I'm curious to see how ya'll feel about your equipment. If you make a kill with it "ie,, BOW, ARROW, CALL, ETC." do you keep it for the rest of your life or are you more into moving on because after all its just an extension,,IMOP,,
I have personally sold some bows that I had killed with, don't keep arrows unless they will kill again, I have always beleived that with alot of luck I have been able to get close enough to take game that the good Lord provided for me. So I hold nothing in the equipment. Its only an extension of me at that moment of truth. Don't get me wrong, I love what I carry to the feild every season and trust that it will get the job done effectively. But when it comes time to move on to something new I do without hesitation,,If something has been passed onto me it will never leave,, But only be passed on
Jason,
I guess I feel the same, I built my longbow, made my first trad kill with it and then upgraded to faster fiberglass bow..
I still have it and will pass it on to my kids or grandkids someday..
Terry
To me they are just a tool, dont get real sentimental, like trying new ones. In the last 4 years Ive bought/traded and sold at least 175 bows, have 13 recurves now/1 longbow and getting ready to sell another one...found out I can kill a deer with any of them so why not try different ones.JMHO......
It depends on what piece of equipment it is I guess.Arrows.......killers are a keepsake,others just tools.Bows.........just depends on how well it fits me.Calls...........I think I have a 100 at least,they're ALL keepers,except the ones I make for other folks.
It's all just a collection of tools. You won't take them with you - but the memories are forever.
I just can't afford to be changing equipment all the time. I use what I have because it works. I do plan on buying a nicer bow this year, but will probably stick with it for years to come.
Good description of the feelings. I would have to say my actions are to move on. My son called in an elk for me when he was 12 that I killed with a bow I made myself. Both call and bow are gone. The pics will last a while and the memories a lifetime.
But I have to say the romantic side of me is still looking for that perfect bow that I would hunt with the rest of my life. Will probably end up having to make it as purchased ones don't seem to have soul, (not that any do, you know what I mean right ?) :knothead:
I get very particular about what I use as far as equipment. I find calls that work, and stay with them. I have had a number of traditional bows, and they all shot fine. But I still am looking for that perfect bow, like someone said; " they will hunt with it forever"
I stepped out this year and purchased a " Whip " I'm looking forward to getting that, I'm hoping that it is the " perfect bow ". It is the first bow, that will be matched up to my style of shooting, my grip, and my draw length.
I also think I'm going elk hunting this year, so you have a tendency to focus more clearly on your equipment. Because when you boil it all down, it comes out to skills, and equipment.
Pastor Carl
Good post. I guess I'm the odd guy out here. I become very "connected" with my gear.Not so much in a lucky arrow but when it comes to bows, quivers, knives and such they stay with me. Definately the items that have been past on to me.My stuff aint old it's just well broke in. I could most likely tell you exactly where the "memory marks" came from.
My connection may not always be best but it sure is cheaper.
Take care,
Ed :campfire:
I bought a Shakespeare Wonderbow for $.25 (quarter) at a yard sale, made a string and shot a fox with it. It needs to be refinished and with the help of Bowdoc when I get home this winter I am going to fix it up and give it to one of the grandkids. I guess I have a connection to the bow. I was real cheap, didn't have wheels and it shot great. Its a great shooter and should last one of the kids a long time.
Good post Jason. Makes one think a little bit.
Jon
Semper Fi
Thanks fellas,, I've been thinkin about it lately,, I have been evaluating myself alot. Going to be baptised this spring and self evaluation is a must,, and my bowhunter self can't leave his thoughts alone eather,,LOL..
White oak "ED"
Buddy I'm sure your not the odd man out. I thinks its awsome that your connected to equipment,, I'm with ya on the lucky arrow thing.. I used to have a lucky coat,,killed alot of bucks in it. I was devistated when the wife sold it in a garage sale, :saywhat: ,WOW!!! I need to find a garage sale like that,,J
I'm not one to sell any of my hunting gear. I keep all my bows and guns, pass them down to the Boy! I don't think I have ever sold ANY of my hunting gear! I just can't bring my self to do it.... :banghead:
My stuff stays with me as long as it works. Guess I'm just too cheap to "upgrade".
My first ACS is now a real cornerstone for me; don't want to hunt with anything else........except my 50# ACS back up bow.
I feel a special bond; if I spot the animal and stalk up close with the wind just right-I can trust that bow no questions asked.
I used to love getting and shooting new bows.........now I just want to work on getting animals walking in front of my bow.
I'm starting to feel the same about the knives that Jeremy made for me.......the arrows and broadheads are more disposable. Except the shaft material-heavy cedar is special too.
I definatly would have liked to keep a bow or 2 I had when I was a wee bit youger.Had one that i probably shot 500,000 arrows through.I was at one with that bow in every way.It performed well in 3-D and made alot of meat.I was close to the bowyer too and really respected his bows and the art he put into them.The bond with that bow was more than skin deep.I did get older and eventually the bow outgrew me.So I had to sell it to fiance another.If I was richer it would be on the wall till my dying day.
