Hunting with a traditional bow is a steadily growing practice. The more you put in, the more opportunities there are to get out.
If you have already decided that these traditional weapons will be in your arsenal for this upcoming hunting season, it’s time to learn the ins and outs so that you can increase your odds of being successful from start to finish.
Hunting has been a part of human life for a very long time. The first weapons made by humans were probably hunting weapons.
As humans developed and grew, so did their weapons, and hunting became a developed science. From spears and crossbows to lasers and guided missiles, hunting has always been a source of food and entertainment. To date, many hunters around the world use traditional bows for a lot of reasons.
Still, hunting with a traditional bow and arrow is one of the most challenging tasks for most people. The reason behind it is the lack of practice and, most notably, the lack of proper guidance.
This blog will cover and discuss most of the vital aspects of traditional bowhunting. We will also look at different techniques and tools to be used for different hunting situations.
Here are seven tips on how to hunt with a traditional bow and master the craft of archery.
Follow these tricks and tips to attempt the most hassle-free hunting!
Contents
Tip 1: Practice
As the old saying goes, practice does make you perfect. That is true for learning this craft as well.
Becoming consistent with any archery equipment takes repetition. The best preparation for compound or traditional bow hunting is sessions at the range that correct any flaws in your shot sequence and execution.
Although you can pick up a stick and string much faster than a crossbow or compound bow, you will need to spend more time practicing before using it in the field, where accuracy is imperative.
Traditional bowhunters who shoot instinctively and compound bow hunters who use sights should plan more training before heading out into increasingly challenging environments for the game where hunting success is often found in the details of arrow flight and precision shot placement!
When conducting studies with traditional archery, long-term effects or regression can occur if the pattern of practicing is altered. Conventional archers must practice regularly and continue their shooting regime throughout the hunting season, which many hunters fail to do.
Tip 2: Equipment Prep and Review
The equipment you use in archery can make or break your success as a competitive archer. According to the experts, one of the most critical aspects of bow maintenance is to keep your equipment in shape before using it. It is because an untuned bow would adversely affect accuracy and consistency.
It’s essential to check your gear before every hunt for any defects. Whether practicing at the range or chasing down a trophy buck, always inspect your bows and equipment beforehand to ensure you have everything squared away.
Likewise, inspect your strings and serving for signs of wear and tear caused by fraying or an otherwise compromised string. Replace the damaged portions the moment you find one. Regular string care is also essential, so consider applying a premium wax or string serum product to increase its lifespan and longevity.
Inspect your arrows for slight damages as well.
If you’re using Carbon Fiber Arrows, check that the fletching is entirely intact and isn’t cracked around the insert or nocks. Your arrows will be less affected by wind if your fletching is in good shape. Also, make sure you’re using the correct type of arrowheads for your setup.
Tip 3: Number Your Arrows for Tuning
Are you continuously missing your aim? Is it going off the mark?
If you are an archery enthusiast, the chances are that technique is to blame.
If you’re planning to take up traditional archery as a sport, we want to make sure that you’re prepared for all aspects of it, which means the technical side of things. The good news is that many online resources cover that kind of information, including general information like how to handle your bow, proper stance, and other such things to help you hone your accuracy and precision with traditional bows.
Another area that is surprisingly influential on your hunting accuracy (more than you might think!) is the tuning of arrows. There are specific techniques used when taking care of this aspect, too, like numbering arrow shafts for “bare shaft tuning.”
Bare shaft tuning will allow you to identify “flyers” quite easily when doing group tuning because you can immediately spot them. Then it’s just a matter of readjusting them until they stop creating these anomalies!
If your arrow is consistently missing the target compared to the other arrows in your quiver, conduct a process of nock tuning. For this, you need to rotate the nock 120 degrees and shoot another group at a distance at which you are confident in your shot consistency. If the arrow has again missed the target, then rotate the nock for 120 degrees again.
If an arrow is still missing its intended point of impact even after nock tuning, cull that arrow from the group.
If you have a particular arrow in your collection which is more accurate than others, number it #1 to identify it more quickly from your quiver. However, if your arrows are correctly cut, spun, fletched, and tuned, the whole batch should have the same consistency throughout.
If you are still frequently missing the mark, it is often a sign that you need to revert to the bare shaft or nock tuning, or you might need to tore-fletch the arrow entirely.
The best archery takedown bows tend to be shorter and more compact. It is because it is easier to maneuver these bows. After all, they have a shorter axle to axle length. This type of bow is more popular with those who hunt from a tree stand as it will be easier to maneuver the bow as you begin to climb the tree.
