Bow Hunting Elk - More $$$ = more kills?

[JohnFitzgerald]

I\'ve taken my share of elk in my life. But what I\'ve come to realize is that more expensive bows don\'t mean more kills.

Switched from rifle hunting elk to bow hunting.
1) Old Martin ($10) = 3 elk : 5 years
2) Browning Bow ($25) = 1 elk : 1 year
3) Martin Cougar ($200) = 5 elk : 6 years
4) Martin Saber ($800) = 1 elk : 5 years
5) Struthers SHO ($1000) = first year

So those that don\'t have the latest and greatest bow, don\'t think you have less of a chance to harvest an animal. Who else wants to share their previous bows, dollars spent, and kills?

 

[bnsafe]

wells theres the problem, if you were shooting a hoyt, bowtech, mathews, elite, pse you would kill an elk everytime you went hunting. but what fun would that be. lol. obviously im kidding. if you can affored a new latest greatest bow then by all means use it an enjoy. if you cant then remember indians killed buffalo with less than ideal equipment. go hunt an have fun. my first bow back in the day was a york cnc. i had to set a 10 15 20 yd pin because it was so slow i needed the five yd pins. i was a kid drawin a light weight bow an heavy aluminum arrows. but the deer didnt seem to care. second bow was a york sto (shoot thru overdraw) now days i have a hoyt crx i bought new but leftover for half price. killed the elk just fine.
there was a thread by ww a few days ago bout camo. we get caught up in all the hype an forget its hunting. mountain men seemed to kill just fine without camo an no in line ml. wear any clothes you want, use what equipment you want. dont move, watch the wind, an kill just fine.
again, if you can afford all the newest stuff go for it an enjoy, if you cant dont feel handicappd.

 

[Swede]

John, I agree. It is my observation that I can kill more elk with a compound than a stick bow. Knowledge and skill kills the most elk. Luck gets a few too. Just don\'t confuse luck and skill. It can be very confusing and even humbling.

 

[cnelk]

I also agree.
I think a high quality broadhead is more valuable than a high quality bow

 

[mainebrdr]

My experience has been with deer and I killed more deer with an early Browning compound Than with any bow since. It had a wood riser and small round eccentrics. Loved that bow. wish I still had it on the wall but I sold it for 12.00.
Brad is correct. Don\'t scrimp on the gear that makes contact with your target, however, here again, higher price does not necessarily mean better!

 

[Deertick]

Same holds true with rifles ... my Savage is the killer at my house.

I was lucky enough to run into a great deal on a great bow, and I\'m glad I did, though I often think of trying something else, and \"something else\" is never this year\'s latest and greatest.

 

[elky McElkerson]

i think my answer would change if i put my money towards landowner tags and pro guides.

the equipment plays such a amaller role. especially the bow.

 

[bowhunter]

I started bowhunting in 1993 with a Bear Whitetail II. I shot 2 nice deer that year. I bought a Proline Point Blank in 1993 used that till 2000 and took several deer. I still have the Parker Ultralight 31 I bought in 2000. I am on my 3rd set of strings. I have taken dozens of squirrel, 5 turkey, a few rabbitts, probably 30 deer and one elk. I would like to upgrade but I like that light bow and it has proven itself to me. It feels comfortable in my hand and I am confident with what I can do with it.

 

[JohnFitzgerald]

So why do we spend thousands of dollars on our bows? Is it prestige? Do expensive bows come with a certain comfort blanket?

 

[bnsafe]

i would love to have a hoyt carbon bow. they just feel very good to me. would they kill any better, nope, but, i might shoot it a little better so in that sense it might help. i do think the newer bows are faster taking away some of the misjudged distance issues, have better back walls so you can hold an shoot longer an better, stay in tune better so you dont have as many issues with timing etc.
so yes, there is an advantage to having a newer bow, but, can you kill elk with older stuff. you can an i do.

 

[razorback]

I like this thread. I know a lot of guys who shoot new bows every year. I\'ve been guilty of that myself. I\'m cheap about most of my equipment, clothing, stands and boots. My dad didn\'t hunt and didn\'t buy me any hunting stuff so I had the cheapest crap you could imagine to hunt with. The one thing I have spent money on was bows and guns. I have noticed the trend in bows seem to be shorter, lighter and faster. I kind of bought into that trend as well and actually shot worse. A few years ago I bought a Bowtech Insanity CPXL in 60LB, changed to heavier arrows to make it as quiet as possible and slow it down. I probably shoot that bow better than any I have owned since I had to switch to left handed bows. I\'ll keep that one until it won\'t possibly shoot. I think I can speak from a ton of experience and dollars spent on this one though $$$ does not equal more kills nor does it equal better shooting. I think a lot can be said for keeping the same bow or gun and gaining experience with it! I know a few people that can pick up any bow and shoot lights out period (my son won another tournament yesterday!) and he would be one of them. Big difference between shooting targets and hunting though some of the best bow shooters I know who switch bows every year amaze me at the number of misses they tell me about. I know they are better than that, I think it probably has to do with being familiar with their bow in a hunting situation. Dollars won\'t buy that!

