Feet Per Second. Big deal or no big deal???

KentuckyTJ · February 11, 2010, 12:38:00 PM

Ok with all the hubbub on skinny strings and increase in speed lately (I love my skinny strings by the way) I want to determine something.

I would guess that a 5 feet per second increase would be a big deal while shooting at a critter especially if it tried "Ducking the string". So I need someone way smarter than I to figure this one out. Just for reason of making it simpler lets say a bow was 5'/sec faster with a skinnier string installed. Lets say the bow was now shooting 200'/sec. How much would that calculate out to be on a 20 yard shot???

Ground Hunter · February 11, 2010, 12:46:00 PM

Unless your arrow is going about 1100fps you are at a disadvantage as far as deer jumping the string. If you get one to go that fast let me know. A quiter bow will serve you better. H

Earthdog · February 11, 2010, 12:50:00 PM

Not enough to combat string jumping.
I read some research on this about 20 years ago and it came to the conclusion that to consistantly beat an already alert Whitetail,you would need to be shooting somewhere in the area of 500fps.
To me and I guess a lot of others speed in a "huntingbow" is more just an interesting subject rather than a "big deal".
I can miss em" or hit em" just as good with either my fast or my slow bows.
Somebody will give you the exact spect's re speed over distance,,,but it ain't 'that" interesting to me;^)

KentuckyTJ · February 11, 2010, 12:54:00 PM

Well Robert my thought is if a deer is trying to duck the string and the 5'/sec allows your arrow to get there that much faster it may be just enough difference in a recovery or a wounded animal. Lets say that speed increase would mean a 4" difference on the animal by the time the animal dropped out from under the slower arrow. That's where I'm going with this.

Bjorn · February 11, 2010, 12:54:00 PM

The difference in terms of 'duck avoidance' is miniscule like GH says, quiet is key for that. The 5 FPS increase is like shooting a bow that is 3# heavier approximately, or pulling an inch more and it is 'free'.

George D. Stout · February 11, 2010, 12:57:00 PM

Does anyone have a medium bow, or is everything that is not fast, slow; and is everything that is not slow, fast? I have a medium bow...actually medium-plus. :confused:

My car is not ultra fast, but it is not slow. My wife is not fat, but she is not skinny.
I'm not a rocket scientist, but I'm not a moron.

I like the fact that there are other grades of things.

wv lungbuster · February 11, 2010, 01:02:00 PM

I think he wanting trajectory.

JimB · February 11, 2010, 01:19:00 PM

I am positive that it won't help with deer ducking.they can duck 300 fps bows.

Deer and we,are supposed to react quicker to noise than visual cues so I think that quieting the bow can do a lot more for you than any little speed gain we can get from tweeking equipment.We can control the noise of the bow quite a bit.A skinny string may help a lot of bows,some in that regard.

I do like the way some bows respond to the FF strings-just the way they feel and the quietness of them.If they gain a few FPS,that can't be a bad thing though probably won't make a difference in the real world.Probably,preferable to losing FPS.

I think a very quiet bow and a completely relaxed deer are the best prevention.

ron w · February 11, 2010, 01:21:00 PM

Quite is what you want.Until the bow comes along that shoots faster than the speed of sound,jump'n the string can be and will be an issue. A quite bow is your friend!!!

TradBowyer · February 11, 2010, 01:24:00 PM

5 fps is equivalent to short drawing between 1/2 - 1 inch. You will not notice any trajectory issues at normal hunting distances. One day I took out a mix of arrows ranging anywhere from 550 grains to over 600 grains so you are probably talking differences of up to 20 fps range. At 20 yrds, they were all grouping. I also have a longbow that shoots a 650 grain arrow around 170 fps and a recurve that shoots a 495 grain arrow 185 fps. I shoot 3 under. The point on distance for the longbow is 32 yrds. The point on distance for the recurve is 40 yrds. 15 fps difference equated to only 8 yrds difference in the point on distance. that being said the 650 grain arrows drops very quickly past 32 yrds.

MSwickard · February 11, 2010, 01:28:00 PM

5 fps faster will not make much of a difference with a critter jumping the string. Speed of sound at sea level is 1125 fps. The math is not in it for archery. Yes 5 fps will flatten trajectory but it's marginal. If you know your set-up, arrow trajectory is a mute point.

It's better to have a quite bow and make close shots.

February 11, 2010, 01:33:00 PM

I used to shoot PAA targets with a variety of limbs out of a variety of Bear metal handles with sights. At 20 yards, the standard indoor PAA distance, changing limbs from lighter to heavier had very little effect on the pin adjustment. With one change of 10 pounds, using the same arrows, I would move the pin to the bottom of the PAA center ring. that was at most an inch difference at twenty yards. To say that that speed change would get the jump on a jumpy deer is a variable that cannot be answered. I have found in my own hunting from the ground situations that a quicker smoother shot with a quieter bow can make more of a difference. Deer seem to have an individual patience level before they react. I lose more chances by being to deliberate and simply running out of time to get a shot off in the first place. That is why I went to straight gripped longbows and changed my shooting style from static target form to Hill form.

SteveB · February 11, 2010, 01:33:00 PM

Adding 5 fps is adding more power to your set up.
I see no way that is not a good thing.

Jeff Strubberg · February 11, 2010, 01:38:00 PM

5fps isn't that big a deal.

BUT...

5fps from a more efficient string + 5 FPS from trimming silencers + 5 FPS from better tuning...

You get the point. There are lots of places ina bow and arrow setup to improve efficiency. Taken one by one they don't amount to much. Taken all together they are the difference between a bow you can pull on stand at 10 degrees and one you can't.

Night Wing · February 11, 2010, 01:44:00 PM

My ears tell me a fast bow is a loud bow upon arrow release. I like a slow and quiet bow.

OS · February 11, 2010, 01:50:00 PM

Being able to shoot a heavey arrow at a faster speed increases your penitration! As a bonus for me when I head out in the plains a little flatter trajacory with my heavy arrows are great when I expect to be offered a little farther shots. If you can keep the bow quiet and allow me to shoot my heavier hunting arrows a little faster I'll take it

twigflicker · February 11, 2010, 01:52:00 PM

Tom,

On a calculator that I have used in the past it showed a 1" difference at 20 yards and a 2" difference at 30 yards...

This was a 4" feather... and 500 grain arrow... just wild numbers thrown out there... with arrow speed calculated at 195 and then 200 FPS...

Jonathan

wingnut · February 11, 2010, 01:53:00 PM

The simple answer to the question he asked is that the arrow traveling at 200 fps over 60 ft will take .3 seconds to arrive, the arrow traveling 195 fps gets there in .30769 seconds.

So we're not talking a lot of time.

We went to thinner strings not for speed but because they were quiet.

Quiet is good!!

Mike

NDTerminator · February 11, 2010, 02:03:00 PM

5 FPS a significant gain? Depends on the speed you started with. 10FPS? Now you're talking, if you can do it w/o a big increase in noise or decrease in shootability.

Will it matter as far as jumping the string? Not a chance.

Will it matter in regard to a flatter trajectory
resulting in a larger hit window? Absolutely.

On the subject of bow noise; IMO a deer can hear the most quiet bow owned by anyone here at 100 yards. What matters is if it is alert enough to pay attention & react to it...

Jeff Strubberg · February 11, 2010, 02:10:00 PM

QuoteOriginally posted by Night Wing:
My ears tell me a fast bow is a loud bow upon arrow release. I like a slow and quiet bow.

Fast has nothing to do with loud. Light arrows make loud bows. Slow has nothign to do with quiet. Heavy arrows make bows efficient, and therefore quiet.