[David Petersen]

in reply to: Aussie Camo???? #19971

It’ll never catch on, because you can’t buy it! Well, I guess you could, sort of, but who would want to? 🙄 Just the thing for Alaska bug season! 😆

[David Petersen]

in reply to: 2 Blade Blood Trails? #19926

Oh my, what a gorgeous buck!!! And hogs by the tons — a ton each in some cases, it appears! You clearly have it figured out. Thanks for sharing your photos and experiences.

[David Petersen]

in reply to: 2 Blade Blood Trails? #16404

Good story and good points, Steve. Nobody is saying that only 2-blades and/or only single-bevels are lethal or ethical to shoot at big game, or even that they’re always best for all game in all situations. So it’s amazing how pissy some folks get (not on this site) about defending their own choice and refusing not only to try something new, but even to talk or let others talk about the possibilities. In the very near future this site will be offering a new forum on Arrow Lethality issues based around Dr. Ashby’s work. Here we hope to get lots of “Me and Joe tried this” stories, like yours, so that it’s not just Ashby and me and a few others doing all the preaching. Dr. Ashby very much wants to hear the experiences of others shooting a variety of game. Of course there will be stories of failures as well, and that’s good too as the idea is for us regular hunters to try this stuff in the field and report on how it does, and does not work, and fine-tune our knowledge and gear to the nth degree. Here’s a secret (not): What motivates Ashby and me (and Sharpster for that matter) to stir public interest in trying the gear that has performed best across all the years of the Doc’s careful studies is — empathy and respect for the animals we sling arrows after. We all have suffered the pain of bad shots, long blood trails (with and without blood) and lost animals. Everyone who hunts long enough will experience this. We want to minimize that pain and suffering at least to the extent it can be done by using the most lethal arrows. And surprise! When we reduce wounding, we increase hunter success. All who have experimented with Ashby’s finding, or are wanting to learn, are welcome. Those who prefer to sit back and croak about “I’ve never tried this and never will because I like x-blade heads and they’re the best and all this Ashby stuff is BS” will not feel welcome in this open-minded forum. No bullies allowed. We are here to learn and share, not to argue from ignorance. We had another bear in the yard, twice as big as last week’s. Next week we’re going to WY where they have Real Bears! Cheers, dave

[David Petersen]

in reply to: New to Tradbow #15299

Yep, this IS a great place, both in itself and comparatively. Welcome. dave

[David Petersen]

in reply to: Defining "Traditional" Bowhunting #14045

Coincidentally, I found this quote last evening in the Compton’s magazine, by Fred Asbell: “I feel that the traditional mindset is about more than just equipment. It’s an attitude about hunting that often points to a different mindset about the outdoors and a more basic and simpler approach to other things in this life.” I agree.

[David Petersen]

in reply to: Defining "Traditional" Bowhunting #13508

Good to see you over here, Aeonut! The best definition of traditional I’ve yet heard was spoken by a drunken journalist, name of Chuck Bowden, to a gathering of somewhate arrogant biologists at a mountain lion symposium. After all the experts had extolled the virtues of their particular studies as defining the essense of lion-ness, Chuck stands up and asks “How many of you have ever run down and killed a deer, or even a rabbit, with your teeth? When you’ve done that, then you’ll be qualified to tell us what it is to be a mountain lion!”:twisted: Selah, dave

[David Petersen]

in reply to: Heavy or light arrows #13297

FOC: My guess is that if TJ were to revise his book tomorrow, he’d address the FOC issue a little differently in light of the recent and ongoing revelations from Dr. Ashby. So far as industry standards … pooh on all industry bigger than Ma and Pa for traditional! Anyhow, the quick answer in my experience and experiments is to hang as much weight up front as you can shoot well. Increasing head weight doesn’t affect spine as radically as you might think, so the first step is to start experimenting with the shafts you currently have to see what you can get away with. If you’re serious about maxing FOC you’ll likely have to go with stiffer shafts (or cut yours down if you can). Carbon is far more forgiving in the spine department than cedar. My own experiments show that extreme FOC, above 20%, provides more penetration relative to overall arrow weight increase with standard or modestly high FOC (12-19%). That’s shooting into foam, but pretty well agrees with Ashby’s buffalo tests. Watch for an Ashby FOC article upcoming in TBM, maybe next issue I hope. While extra weight increases trajectory, the more weight up front the better the accuracy, up to the “breaking point” of course, which you’ll have to determine for your own setup. It gives the feathers more steerage power because the back end is lighter relative to the front. Hope that helps. But you know, this all could be overkill if you’re hunting whitetails. But then, you can still have high FOC on lighter shafts and gain benefits. For elk and bigger I want at least 650 grains total with at least 20% FOC. For deer etc. I’d feel fine with 500 grains and at least 20% FOC, and in all cases am sold on single-blade broadheads. dave