Tip 4: Silence Your Bowstring
When hunting with a traditional bow, stealth is essential. Since a conventional bow is launching arrows at speeds that are significantly slower than those of compound or crossbows, you want to reduce the amount of noise that the arrow makes when it comes in contact with your target to avoid having your target animal jump the string.
You can silence your strings using rubber whiskers or wool.
If you’re a recurve bow shooter, you might also want to consider a limb-mounted silencer, such as Remedy Vibration Reducers. These easy-to-install silencers mount on the string at the point of contact with the bow’s limbs.
To install them, use a set of unslotted limb bolts that allow for sound dampening material to be inserted into the string groove, for between ten and twenty pounds of downforce each. Once installed, these silencers will keep your pull smooth and consistent under any circumstance.
Tip 5: Shoot Heavy Arrows with a High FOC and Fixed Blade Broadheads
Increasing the popularity of heavier arrows is where modern archery has made a welcome turn towards. Not only are hunters finding new ways to care for their bodies and improve their agility when behind the bow, but they are also using heavier arrows optimized to enable them to go deeper into the animals they hunt.
They do this by thinking exceptionally with different arrow shafts explicitly designed to change their FOC (front of center) ratios. It will help increase penetration – something beneficial when hunting animals like moose, whose hides are pretty thick.
The best part about having thicker arrows is that you have more chances at hitting the animal even if you miss because arrows that punch through these larger animals can expand to 1′ wide!
Physics is a significant part of archery, and understanding the fundamental physics behind force to center ratio and kinetic energy will drastically improve your precision and accuracy.
Many experienced archers choose to shoot a fixed blade head because of the simplicity in its performance, which contributes to greater accuracy. Since traditional bows do not shoot at the same rate of speed as compound or crossbows, you will often find that less kinetic energy is lost when compared to an expandable broadhead.
Also, since the blades are set so close together, there is less likelihood of causing damage to an animal after it has been shot. The idea behind this is that hunters are more likely to collect their prey after harvesting it, which helps contribute to preservation practices instead of just wasting resources.
Tip 6: Draw Your Bow Once You are at Your Hunting Location
Modern compound bows are comparatively minor when it comes to long-distance shooting equipment. For this reason, they are ideal for hunting in treestands.
At the same time, recurve and longbows can get quite big. 60″ is traditionally considered the maximum length of limbs these types of weapons can possess – considering that they offer prime accuracy when standing on solid ground or level terrain (such as a thickly wooded area).
As might be expected, setting your stands and lining up your shots will prove more challenging in areas where there’s no sturdy kind of support, like digging into the ground or staking poles into the dirt. But it’s far worse if you go overboard on specific stand adjustments (or even worse! adjusting while you’re already standing 20 feet above ground level on an unsteady wooden ledge).
To be the best deer hunter you can be, it’s always recommended that you practice drawing your bow regularly at home. It will help you to be prepared for the moment of truth when out hunting in the wild.
Tip 7: Use a Range Finder
A range finder is still a precious tool whether you are shooting instinctively or aiming with sight on your bow. It will help you identify things that are hidden from plain view.
Even if you’re out hunting, it’s essential to be aware of the area around you at any given moment – this will enable you to be more attentive should something happen.
A range finder helps destroy distance guesswork because even if you aren’t an expert in taking yardages, one can make reasonably accurate estimates by analyzing how objects reflect light.
A range finder can be a handy tool for guessing yardage and maintaining precision and accuracy, especially if you are a newbie hunter trying out a traditional bow.
Conclusion
If you’re a beginner at hunting, you may be a little confused when it comes to all of the different options available for traditional hunting equipment.
Using a bow and arrow is a great way to get started hunting, but there are a lot of specifics you’ll need to keep in mind when making a purchase. Hunting with traditional equipment can be very gratifying. Not only does it allow for a more authentic experience, but it also helps you concentrate on the task while minimizing distractions.
However, while hunting with traditional equipment can be a wonderful experience, it can also be difficult for the beginner. Fortunately, there are many resources available at your service to help you get started.
The above list will help you in your journey to becoming a successful traditional bowhunter. Be sure to grab a detailed checklist from our site- it’s the best way to ensure you have all the important things done before hunting season rolls around! Each one of these things will make your pursuit of harvesting your first animal with a traditional bow an unforgettable experience.
So what are you waiting for? Grab your gear, take a hunting lesson, practice regularly, find your hunting location and scout it, pick your spot, put up your treestand or blinds, get your license, and go bowhunting following these tips!
