For hunting purpose, what are the differences between the two? As I am saving money to purchase a higher quailty bow and getting overwhelm with both styles.

Lots of opinions on this one. I personally find a longbow harder to shoot consistantly, which is why I chose a recurve. I'm jealous of good longbow shooters. I do think that longbows are less prone to limb twisting, and therefore more durable on tough hunts.
Either one, you will hear that longbows are sometimes too long for tight hunting conditions. This is not true, I hunt with 64 to 68 inch recurves, and have hunted with a 68" longbow out of the nastiest trees you will find. You adapt.

But anyway, shoot them both and pick which better suits you. There are guys who hunt the world with either, its a pretty much personal choice.

I have several recurves, and More LongBows. The LongBow takes some extra Practice and Experimentation to find that  Oh-So-Sweet-Spot, but its Worth the Time and Energy Invested!!     heh heh heh  

Good advice from the two above.  Both the longbow and recurve will kill whatever you want to hunt, but the final decision will have to be yours.  Shoot as many bows as you can and find what works best for YOU.  Never buy a bow because somebody else thinks it is the best.  What I shoot best may not be what you shoot best.
Good luck on your search, a lot of fun in looking for the "perfect" bow.

Do both style bows produce fast arrow speed?

With the right longbow, you won miss your recurve.

Keep in mind performance is not based on any label, recurve, longbow, hybrid....it has alot to do with design. There are quite a few high performing longbows, ILF Longbows such as Zipper, Morrison, and Dryad. So if you are chasing performance don't overlook them. There are also some high performing one piece longbows like ACS and Border that perform extremely well.

ACCURACY  is Much More Important than Speed with a StickBow.     JMHO of Course.  

QuoteOriginally posted by bolo7735:
Do both style bows produce fast arrow speed?

Yes, they can. It depends on several factors.

Any bow will shoot fast arrow speeds, if you want to shoot very lightweight arrows and risk compromising the life of the bow. Personally, I like bows with high efficiency standards capable of high performance but I like shooting mildly heavy arrows. It's not about speed but more of efficiency and how well it transfers that energy to the arrow.

The profile of the bow, string type, limb width, tip weight, and also limb materials will all have an influence as to the efficiency of the bow.

Some extreme reflex/deflex longbows will even compete with the high performance recurves.

In the end, the main thing is, choose a bow you like and can shoot well, be it a LB or recurve. Don't get rapped up in speed and "stuff". Get acquainted with your equipment and put a good, sharp broadhead into the vitals of your favorite game animal. That's all it takes.

like shoot for thrills says, speed is a selling point but so much more should be considered. forgiveness/stability, accuracy, quiet shooting bows are where it is at when choosing traditional bows. Byron Ferguson said " I would rather put a slow arrow in the bullseye than miss with a fast one".Until somebody makes a bow faster than the speed of sound a quiet bow is way more important imo. I see/hear the whole speed thing come up more and more and have to wonder how many are coming from compounds and bringing that way of thinking with them. Speed is nice but much more goes into a good hunting setup.

Yeah, I came from the compound camp. So I'm used to using the term speed. I'm still learning. LOL. It amazes me how basic the traditional bows get and people are taking trophy animals. With the compound technology moving so fast it is easy to lose focus of basics and proper form.

Why are the longbow much hard to shoot consistency? Does the grip has anything to do with it?

Accuracy, quiet, and effiecency is what I am looking for. Smooth draw from my draw length is a plus.

Strickly personal preference. Some like the beautiful curves & sweeps of quicker recurves. Others the clean elegant simplicity of straight handled longbows. Yornoc said it perfect. Not a competition. Ante up son, you're in it for the long haul. Bet you won't make a mistake.

It all comes down to feel! Which one feels right for YOU. I own both, and personally I cant decide which one is my favorite because they are all my favorite and feel great to me.

Just demo both types of bows and see which one you like and shoot better with.

I can shoot lights out with recurve, but not so with a longbow. I don't like the straight grips used on longbow. I can't get used to them. This is why, when it comes to accuracy, I have no confidence in a longbow.

I also own a longbow, and my wife has a recurve. I am proficient with a longbow, but a muchhhh better shot with a recurve.

I think my next bow down the road will be 3 piece recurve of a moderate weight.

I just shoot them so much better, and I owe that to the animals that I pursue.

I own both and find that for me I am better with the longbow on close, quick moving shots like shooting at a running rabbit but much better at 20 or 30 yards with my recurve.

I have both and shoot both.  I really like my longbows better than my recurves but it took some tinkering/dedication on my part to get there.

I need a very full, almost recurve type grip on my longbows.  So, you might ask, why bother, just shoot a recurve.  Well, what can I say.... I just like em and there are folks out there that can provide the grip I am looking for.

Really, I like the lines.....  I dont think I ever had any trouble shooting a LB as compared to a recurve..  just me

In my opinion, a modern highly reflexed/deflexed "hybrid" bow is the technically the best of both worlds with the speed of a recurve, silence of a longbow and stability of a recurve type grip.
That said, I don't own a modern hybrid bow; esthetically they just don't do it for me.

QuoteOriginally posted by Swamp Yankee:
In my opinion, a modern highly reflexed/deflexed "hybrid" bow is the technically the best of both worlds with the speed of a recurve, silence of a longbow and stability of a recurve type grip.
That said, I don't own a modern hybrid bow; esthetically they just don't do it for me.

This is the type I hunt with. I love to shoot recurves and would some day like to have a "hill" type. Right now I'm enjoying the best of both.

Rob

Both types will certainly suffice for hunting and I guess it is simply a matter of personal preference. Personally, I find recurves no "easier to shoot " than long bows. My favorite bows are Dan Toelke Super Ds and Whips and while I also own one of Dan's Curlew T.D. recurves, I often admit that I would not shoot a recurve if it were not for 3d. This might seem a strange way to explain my preference it but while a 6" trailing edge hunting knife can work and many carry them, to me a 3" drop point knife is much easier to use and has very pleasing lines and not so much so with the larger knife .

That's the trouble with today's market there are too many bowyers that make great shooting bows. But I need to live 4 or 5 life times to shoot them all lol.

If you get to go to 3d shoots don't be afraid to ask to try the stick bows, most if not all trad shooters will gladly let you shoot.

Ask around I am sure there are stick bow shooters close to you who will help you. Good luck the fun is just beginning.