[David Petersen]

in reply to: VANES or FEATHERS ?? #63784

I recently bought some el cheapo Carbon Express shafts that came with 3, 4″ soft plastic vanes. They shoot just fine off the shelf of my Shrews and if I were smarter I’d have left a few of them that way for rainy days. Alas, while I can pry myself away from woodies for the many advantages of carbon, I can’t swallow the switch from feather to plastic, so I stripped ’em off and stuck on some turkeys. In my experience, although they will Pop! and spray you with water, soggy flat feathers still shoot fine at trad bow ranges … they just ain’t so purdy no more. dave

[David Petersen]

in reply to: 2 Blade Blood Trails? #63772

Although Ed didn’t mention it, I have seen photos and read detailed descriptions of pigs and deer shot with “Ashby style” arrow setups — heavy, high FoC, single-bevel heads — that produced massive blood trails after “tearing hell out of the insides going through” due to the twist. In once case a guy shot a big pig, the arrow passed through and killed a second pig behind it with almost another pass-through. My own primary experience across the past 25 years and more is with elk and I have to separate blood trails from lethality. The elk’s lungs are so huge that even with a pass-through shot, mid-chest or higher, you aren’t likely to have much blood, since it all pools inside the lungs … gallons will spill out when you field dress ’em. So, as Ed and others above say, shot placement is a major factor in blood trails, at least with elk … shoot low, 2/3 down from top and close behind shoulder, for max lethality and blood. On the other hand, none of my cleanest fastest kills have left much blood … because with good shot placement and a pass-through, they fall dead almost as if rifle shot. So in my experience, if you use the right geat and have good shot placement and get a low lung/heart pass through, blood trails don’t matter because the animal will die in sight. I don’t see how it could be much different with deer, except you don’t need as much horsepower to achieve pass through. Dave

[David Petersen]

in reply to: Growing Antlers? #60682

I’ve tried growing antlers, several times, but they keep falling off! 🙄

[David Petersen]

in reply to: Can't Wait #59762

Surveyor, you have SO many excellent choices in strap-on quivers, which in my experience beat the socks off any bolt on or slip-over bowquiver ever — in silence and ease of use. Leader of the industry pack so far as visibility is Great Northern, while several others make similar units, some better some not. My personal favorites are, for larger stickbows, Thunderhorn, and for smaller bows Shrew. You should be able to google ’em all. Dave

[David Petersen]

in reply to: New Member #59241

Good to see you here. Yes, one more fun way to avoid work! One more complaint about the Covert’s necessity to open the cover to turn on/off: I keep losing the card which apparently pops out when the door is opened. Otherwise a great camera and it’s fun to monitor the yard wildlife. A neighbor down the hill got a great mountain lion photo. We never know, until now, what silent spirits float through the night as we sleep. Fun. Dave

[David Petersen]

in reply to: Heavy or light arrows #58378

Here’s a third singer in the heavy-arrow choir. And the more of that weight we can get up front, the better. I see lots of fellers who’ve figured out that speed/energy essentially dissipates on contact with the target and only momentum/weight carries the arrow on through flesh and bone … yet have their heavy arrows tipped with 125 broadheads because they not yet aware of that part of the Ashby formula. In addition to hurting penetration, a light head on a heavy shaft can lead to steering problems and require more fletching. I’ve discovered that the more weight I can pile on up front in relation to overall arrow weight (FoC), the better that arrow shoots. But of course slower with a higher trajectory. But that’s just a matter of practice. And it depends on what size game you’re hunting, shot distance and more. The wheely speedballs shooting 400 grains total weight at 60 yards and 250 fps or faster clearly can usually get away with killing whitetails clean … but this light/fast philosophy leaves our local elk pincussioned with dangling arrows and/or wounded poorly to die slowly unrecovered. That’s more opinion than you asked for and I’d say you already have it figured out, but do look into increasing point weight if you haven’t. Dave

[David Petersen]

in reply to: How many bowyers? #54083

A few years ago Dave Sigurslid got me into it. I’d always wanted to try but couldn’t pick it up from books or videos; needed hands-on instruction. Then I went nuts and built some 3 dozen across two winters, working in a tiny crowded unhead storage shed in CO. Perhaps half turned out to be good shooters. I traded several, gave a few away, sold one for materials cost and still have a couple. Osage stave bows and mostly hickory and boo-backed osage board bows. Even made a couple of glass-backed. All were straight or r/d. Then I got tired of working in a cramped cold shop and just quit. Maybe someday if I ever get a real shop I’ll start again. Highly recommended hobby and cheap to get into as hobbies go these days. Give it a try! dave

[David Petersen]

in reply to: Consistency and Multiple Bows #24070

Patrick — days ago I wrote a longish reply to your question, but somehow rather than showing up on this thread, it got posted as a new thread called one-bow guy. Beats me how that happened! ❓ Dave

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