Still like and admire all the bows I get but nonthing is gonna pull the hearstrings like that original longbow that I cut me teeth on.I actually miss it and all the joy it brought me.
JB, follow what your head and heart say..I never thought you'd get rid of the Lil river but that was just my thinking.
As long as you don't regret your decision, in the years ahead you'll be fine.
Some people are happy with the memories they have of stuff and others like to have something to hold on to for memories!
As for your "luck" I don't buy that, you put your heart, skill and immerse yourself in everything you do...so in my opinion it's not luck. God showed you the path, you chose to follow it..and how determined you are to follow.
I like to hold on to some stuff, the green fiberglass (Wonder bow I think) I killed my first deer with will not leave my hands unless I pass it on to my son, or his son or daughter to hunt with. I hope one day when I'm gone they could pick it up and say "Remember that look in dad's eyes and how many times we heard that story" or "I remember dad teaching me to shoot this bow"
I like to stick with the bow i feel most confident with.... of course that may change when i shoot your mojo stik..lol.... It is the more sentimental items that get passed down and held on to(like drew said).....
I hate to see you get rid of the little river...cause its a sweet bow and for some reason when i think of us hunting the little river is typically tagging along... but i suppose i could get used to a mojo stik too!! I just dont want to see you posting on the bows i wish i would of never got rid of thread!!!! :biglaugh:
The bow or gun is just a tool. The deer is just a pile of meat. I'd just as soon pound one with a shotgun slug as an arrow. I'm happiest when I pull a piece of it from the freezer for supper for my kids. I don't get overly sentimental about stuff.
A few years ago I realized it was getting harder every year to get up a tree. I recognized my mortality and that I only had a given number of hunting seasons left. I placed an order for a black widow takedown recurve that day. I thought it would be the bow I hunted with the rest of my life. Then by chance I traded for a shrew and fell in love with the longbow. For our anniversary [I can't even spell it let a lone remember it!] my wife bought me a bw pl2. I shoot it better than any bow I ever held in my hand. It sports a couple of unlucky rattlers that really make it look sharp. As of now I intend for that to be my "friend to the end". I shoot it every day and it helps the problems of this world just fade away. Who could ask for a better friend?
I take atleast 2 animals with each new bow and then replace it- my trouble is I usually replace it with more than two bows.Keep old bows for 2-3 years and let them go so someone is enjoying them- hate to see them laying around not being used for what they were built for.Only bow I wish still had is a Bear wood riser t/d 66# signed by Fred Bear and cut past center!!
Jason,
I think I understand where you're coming from, and why you're asking. I did the same thing this past year in the middle of a hunting season. I was standing in a tree stand, arguing with myself, that I should be back doing other things. My comments to God was " you made me, you gave me this personality, why is it so strong"? I was referring to the hunting.
From that point on, God showed me how my personality was given to me by Him and Him alone. The reason I was in a tree stand on somebody else's land, is because I complain to God about public land, I couldn't stand it anymore. So I complain to God, and God answered my prayers, I was given 42 acres to hunt on, that 42 acres had 18 stands with climbing sticks. The man would take me to a stand and he would say
" see you at 10:30. It was like I was on guided hunts. We had to cross over another man's land to get to the land we were hunting on, one day I went to go and help cut wood, at 16 below zero.
That was on 80 acres of land, that man said " my two sons had to show up, you didn't have to show up at 16 below zero, you can hunt on my land anytime you want" so now I had 130 acres to hunt in the same area right next to each other. And on top of it, the man I help cut wood for also said, between my two sons and I we have taken 11 deer, I don't know what I will do with that one in the shed," do you want it" I said I sure do. It was 160 lb. doe. Now the story doesn't end there, I took the hide from that deer and kept it in the back of my pickup looking for someone that can tan it for me. I work in a bow shop, one day a customer can in, and I helped him with his bow, through the conversation, he happened to be a taxidermy, so he took my hide and is working on it, and when he came back to give me my receipt for the money I'd given him, he said by the way would you like to bear hunt, and of course you can hunt deer there too ! I said sure I've never hunted bear before. He told me he had 400 acres !, in the most plentiful bear rich, and deer rich County in my state. He just happened to also not only be a taxidermy, but he has a guide service with cabins for bear hunting. And he told me all I would have to do is give him $100 or so for the bear bait.
I've told you all this so that you understand God is interested in your hunting, and he's also concerned in the equipment you have to accomplish your task. I have turned many of my hunting stories around and been enabled to talk to individuals that I never would have been able to talk to before. When most people see me and they find out that I am a pastor, they're surprised.
Because pastors are supposed to, ride motorcycles, shoot traditional bows, and also CCW, so it gives me advantages to talk to people that I wouldn't have a chance with dressed in a stuffy shirt and tie.
Am I connected, very much so, Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior, and my Savior is very interested, and concerned that not only my needs are met, but also a good majority of my wants.
