ted, I taught archery for years and have hunted with both recurve and compound bows for years and have seen a lot of folks with far heavier weight bows than they need.
The simple fact is that once you get to around 50 pounds of draw weight with most any bow and an appropriate arrow all extra draw weight does is make the arrow go further into the dirt on the other side of a deer.
I hunt with a 50# Bowtech Commander and Easton Axis Slim Tech carbon arrows mounting 100 grain Montec G5s. It is set to draw 47#. I've clipped shoulder blades with them and they continued on to pass though both lungs and out the other side.
Despite advertising claims, heavier draw weights don't result in much faster arrows. The archery industry allows the use of much lighter spine arrows for speed testing than the bows can safely shoot. If you look at the arrow spine weights used by most bow manufacturers for testing and then look at their literature or the sticker on the bow you will see that shooting that light of an arrow will void the warranty. Most makers also don't mount fletching or points for their testing since industry standards don't require them.
As one moves up to heavier draw weights he needs stiffer (read heavier) arrows which won't travel as fast as the factory claims with lighter bare shafts.
Now for hunting: One trick a lot of us use is to draw the bow every half hour or so to help keep our muscles a little looser.
BTW, one good tip is to pick a bow with a draw weight about 75% of what you can draw while standing up and loosened up. In most hunting situations you will be stiff and either sitting or otherwise "out of position" so the lower weight will really help you to draw quietly and smoothly.
Bow hunters seem to be the segment of the hunting population that feels the need for the latest gee whiz equipment more than any other group. High quality used or discontinued bows can be found in a lot of shops and, especially, online at sites such as Ebay at very attractive prices. My Commander retailer close to $800 and I bought it new online a year after it was discontinued for less than $500. Southpaws can get much better deals than righties, especially online.
Good luck.
Lance
