Most compound shooters have been respectful of my equipment, especially for hunting.

I was shooting a 3D this summer and was grouped  with a couple of unlimited wheel bows. It was impressive to watch so many 10's but it sure took awhile with all of the time they spent with bino's and setting up their shots.

After a few targets one of the compound guys asked me if I really thought my recurve could kill an elk. I was shooting a Saluki, 62@28 and told him that it would do the job. He smiled but had a patronizing look on his face.
I just found out he hit his first elk in the hip at 50 yards and it ran off with the arrow sticking out. The next day he gut shot a bull at 60 yards and never recovered it.

I killed my elk at 16 yards and it was a complete pass through, dead and down in less than 10 seconds.

I find that most of the compound shooters I have met (aside from 1 self absorbed, egotistical, chest thumping, knome like, Bowhunter Education instructor in southern Maine in the early 90's), respect and admire Traditional gear. During a demonstration, the instructor (who also owned a "Pro-shop" and bragged to the class about his sales and service), put an arrow in the bullseye at 15 yards with a recurve. I asked why he hunted with a compound if he was that accurate with a recurve. He flipped out and lectured the class (while eye-balling me), about ethics and the need to use the most modern, highly advanced equipment available. I then stated if that was the case, perhaps we should all stick to hunting with scoped .30-06's. The class laughed and he was very red faced. There are few people I can honestly say I strongly dislike, and he was one of them.
 The simplicity and stylish lines of longbows and recurves will continue to attract many who enjoy the outdoors, and are fed up with the never ending pursuit of mass advertised technology and speed. When I meet compound shooters, I openly admit my self imposed 20 yard range, and point out how fun, lightweight and simple the recurve is, and how Mankind survived for 40,000 years or so without wheels, range finders, peep sights and game cams. Plant a seed, and it will grow.

I was talking with someone one timeca while back who was askIng me about my bow. They asked why I shoot a longbow instead of a crossbow. My reply- the longbow is the original asault weapon. Just ask the French. They shot crossbows.

Just a few days ago, when one guy saw my longbow, he commented, "Oh, you're a  serious hunter!"

A few years ago met a young bowhunter putting his compound in his truck and i said hunting traditional i see,he said yes sir.With all the crossbows in Ohio,i guess the joke was on me.

That IS pretty funny 3arrows!

When I emailed a friend the photo of my first deer kill with a longbow, he replied, "Great job Gene, that's the way to go ole school."

I thought about this thread and couldn't help but smile!    

While squirrel hunting, I ran into a couple of guys that were doing the same, but with .22 rifles. Both guys had a smile on their face, while eyeballing my recurve. One of them asked, "Do you actually hunt with that or are you just practising?"

I chuckled and said, "Yep, I hunt with it and go to some 3D shoots too."

The second guy seemed a little "afraid" of the idea of a bow being so quiet. He actually said, "Bows are too quiet. You wouldn't even know if someone was shooting at you."  :rolleyes:

I told him that I suppose that was true and wished them the best of luck with the rest of their hunting season.  

Bowhunter57

Us oldschoolers don't shoot at people, half of us don't even get to shoot at animals most of the time!

 

I started off with my Dad's Ben Pearson fiberglass backed lemonwood longbow (I still have it) and have pretty much stuck with trad equipment. I have a compound and have taken some animals with it but it's just not the same. People really do take time to watch when you're shooting traditional bows. Like when I at the range shooting my 40cal long rifle.  People stop and say "there's a real muzzle loader".

I was at a mixed shoot with my Hill. A couple of younger guy's with compounds were watching me shoot, then one of them came up and said that is cool that's old school. I took it as a compliment.

QuoteOriginally posted by Bowhunter57:


The second guy seemed a little "afraid" of the idea of a bow being so quiet. He actually said, "Bows are too quiet. You wouldn't even know if someone was shooting at you."   :rolleyes:  


Bowhunter57

If the guy shooting the rifle at you is any good, you won't hear that either.

I tease the wheelie shooters I know about having to use training wheels.  "One day when you get good enough, you can start shooting a real bow."  They tease me about getting too close-"You don't need arrows, you can just nock 'em in the head with your bow."  We all have a good laugh-the comments are intended, and taken, good naturedly.

Us Georgia boys know how insecure the rest of you are about not being from GA. So we try to compliment you as much as possible...

Around here compounders just think I'm poor and can't afford a real bow.

They also call recurves "longbows".  

I met some hikers last season on a trail coming out of some public land I was hunting.
They all stopped to admire the Mohawk I was carrying commenting on how beautiful it was.  The comment I remember was "I didn't think anybody hunted with those anymore".  I laughed and said "well I just like to have more fun than some"

I'll take "old school"

Eric

I like to tell my wheel shooting friends "when you grow up you will shoot a real bow not a wheel bow". They love that.

30coupe,

I was thinking something similar.

I had a guy "sport shooting" at me once with a rifle during shotgun season. He obviously wasn't supposed to have a rifle. Anyway, I was walking a wide open hill and the guy kept shooting and popping dirt up about 30 yards behind me. It didn't make me feel any better to hear the report of the rifle. He never got close, but it wasn't funny. He fired 5 shots behind me before I could get around the corner of the hill.

The odds were also a bit uneven, in his favor, since he was shooting from about 300-400 yards away. A 12 guage shotgun has no chance for defense at that range.

All other things being equal, that incident is one of the reasons I like archery season better than gun season. I will gladly stay old school in archery season with my recurve!

my good friends brother is 65YO and he shoots a tricked out compound...he also has a cool 56" browning recurve at49#(the dust and grime on that bow was thick he didn't shoot it in years)...he brought it at my place to show it to me and shoot it...we started around 5pm , 20yds-25yds shots, he shot his compound , then i gave him one of my Bear K. tuned/sweetspoted with 5" feathered arrows...he started shooting again   :p   ... until way late in the night around 8:30pm he just remembered the fun of old school bows ... i had to put a flashlight spot  on the target...OLD SCHOOL is Back , hahaha i saw a big smile on his face       and some sparks in his eyes , he said:" instinctive shooting is fun"

I remember 21 years ago now when I made the switch to sticks...the looks I'd get.   It was pretty rare to see a kid with a stickbow serious shooting, not tinkering around.   I had a  damon howatt hunter at the time....man that thing was a shooting machine!  best bow I think I've owned aside from a checkmate crusader that recently took its place on the wall due to a crack.

Not much has changed other than I'm by far not the only one shooting sticks at the 3d events.  Back than there was 3 of us that hung out regularly, 2 brothers that turned me to trad and myself.  And man alive the ribbing I'd get.....

Its all fun.   Besides the animal has no clue what kind of bow that arrow came from.....well last I heard anyways none said..."ouch you shot me with a longbow..grrr"  haha!  

Most of my hunting partners are rifle toters or compounders...  We get into these comments often.   The way I see it, its NOT the equipment that makes the hunter.