How many arrows

[nealglen37]

Today I practised with a with a used Cougar martin I bought on EBAY. I was surprised how well i shot not having shot one in ten years........the peep sight and release made it much easier. I was shooting six inch groups from 20 yards.

   I noticed that after about 20 shots I couldn't pull the bow back (67 pound pull 31 inch draw). I rested a few minutes and took about five more shots.

 Here are my questions
1. How many arrows do you shoot at a practise session
2.What are the best exercises to get one in shape to draw a          
   bow......................pushups ?

Thanks guys

[Redhawk1]

Everyone is different. I shoot between 50 to a 100 in a practice session.  As far as exercise to help with bows, I do flys and curls. I also shoot my bow all year. I like to stay proficient all year long. If it is to nasty outside I go to an indoor range.  

[howie1968]

Like redhawk  i shot year round but rarely do i ever shoot more than 20 arrows   i make sure that every arrow i shoot counts.  i concetrate on for relaxing and following through. the days when i am shooting 100 shots  i notice  i am getting sloppy.  to be honest  id drop the weight to 55 lbs and shoot there until your arms get stonger as you shoot your muscle memory comes back and you will get stronger to be honest  i  shoot a 60 lb bow although i am much stronger and can pull way more than that.  i get good perfomance out of 60 lbs and have shot trough everything including a 300 lb boar. so to me weight is not all that important   i was only shooting 55 lbs for a while   but the extra 5 lbs help my bow quiet down and lose some vibration

[wijim]

the best excercise to pull a bow back is...pulling a bow back...lol

but if you have an office jub or something and dont get to do that very often.....a bike tire inner tube wrapped on yout desk leg will do the trick.

actually before i shoot alot....i loosen up by pulling a bike inner tube a few times....and do some body twists.  its just so im loosened up and have no shakes.

[daddywpb]

I rarely shoot more than twenty arrows in a session. I get shaky when I get tired. I have seen an archery exerciser. It's a big rubber band. I don't have one, but I shoot year round. My pull weight is 55#.

[Redhawk1]

The reason I can shoot 50 to 100 arrows in a secession is because I do it all the time. I am not a once a week or once a month shooter. When you shoot this much, you have the ability to shot well even when you shoot a lot.  

[Leverdude]

I dont have a set # of shots I practice with. I limit myself to 4 arrows per string but sometimes I'll shoot those 4 arrows for hours & sometimes just one go round. Its the first one that matters the most but I just like shooting. Guns, Bows, I just like it. Shoot the bow more simply because I cant shoot my guns in my yard.

My groups open up after awhile & I'll take a break if I feel I'm not up to my own expectations. I shoot 68# on my primary bow, an older Martin Cougar speed flyte. I dont do any exercises specifically for bow shooting but do work out with weights pretty regular mostly bench pressing & I'm sure that helps a bunch. 6" at 20 yards while not bad isn't good enuff I'd go hunting IMO. That 6" can turn into 12 pretty quick when your freezing or after sitting for hours & then needing to make one shot count from a less than optimal position.

I practice from my shed roof, sitting down, from tree stands, from my blinds & every which way. My neighbors think I'm a whacko but I generally kill a deer if I shoot at it & thats what counts.  

[Redhawk1]

Leverdude, I know what you mean about the neighbors. I shoot off my pool deck, off the roof top and from my front yard to my back yard. Shooting the bow is just fun for me. I could careless what they think of me.  :-D  :-D  As long as I am having fun.

[Leverdude]

Yeah, I'm pretty lucky actually. The neighbor I'm most visable to owns the next 2 houses up & his sons a bowhunter so shooting bows doesnt bother them at all. He never climbed on the roof like I do but they realize that as different as it might seem to them its actually safer shooting down.  
The people behind me were a little more difficult at first but they got used to it. Theres no ordnance about archery here, I feel for the guys that cant shoot in their yards. I shoot in the basement as well if its raining.  :grin:
That was harder than my neighbors dealing with the wife but she likes venison & thats how I get most of mine.  :grin:

[JPSaxMan]

I shoot a 55# and never get tired with shooting 60+ getting up to 100+ in a session...and I sometimes have lapses with shooting too.

But one comment...your six inch groups at 20 yards is not something to go into the deer woods with... . Even though a deer has about 9 inches of vital room, that's at 20 yards. Imagine a 25 or 30 yard shoot? Ehh...we won't go there  :?

[Redhawk1]

nealglen37, I also am concerned with a 6 inch group at 20 yards. When you see a deer and your adrenalin is running, those groups can open to 12 inches and that is a miss.  My groups are about 2 inchs at 25 yards. At 40 yards they open up a little to maybe 4 inches or less, and that is if I throw one arrow off.    Practice, Practice, Practice.  :grin:

[JPSaxMan]

My groups are quite random at the moment, so I'm no one to talk. I have to get a new module for my cam b/c I need to adjust draw length...got it a size too long   . But on a good day I can still get 3 arrows in about a 2 in space with my problem (but that's at 10 yards  :eek: ). Now they're sometimes not at the center dot on my BLOCK, but they're still close. I need to get that module and get some shooting in before I start screwing around with the sights.

If my bow is not ready for archery season come October (I'm sure it will be), I will not go into the woods. I don't wanna wound a deer on my first time archery hunting. This will be my first year doing this, so I want to make sure I'm doin it right  :grin:

Best of luck nealglen!  

[Leverdude]

I just came in from practicing out back. Only took 6 shots but I broke my own rule about only using 4 arrows at a time so as not to ruin so many. Anyway, 20 yards, 6 arrows & I ruined 3.  :oops:  Ok only 2 got shot, one went thru the 3d deer, thru 9" of styrofoam & hit a stone wall. Time to get myself more insulation. Or at least not shoot the 3d target till I do. I need a new one of them too but not for a couple more weeks, lest I shoot it up before season.    I really like the 3d targets once I'm hunting & just before the opener. Shooting black dots isn't real tough but deer just dont come with them. It helps alot shooting from a tree as you can see where the arrow pases thru & not just where you hit it. Helps me gain confidence anyway.  

[nealglen37]

Well gentlemen......my concerns have subsided............I started practising every day................(after I bought a portable target....didn't think I could hit that at that range).........now I can easily shoot 30 arrows before i get shaky. I guess I'm building those muscles I use...........and am getting in the zone..my body just knows what to do.

   If I had to compare it with something I would say it's like shooting a three point shot in basketball.......or a using a driver on the golf range.......after a while you don't have to think about it.....your body just takes over.

   I like bowhunting already..........although technically i have not gone yet.......................you can buy the most expensive bow........the best arrows........and the greatest hunting least....................but if you don't practise..........its all for not......................you can't just haul the bow out during deer season like you can with a gun.

     I am still shooting 6-8 inch groups...............but now its at 42 yards.

   Best whishes to all...........................I hope we all get that 10 pointer we are looking for .

Bye Bye

[JPSaxMan]

Great to hear you're making progress Neal!  

[tvc15]

I start in July shooting 10 per round and work up to 20. Hardly more due to my accuracy going down the tube.  TVC15