Choosing between a compound, recurve or crossbow

[NorthernRaider]

Yeah but no but yeah but, we all agree on one thing in common, our practice targets have the strage hooded head of someone familiar to shoot at

[Hrusai]

way i see it NR your perfect bow your describing, is a slingshot

[IB1]

TH

Am I right in assuming that say a 60lb Compound Bow still requires you to draw 60lb but that it is just the last part of the draw that the cams reduce the weight so you can hold longer etc ?

For anyone not used to archery drawing even a 40lb Bow a few times gets bloody hard work after a very short while as i found out when i tried out a friends Bow. After a very short time accuracy really started to tail off, not that there was much accuracy to start with . It was a suprise because my only other experience was at one of those "have a go" days at a country fair where it seemed very easy. My mate pointed out that the bows i was using were probably between 15 and 20lb at the fair.

Defintely not a bit of kit that you can use a couple of times to check it works and then stash away until tshtf, constant practice is required I think.

I would have more chance at killing Flopsie or Bambie with a soggy tomato than hitting it with an arrow after 5 minutes on my mates Bow

[NorthernRaider]

(16 October 2012, 23:00)Hrusai Wrote: way i see it NR your perfect bow your describing, is a slingshot

Naa the perfect bow would be a Charter Arms .22lR carbine or a Ruger 10-22

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(17 October 2012, 06:57)IB1 Wrote: TH

Am I right in assuming that say a 60lb Compound Bow still requires you to draw 60lb but that it is just the last part of the draw that the cams reduce the weight so you can hold longer etc ?

For anyone not used to archery drawing even a 40lb Bow a few times gets bloody hard work after a very short while as i found out when i tried out a friends Bow. After a very short time accuracy really started to tail off, not that there was much accuracy to start with . It was a suprise because my only other experience was at one of those "have a go" days at a country fair where it seemed very easy. My mate pointed out that the bows i was using were probably between 15 and 20lb at the fair.

Defintely not a bit of kit that you can use a couple of times to check it works and then stash away until tshtf, constant practice is required I think.

I would have more chance at killing Flopsie or Bambie with a soggy tomato than hitting it with an arrow after 5 minutes on my mates Bow

With a recurve4 of say 60 pound draw you have to pull and hold that 60 pounds til you shoot, and even after a few seconds that is hard work esp if your patroling not just aiming at a deer. With a compound of the same weight you still have to pull the 60 pounds initially but when you get to the full draw the pullys reduce the draw weight needed to hold the bow at full draw to lin some case as little as 6 pounds (10%) draw weight. Which means you can stay on target ot track a target for minutes rather than seconds, which is great if the deer keeps moving or you are sweeping through your home looking for an intruder. And as i pointed out before the Compound is always strung and ready to use, recurves have to be unstrung. Recurves had the beauty of simplicity and reliability we like but they are generally just two big. There are now recoil free parallel compounds coming out only 28 inches long and are still full power bows.

Both types have a place in our kits but my EDC choice is a budget compound, TH goes equally rightly for a quality recurve cos that works well for him.

[NorthernRaider]

Visual comparison tween a standard 64 inch recurve and 39 inch compound, remember that many compounds are now as short as 30 inches
http://www.flickr.com/photos/43478117@N00/8096564575/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/43478117@N00/8096571834/

[Hrusai]

of the 2 rifles i'd go for the ruger 10-22 breakdown any day, that charcter arms ar-7 is known to be un ergonomic and prone to jamming i spent quite a while watching videos comparing the 2 and the ruger certainly seems to be the better survivalist weapon

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bloody hell that compound is small :O

[NorthernRaider]

(17 October 2012, 20:30)Hrusai Wrote: bloody hell that compound is small :O

Actually for a compound its HUGE, 39 inches long, most come with parallel limbs or semi parallel limbs now and are often under 30 inches long. The beauty of parallel limbs is their is almost no recoil or vibration as they opposiing limbs cancel each other out.

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I had an ancient AR7 decades ago when we lived in the US briefly, good little rucksack and ratting gun.

[Tibbs735]

(16 October 2012, 16:19)NorthernRaider Wrote:

(16 October 2012, 15:54)Tibbs735 Wrote: If I could find spare parts for a compound, then that's what I would most likely go for.

Try thinking laterally mon ami, examples such as Barnetts Banshee quad 25 lb draw compound bow can be had for just over £45, SMKs Nova 26 to 40 pound draw compound bow is only £40, a decent recurve will set you back at least £100 for a quality bit of kit like TH is so rightly proud of. So I bought THREE Banshees for £150 if one breaks I just pick up another and get the other fixed when I can.

I go for the steel wired ones cos though more basic the coated steel wire lasts longer than polyester string, and I can buy wire and crimping bits from B & Q for a few quid.

I think a good prepper should be master of both compound and recurve worlds, it wont do you any harm to get a budget compound AND a budget recurve and learn string making ???

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(16 October 2012, 15:57)Tartar Horde Wrote: hehe arrows aint the problem mate its the fookin horse, have ya seen how much they cost to keep

Currently not as much as my spoilt brat who has decided he cannot live with an I 5 !!!! if he thinks I'm wsting £500 plus quid on a phone he is going to be very disappointed.

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TH how do you get your horse in your Bug Out Bag ... I know he goes in one side pocket and his food in the other !!!

Is this the bow you where referring to?
http://www.pownalls.com/view.php?ViewProduct=1079

[NorthernRaider]

(17 October 2012, 22:16)Tibbs735 Wrote: Is this the bow you where referring to?
http://www.pownalls.com/view.php?ViewProduct=1079

Yup, Nemesis bought one first but was not impressed so he set it aside until he saw other reports and went back and tried shooting it in a different fashion and he then got very good groups including the complete penetration with every shot through a telephone directory, he now likes it.
Skean Dhude then got himself one and he liked it enough to show it to me, and i liked it enough to realise it was an ideal EDC for my family so I got three of em, and eventually I'll get a couple more as spares.

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If any one else buys a Banshee Quad and is seeking decent quality reliable arrows Nemesis did some testing and settled on the Easton black stalker 28 inch arrow from Bow Sports £34.50 for twelve and they are vastly superior to the budget training arrows.
http://www.bowsports.com

[Tibbs735]

How would you reccomend carrying arrows? Across the back or waist etc.

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(18 October 2012, 09:13)Tibbs735 Wrote: How would you reccomend carrying arrows? Across the back or waist etc.

I imagine it would be possible to reload a bow far faster than a crossbow anyway.