How many?

[hunter49]

   Frist bow was a fiberglass long bow, then got a recurve, now on my 3rd. compound & thinking of a X-bow just to try something diff.

  For guns I started with a 16 ga steves dbl., then a 16 ga. Ithica deerslayer open sights.  Then went to Rem. 870 12 ga. combo/buck barrel open sights, then with a scope. Also have ML's one open sight ,one scoped. Now I hunt with one of the ML's or my NEF 20ga. rifled bar. single shot  with a scope(tack driver).  Also hunted with a 16 ga. bolt action with a poly ck. way back!   Frist shot ever was with dads 12 ga parker double at 12yrs. old , 2 fast shots, threw me back 3 ft. & that left a blk/blue mark, hurt like hell !   Him, his buddies & my brother all got a kick out of it to but not like I did!

[bubba]

I still hunt with a bear grizzly 45 pound recurve.  During the special season, I use a sidelock and flint lock.  I also hunt with a sidelock shotgun for small game.  During the regular season, I will pull out the inline sidekick.  I cut my teeth on a sidelock barrel.  I still love it.

[SteveB]

I probably have done 70% of my bow-hunting with a recurve. But killed 80% of the total with a compound.

Shot selection is far more critical to me with the recurve. Far easier with a compound to thread tight windows, draw when head is hidden and hold for the shot, etc.

 

Shooting the recurve is fun and something I just enjoy doing.

No enjoyment at all with the compound - just sits there like a hammer until I have a nail to pound.

 

 

[Pygmy]

I started bow hunting with a Wing recurve (45 lb) that I bought used for $25. Never got that good with it. Never killed a deer with it.

Graduated to compound ( Darton SL-50) and then a Hoyt Superslam. Killed 6 deer ( 5 bucks and a doe ) and a cow elk, then gave up the bow, because I never really got that good with it.

I killed deer with several different shotguns..An Eastern Arms 16 gauge single shot, a Win M37 12 gauge single shot, a Win 37 20 gauge single shot, a Rem 11-48 16 gauge auto, a Rem M870 12 gauge skeet gun, a Rem 870 Wingmaster slug gun, an Ithaca Deerslayer 12 gauge slug gun , a Rem 1100 20 gauge skeet gun, and a Rem 1100 12 gauge deer gun with fully rifled cantilever barrel. All of the shotguns had either a bead sight or open sights, except the Rem 1100 20 gauge, which had a Weaver 1X scope and the Rem 1100 12 gauge rifled barrel, which had a Weaver 2.5 x scope. Most of my shotgun deer were taken with the 1100s.

I also killed a deer with a TC Contender pistol in .35 Rem, one with a TC Contender pistol in .356 Winchester, and 6 deer with a Rem XP-100 pistol in .260 Rem.

I have only ever killed deer with one muzzleloader, a TC Hawken .50 cal that my ex wife bought me for my birthday in 1973. Used the issue open sights until my eyes got bad, and then installed a tang mounted peep sight, which still works for me. I have killed 15-20 deer ( including my best buck) and a 6x6 bull elk with it.

I won't try to list all the rifles I have killed deer with, only the chamberings.

I have shot deer with the .222 Rem, the 25-06, the .260 Rem, the .270 Win. the 7 x 57, the 7mm08, the .280 Rem, the 7mm Rem Mag, the 30-06 , the .35 rem, the .356 Win and the 9.3 x 62. Most of my rifle shot deer have been taken with the 7mm08 and the .280 Rem.

Other than that I haven't had much experience deer hunting.. << grin>>...

[NFA-ADK]

Dont think thats a fair statemnt. All user defined. Putin the time and If u have the space accurcy and range grow alot. Im comfy out to 15 yards cause thats the max i shoot in my home everuyy night. Im just gettin 20 but only hit that at rnge but my group is shrinkin

Effectiveness... ive seen more vids of componds not gettin pass throughs than i have of trad equipmnt. But both take deer quite well

I understand, this is just my opinion. 

 

I wanted to have a weapon that I was more confident in and the compound fit my applications.  With the traditional I could shoot out to 50 yards but consistency at this distance was an issue I did not like.  I shoot about 3 times a week and I doubt I could be this accurate at 70 yards with a traditional bow.  Not that I would shoot a deer that far but it makes 50 yards seem like a chip shot.  Plus I am competing with shotguns and muzzleloaders.

[Five Seasons]

I'm 30. I've shot everything you mentioned with the exception of a flintlock, but would love to if I had the opportunity.

[Terry]

I am 33 and have shot traditional archery and sidelock muzzleloaders. I have never hunted with either, but I recently bought a recurve and dream of eventually making the switch. In my mind there is something magical about killing a deer with traditional archery and it's at the top of my bucket list.

[Vince1]

I understand, this is just my opinion. 