 

[JohnFitzgerald]

I agree Steve. The reason I started this thread is because someone recently told me that his bow was a little old and wasn\'t the latest and greatest. So he wasn\'t hunting this year.

My advice was that if it still works, use it. Even if it\'s ugly and old, it still can perform the job! Heck, we still keep Swede around. :lol:

 

[Deertick]

The thing is, a higher-end rifle, or even a mid-range rifle, will keep -- or increase -- its value.

This year\'s top-end bow will only go down in value over time. 40 years from now, my rifles will have a lot of value to my grand-kids. My bow? Not so much.

(I would suspect that higher-end traditional bows and muzzleloaders would be an exception, but today\'s fancy top-end compounds and in-line muzzleloaders are not going to bring the \"Ooos\" and \"Ahhs\" to our grand-kids like a nice Winchester. And today\'s cross-bows? Give me a break!)

Razorback has it right, though ... familiarity with a particular weapon means a lot.

As they say, don\'t shoot pool with an old guy who brings his own cue, or shoot trap with him when he un-cases his old 870 with the bluing worn off. If you do, don\'t bet on the outcome!

 

[OldMan]

Elk hunting is all about having the right attitude. If new gear makes you feel better you\'ll have a more positive attitude. A more positive attitude may let you hunt better. When you hunt better, you kill more elk.

Then again. New gear may do nothing but spend your money.

 

[Bob Frapples]

............The reason I started this thread is because some recently told me that his bow was a little old and wasn\'t the latest and greatest. So he wasn\'t hunting this year.

Wow, if I had gone by this rule, id never would have got to hunt ever. I hunted with a hand me down 30-30 for over 15 years before I broke down and bought my first new gun. Ive yet to buy the latest and greatest anything. Heck, my first bow was a two year old bow at the local China-Mart that was covered with dust and so many marked-down red stickers on it my paper shredder refused to digest it.

Tick definalty hit it about the bows holding value, kinda shame that the arrows hold there value better that the bows do.

 

[Bullrub]

I think it\'s just our nature as hunters to want the best, and most of us think that because it cost more means it better. I some cases that is true, but the price of your gear don\'t make the hunter ( YOU DO).

 

[JohnFitzgerald]

Does anyone get embarrassed because their hunting buddies have $1200 setups and they might have a $600 setup? Anybody get tired of the teasing or is that just hunting party norm?

jf

 

[bowhunter]

Does anyone get embarrassed because their hunting buddies have $1200 setups and they might have a $600 setup? Anybody get tired of the teasing or is that just hunting party norm?

jf

I hunted squirrels with a friend long ago. He had a new laminated stock, stainless steal bolt action 22 with an expensive scope. His setup totaled $650. I had a beat up Ruger 10/22 with a cheap tasco scope. A total $150 in my setup.

We went out one day on his fathers place. Our limit was 6 squirrels each. I did a loop through the woods and shot 6 times. I came out with 5 head shot squirrels. I waited a good 30 minutes for him to return. He shot at least a dozen times. He returned with ONE squirrel. :haha: :haha: :haha:


I had fun with that one for years.

 

[cnelk]

Does anyone get embarrassed because their hunting buddies have $1200 setups and they might have a $600 setup? Anybody get tired of the teasing or is that just hunting party norm?

jf

My money shot with my $600 bow usually keeps them quiet

 

[razorback]

I\'ve been on both sides of the fence. I\'ve shot setups far less than $600. Now I\'m ashamed to say what I have in my current setup. I never make fun of anybody for what weapon they have. Growing up we didn\'t have much money, I turkey hunted with a 20 guage single shot modified choke. Not a turkey killing machine at all. My uncle always used to say \"it\'s the hunter that makes the gun, not the gun that makes the hunter\". It didn\'t make me feel any more confident with that 20 guage and as soon as I mowed enough yards I bought a 12 guage at a pawn shop but it is a true statement.