I have the best of equipment, and that's because I've had the best of fathers I can have
" God Almighty "
You see the other end of the story is, I was two a half pounds when I was born, over 50 years ago, technically I was not supposed to live, I have also about 2 in. all across the bottoms of my lungs, that's nothing but scar tissue, I just found that out two years ago in an x-ray. God is so good. So when you go to that tree stand again, or to hunt in those woods, remember, God was there before you were, so give him thanks for everything that you have in your hand.
Pastor Carl
Well said Pastor Carl!! Thanks for putting it into perspective for me!!
I agree, very good post Pastor Carl!!!!!!!!!! :thumbsup:
Thanks Pastor Carl,, great post,, this past fall I found myself asking the same question,, Why am I in this ground blind,,LOL,, I love bow's,,I love hunting, I love the land and what it gives back and what it has to offer ,,But most of all I love God for giving it to us to enjoy,,God bless and take care,,J.B.
I remember the first time I went hunting with my longbow, three years ago, I was in a blind, it was made up of trees and grass in a low area.
All of a sudden, songs started coming to my mind, and I set there singing, they were praise songs. And after about three of them I had this brainy idea " Hay stupid your hunting " and I looked around, and of course there was no game around.
I like what you said "I love the land and what it gives back and what it has to offer ,,But most of all I love God for giving it to us to enjoy,,God bless "
I will relate to what the forest does for me, and realize in the scriptures it does say "that they worship the creation more than the creator" and I'm very aware of that when I get out into the woods, I enjoy the smallest detail of what God created and praised Him for it. But what the forest does for me, is it takes away more then it gives, let me explain that;
When I get into the forest I don't think about cars, restaurants, groceries, bills, I am focused more on what God has done for me, I remember sitting one time inside a clump of juniper trees. Reading the book of Philippians, and I would hear noise and look up, and then go back to reading. I didn't even see a deer that year, and wasn't disappointed. The forest kind of mellow us, because in it we are surrounded by the work of God, in the city were so surrounded by the work of man, and all the expectations, you see God has no expectations, except to praised Him, honor Him, and to give Him glory, and we do that to our actions for others, sometimes I will set in a tree stand praying for the people in the church, not thinking I'm hunting. I had the privilege of seeing a chocolate buck this year, beautiful animal, at 38 yd., and he walked away to 50 yd., and I call him back in and he walked within 20 yd. of my tree stand, perfect shot, and then he walked straight out my tree stand and laid down 40 yd. away. I didn't shoot him because I thought he was a six-pointer, I was really rattled. The rules of the land where eight points or more, but I just recently saw a photo of him from a trail camera, he clearly had eight points, next year if God allows me to see him, he may have 10 points. I can not describe the feeling that you're having when you connect with God in the forest, but I'll put it this way, our pastor gives us permission to hunt on Sundays. Not every Sunday ! But that's the way God is, we have faults, failures, disappointments, but when we walked into His creation, we soon realize, the awesomeness of God and the raging wolf of sin, seems to melt away a little bit when were surrounded by the gentleness, and mercy of God's creation and love through Jesus Christ on the cross.
My longbow "whip" was created specifically for me, and so was creation, so that I could walk in it freely and enjoy it, when we let that melt into our minds and hearts, our hunting just becomes a reaction to providing for ourselves, as God has provided for us. Each time I walk out of the forest, with or without something, I have a thankful heart that I was able to feel the breath of God in my face. The Old Testament people are people of stories, so are traditional hunters, all of my stories of hunting can lead someone to the foot across of Jesus Christ. Our hunting stories are only opportunities waiting to happen. Does it always have to be about Jesus Christ, no, because Joy in someone else's eyes is also favoritism from God in your heart.
My "whip" is a 43 #, 4+3 =7 the number seven, is the number of completion in Greek, the man that's made my bow, I may never see him here, but I know I will see him in Heaven, he's a very good Christian. The stories just keep piling up, I told him one day I was going to preach with my bow in my hand, I'll keep that promise.
I am connected to my equipment, because it gives me stories, that can connect others to who is hunting them, because of love.
Pastor Carl
I kinda always new it,,Like you said
Quoteour hunting just becomes a reaction to providing for ourselves, as God has provided for us. Each time I walk out of the forest, with or without something, I have a thankful heart that I was able to feel the breath of God in my face
I could'nt say it any better, :thumbsup:
I was blessed with a very nice T/D recurve a couple years ago.I'm probably the third or fourth owner and you can tell its had some use through the years with a few small battle scars(a few from me now) but it was my first custom made bow and even more importantly its one of the biggest examples of God's love in my life.Unless I feel I'm to bless another with it I will always have that bow.That being said I view most of the rest of my archery equipment as most who've stated before do.They are tools to enjoy the outdoors with.The coolest thing I've learned about my passion for hunting is that if its something I really need then God will find a way to get it to me.Even if in the natural its impssible for me to obtain such equipment.I have some of the nicest equipment both modern and traditional I could ever want and the best of them came purely from God.The biggest thing to remember is that these are only things and our attention should be on the bigger picture.
Anyway thats my 2cents,
Ethan