Bow season just about 6 weeks out.

[Lennyjoe]

Thats right, archery season comes in early here in Arizona. Bad thing is, its still in the 100's down on the desert floor.

August 26th til Sept 22 (depending on unit) for any antlered deer. Some areas down here have both mulies and whitetails.

Best thing to do down here is find water and hunt close to it. Time to break out the gear and target butt and get to tuning it in.

 

[Cindog]

Good luck with your prep. Our season doesn't start until October but I started shooting the bow a couple of weeks ago. Can't wait for the season to start now. Keep us posted on your hunts.

 

[El Tejon]

Ours is October 1st here.

Good luck to all!

 

[Newt]

October 1 here too. I busted mine out Saturday and shot a couple times. I'm going to have to get back in the rhythm.

 

[Kingcreek]

Whitetail season is Oct 01 here in Illinois but I'll be on a mountain in Utah for the archery elk season opening (cow/spike) August 25.
Have been practicing with the longbow but I'm probably going to whimp out and just take my Mathews. I just can't seem to get comfortable past 20 yards with the stick.

 

[Lennyjoe]

I've only shot longbow a handfull of times and enjoyed it. I don't think I could hunt with it though. At least not out here. Long shots arn't uncommon out in this type of vegitation.

I am using an older PSE G-Force and slinging them at 300fps. All I can say is thank God for string leaches. They quieted down the bow a quite bit.

 

[birddog]

Can't get out until October 15 in my part of NY. But I've already been shooting the bow every couple of weeks. I'll ramp up the practice to daily once September rolls around.

 

[Lennyjoe]

Are the majority of you guys shooting carbons instead of aluminum?

I am still shooting aluminum but have been thinking of going to carbon.

 

[Kingcreek]

If I'm shooting my longbow its cedar but if I'm shooting wheels and cables it is carbon. I've had good results with Gold Tip hunter XT and muzzy 100gr 3-blade. Late in the season last year I tried some Montec G5 100gr and they are fine also. Before I got my Mathews I shot alum 2413s and I could go back to them without worry.

 

[birddog]

I used to shoot very heavy aluminums (2512) with very heavy poundage. Two years ago I switched to carbon, reduced the poundage to 70, and still have same point of impact that I had with aluminums at 80. Killed 2 bucks, a doe and a bear all with the same carbon arrow! I'm sold on them.

 

[GunGoBoom]

Woo hoo - gotta go get some bales of straw this week to back up my field point and broadhead targets in the backyard. Also got to get onto some 3-D tourneys mucho pronto. Oct 1 is not too far round the corner. I want to feel confident shooting up to 35 yards this year (last year I set my self-imposed limit, based on my skill, at 30 yards max). Wow, wish I was out there and could start in Aug too....screw dove season! Carbons here, 10 grains per inch Eastons.

 

[Lennyjoe]

I think I'm gonna go to Carbon arrows this year. I hear they give better penetration and kinetic energy.

 

[Kingcreek]

Penetration maybe, maybe not. Kinetic energy depends on weight and speed.
I strive for pass-thru shots so beyond that penetration is not important, unless you care how far the arrow goes into the ground on the other side.
I've killed a few deer in almost 25 years of bowhunting and I can't say carbon kills em any better than aluminum. I like the fact that carbon arrows are either straight or broken. No chance of knocking a bent one without realizing it and carbon is durable thru lots of use and abuse. as far as blasting bone pass-thru shots I think I'd say I've maybe seen a little edge with my aluminum shafts because of slightly more weight. the right setup works well either way.

 

[scout26]

Been practicing with my carbon Whitetail Hunters since I had to qualify to hunt the Joliet Training Area back in March.

Just check your carbons before each shot. When they fail, it can be somewhat "spectacular".

 

[Lennyjoe]

I think I'll go shopping for some carbons this weekend.

 

[Cindog]

LJ,

If you can find them, take a look at Gold Tip XT's. Very good arrow with +/-.003 straightenance tolderance. They have since been replaced by a newer model (XT Hunter) so you can usually find some pretty good deals out there.

 

[birddog]

Cindog,
I'm with you. My gold-tip XT is the arrow that I used the same exact arrow for several big game animals. They seem indestructible, and are very very accurate shaft-to-shaft.

Joel

 

[Kingcreek]

I've had no complaints with the Gold Tip XTs or XT Hunter shafts. Been using them for about 5 years. Have an archery dealer friend that hates them and was preaching PSE carbons. He talked me into trying a 1/2 dozen of the PSE and I hated them- gave away them to a kid that was trying to get started bowhunting and they were marginally better than what he had (or atleast they were all same size and weight).

 

[Lennyjoe]

Speaking of PSE, they are right down the road from where I work. I usually go there once a year to check out the new bows and such. They have great deals on the showroom floor for blems at like half off.