery forums.

Gonna update my 20+ year old bow in preparation for an upcoming Arizona elk hunt. (Positive thoughts!) For those of you that archery hunt elk with a compound bow:

Draw weight?
Total arrow/broadhead weight?
Arrow speed?

Thinking my current whitetail setup is a little light at 55#, 380 grain, 250 fps, for 53 ft lbs energy.

Thanks.

We shoot 56# draw weight, total arrow weight 566gr. FMJ340 , G5 Striker 100gr. Total pass through on Bulls at 40yds.

 

[Joe2Kool]

We shoot 56# draw weight, total arrow weight 566gr. FMJ340 , G5 Striker 100gr. Total pass through on Bulls at 40yds.

You happen to know arrow speed? Thanks.

 

[BridgerMT]

Whitetail setup on a bow thats the best one I've heard in a minute

Why does everyone over think this issue on every forum.
Native Americans killed Big Game animals with homemade sticks, strings, and broad heads like forever!!! I wonder if they sat around and weighed S*** by the campfires at night.
Sorry for sounding like the ass I am, but this question always gets under my skin.....

Any modern day archery bow and arrow setup hell even that 20 year old one will kill a bison if you know how to shoot/use one accurately. When that Bull is screaming at you at less than 10 yards do you have the mental capacity to hold your sphincter together thats the real question you should be asking

Again I apologize for the smack talk good luck in AZ

 

[Joe2Kool]

Whitetail setup on a bow thats the best one I've heard in a minute

Why does everyone over think this issue on every forum.
Native Americans killed Big Game animals with homemade sticks, strings, and broad heads like forever!!! I wonder if they sat around and weighed S*** by the campfires at night.
Sorry for sounding like the ass I am, but this question always gets under my skin.....

Any modern day archery bow and arrow setup hell even that 20 year old one will kill a bison if you know how to shoot/use one accurately. When that Bull is screaming at you at less than 10 yards do you have the mental capacity to hold your sphincter together thats the real question you should be asking

Again I apologize for the smack talk good luck in AZ

Hey Bridger, I'm gonna ask the moderators to remove your previous post. I can't have the wife looking over my shoulder and inadvertently seeing I don't need a new bow!

Just razzin you back man!!

But, I'm guessing if the Native American hunters were anything like us, they sat around and compared cedar arrows tipped with flint to oak arrows tipped with quartz. Wonder what they considered the 6.5 man bun gun?

 

[HntHrdr]

obsidian was probably the 6.5 of it day…

 

[Tank]

never going to turn a guy away from getting a new setup, but you can get it done with what you have.
I have a friend who has killed a 320" and 370" bull last 2 yrs with a 50lb draw, 425gr total arrow weight, and Iron Wills up front. That being said, The bow technology keeps getting better. But they have only gotten 15fps faster than in the early 2000's.

 

[Joe2Kool]

never going to turn a guy away from getting a new setup, but you can get it done with what you have.
I have a friend who has killed a 320" and 370" bull last 2 yrs with a 50lb draw, 425gr total arrow weight, and Iron Wills up front. That being said, The bow technology keeps getting better. But they have only gotten 15fps faster than in the early 2000's.

That's kind of what I'm thinking. I'm looking for at least a 10% increase in KE at the same draw weight, otherwise, why upgrade? Other than to get a new bow!

 

[DJ1]

If you don’t want to spend the Money on a new setup, what is the max draw weight of your current bow? IMO the only way to increase speed and kinetic energy is to increase draw weight. You don’t want to decrease arrow weight since you’re already too light. I’ve killed multiple elk and 2 big moose with the same 100 grain broadhead, so I wouldn’t focus on broad heads as much as total arrow weight. I would crank draw weight to 60 (if possible) and get arrow weight up, speed isn’t as important as arrow weight and KE. Good luck

 

[Joe2Kool]

Max draw weight is 60#. Many years ago when I was tuning my WT setup, backing it off to 55# resulted in better paper tuning.

Also at that time, I experimented with various total arrow weights. Results were always around 53 ft pounds regardless of weight. The lighter arrows were faster, but no more energy.

My goal is 10% increase in KE at the same draw weight because the newer bows should be more efficient. I can pull more, but probably 60-65 lbs is gonna be all I want to handle from a cold tree stand. I plan to use the same setup for elk and WT.

Thanks for input DJ!

 

[DJ1]

I don’t think you can achieve a 10% jump in KE bumping poundage up to 60#. BUT before buying a new bow, you could give this a try. Bump to 60# and add 40 grains brass inserts to current arrow (you may have already tried this).

I shoot a carbon bow that I love thats over 10 years old, struggled with justifying getting new carbon when current bow shoots so well. Decided to upgrade after this season so I’ll have plenty of time to get used to new setup in the spring. I made the decision because of my buddy that is a world class shooter always nagging me and showing me some advantages I would be missing out on with current setup.

Good luck on your quest.

 

[Vitalwave]

The last three years I've been shooting a 70 lb draw, 150 grain Valkerie blood eagle broad head, VAP TKO Gamer arrow. Total arrow weight is 483 grains. It's a little front heavy but it has passed through two bull elk and a buck at 70 yards. Chrono-ed at 273 fps. I have been very happy with it but have lost the last of my valkyrie broad heads and may try some more economical options. Those things have gotten super pricy!

Realistically, I think my setup is a bit overkill and a good shot placement is what matters most. I will say having some power behind the arrow makes your-less-than perfect shots a little more forgiving.

Good luck on your prospective AZ hunt!