 

I wanted to have a weapon that I was more confident in and the compound fit my applications.  With the traditional I could shoot out to 50 yards but consistency at this distance was an issue I did not like.  I shoot about 3 times a week and I doubt I could be this accurate at 70 yards with a traditional bow.  Not that I would shoot a deer that far but it makes 50 yards seem like a chip shot.  Plus I am competing with shotguns and muzzleloaders.

 

 

yup I hear ya think one of the reasons I caved to getting a crossbow in my home is to get a bit of range, I don't have 30 yards to get confident at on a regular basis so my recurve range is under 20

 

from what I been reading bout the excaliburs the wife and I should be able to take a deer over 50 yards away. again the issue for us is getting somewhere regularly to practice at long ranges but with a crossbow im figuring once in a blue is all we need

 

course the recurve side of me is jealous of the crossbow and it don't get here till next week

 

no idea why I am so opposed to compounds or I would get one but MAN I just cant bring myself to shoot one.

[Pygmy]

I'm not trying to stir s**t, but desiring to kill deer at 50 yards and farther is the wrong reason for for switching to ANY kind of archery tackle.

If you want to shoot critters that far away you should use something that burns powder.

[G-Man]

I agree pygmy, 50 yards is to far even for a crossbow..wind , wind gusts would effectivly just make you end up missing or wounding an animal let alone the animal taking a step.. get closer it can be done.... i would really have a chance to use an atatl on deer or any large prey red squirrel and wood chuck are just to small(only no protected things to throw at).., i make some great stone points. and thats about as primitive as i can go.. just throwing a spear by hand seems way to hard...

[jjb4900]

I'm not trying to stir s**t, but desiring to kill deer at 50 yards and farther is the wrong reason for for switching to ANY kind of archery tackle.

If you want to shoot critters that far away you should use something that burns powder.

I hear that out west it's the norm to shoot deer and elk out to 50 or even 100 yards with archery tackle......us easterners are selling ourselves short.........

[G-Man]

I hear that out west it's the norm to shoot deer and elk out to 50 or even 100 yards with archery tackle......us easterners are selling ourselves short.........

yes out west but no trees/ limbs in way either.. i've killed a buck in a field in ny at 65 but it was as close as i could get in 5 days of watching it cross the field...

[518BowSlayer]

never had a chance to sight in my scope this year on my rifled shotgun barrel so I went out with the smooth bore with rifled slugs and just a truglo fiber optic sight. double lunged an 8 pointer with it (only a 15 yd shot though). never did any traditional archery though. maybe next year

[Five Seasons]

I think "trick shots" and challenging distances are great for the practice range with your buddies. They should not be a goal for the field. For every great hard shot you make; how many get wounded?

 

I would rather have a deer come broadside at 15 yards and put him or her down then to have to thread the needle or compensate for wind.

[Merlot]

My first bow was a Fred Bear Kodiak Hunter recurve. I stuck with it, trying to be traditional in pursuing deer. A hunting buddy picked up a Jennings compound bow in the late 70's and tried to get me to change. I finally did change to compound in the early 80's...peer pressure I guess.  

Back then, I just had my bow/arrows, camo, quiver, knife, and drag rope....just the basics when we went out...traditional in my view. Now we cannot be without all our gadgets stuffed into oversized backpacks. Still fun to get out and if I have to switch to something a bit more radical like a cross bow...so be it. Better to be out with friends and enjoy the outdoors than anything else. Sit by the fire after hunting with a cocktail or two, then grill up dinner, sit back in the camp easy chairs and tell stories while sipping a wine....my kind of tradition. Dang, cannot wait for deer season.

[Two Track]

Target shot re-curve and long bow.

Shot with beads sights on 4-5 shotguns, all had fixed chokes.

Shot with open sights on rifle.

 

I have only taken only a couple shots on a scoped rifle.

 

Used a hammer single-shot shotgun for a couple years when starting hunting as a teen in the 80's.

Shot a couple of 1930'/40's SXS shotguns.

 

I my dad is scaling back his hunting seasons, so I may be trying out his traditional muzzle-loader soon (wood stock, octagon barrel, uses caps, and have to fire it to unload[no breach plugs])

 

Don't think I am old yet, but ask a teenager and might get a different response. LOL

[bowslinger]

i hunt with a recurve and a tradations shenadoah long rifle with  patched round ball

[dbHunterNY]

it takes a lot of experience shooting reacting game animals, open terrain, little wind, calm animal, and lots of other stuff to shot a deer at 50 yards with archery equipment.  range finder and a real heavy arrow is a must to get on target with enough penetration.

 

anyway... shot open sighted shotgun. Winchester Model 64 lever 30-30 I shot my first buck/deer with.  I'm still hanging onto my $2k compound setups but my new endeavor is chasing whitetails with a Bear Super Kodiak recurve shot instinctively off the shelf.  it's a blast.  I will say if feels like you're limited much more than a compound, same as going from a rifle to a compound bow.  I limit my shots to 15 yards though.