Joey, How many of the longbow "rules" are designed to keep longbows behind "recurves"?? Limits on length, arrows, rests, centershot, ect...  It's that type of bureaucratic politics that has falsely molded the preception that longbows are inferior. Given a level playing field, good ones hold their own better then most would think....O.L.

What about the way long bows are designed guys? they have heavier working limbs, and heavier tips than a recurve.....When we are talking heavier arrows, say 600-700 grains. i would have to say that a long bow could potentially out perform the recurve...with lighter arrows The recurve rules.... henceforth competition & 3D champs most popular choice..

i know the question was "Is it easier to shoot"....but from a bow builders outlook, a hybrid long bow with a shaped grip should be the most desirable choice of bow for casting heavy arrows for hunting.....am i wrong here?

Kirk

Kirk, Yes you are!    ....The bow that shoots the lighter arrow fastest will do so with heavy arrows also. I know that's something folks have heard that such and such a bow "shoots heavy arrows better", fact is they all do.....O.L.

The only real differene I see is the cut of the riser. When I pick up a recurve, I have to subconciously adjust to the left. After shooting one for several weeks then switching back to the longbow, I have to adjust back to the right.
All things considered, I think it best to shoot one or the other, not both. i don't think either is harder to shoot, it's just whatever you're most comfortable with.

Gee Biggie, I've never noticed that. The arrows all shoot where they are pointed...O.L.

Here's my 2 cents.Most important is that the bow is properly tuned with the correct brace height, nock position , arrow, and point weight.I have shot both recurves and longbows,both pretty decent{decent enough to take deer}.I now only shoot hybrid longbows.Why because I've noticed I shoot longbows a little  better. I feel more confident with a longbow.They seem easier for me to shoot.

yeah OL I'm sure they do...but I don't point them so the paradox shows. Shooting instinctively demands a subconcious hand adjustment.

I can pick up and shoot most any recurve, but there have been longbows that I never got comfortable with... it's all in the grip for me....

Now if I never picked up a recurve again I suppose I would eventually get comfortable with the straight handles.....

too add to that....I've found that supposedly identical longbows shoot different as well...

If the older style longbows are so inferior, why has Dave Wallace won the IBO Worlds 2 years in a row with a bow that is very similar to a Hill with no carbon and a dacron string? His grip is just like a Hill.

The last IFAA World Field in AUS, a new world record was set in the Feild Round with a 15 year old Hill style longbow!

I think it is interesting that the elevated rests started showing up in archery about the same time as the curvy grips did.

It is obvious very little is understood about the straight risered/straight gripped longbow. That style of grip, when used properly, really negates the need for mass weight.

The limbs on a deep cored longbow may not be the fastest out there, but it is really harder to pull or torque them off track. In hunting situations where conditions are not perfect, it may get the arrow to it's mark, where a more sensitive bow would not.

There are advantages to both recurves and longbows, but to really understand and grasp the advantages of a real longbow, you need to ask someone who is really into it and don't listen to someone who is trying to re-define what a longbow is.

Look at the compound guys shooting 300 rounds with 60X, their grips are more like a Hill than the recurve grips are. Must be something to that low wrist, straight grip.

I personally shoot better with a recurve than a longbow. I also know folks who shoot longbows better than recurves. But If I had to make a generality about the two, I'd have to agree with what jdupre said about Olympic shooters. If longbows were more forgiving, you'd see FITA shooters using them.