Recently found out that I was not pulling to 28" even though my bow are weighted at that draw length. Does anyone else shoot bows like this? In the future should I try to get a bow in my draw length? Am I losing any performance by not having bows weighted at my draw?

I draw 27" and have bows that are marked at 26",27" and 28" and they all shoot fine.You don't half to shoot a bow marked at your draw.But you can have one made at your draw length if you would like.That is what is nice about traditional bows,say you have a bow marked 55#@28 and you draw 27" you are roughly shooting a 52#@27 bow.

I pull to 27.5" AMO & only loose on average 1-2 pounds of draw weight, I'm not too worried about it.
As far as loosing any performance really depends on your draw length on how short it is compared to where the bows sweet spot is "if there is really a sweet spot" I wouldn't worry too much about it if you have arrows that are properly spined & shooting right for you.

Mr. Short Arms here. I've got a 25" draw. I just take it into account and subtract the necessary number of pounds when my bow says 52# @ 28". No big deal.

Guy

I suppose it would if your bows are marked @ 28" but you only draw 16"...  I usually draw about 27" and like Guy, I just take it into account and subtract a few pounds.  I have heard the arguments that you don't get the whole power stroke, etc., bla bla bla, but I really don't think it matters that much.  If I was that concerned with it I would hunt with a rifle, and argue about .30-06 vs. .300 Winchester Magnum.  My 2 cents.

RonP

Im not the only one I see!!! Just wanted to make sure I wasnt missing out on the performance part. The bows shoot good and straight so I guess thats all I can ask for.

Besides, short arrows look cool and I'll never have any problem finding shafts that are long enough, unlike all those monkey armed guys...    

Guy

That is a good point!  I have a real nice dozen arrows a long draw friend gave me-they were too short for him.  Nice arrows too, 4 fletch and crests and everything!

RonP

Ok guys, I have a dozen or so full length CX250 Maximas that I have broken the tips off, stump shooting etc... over the last couple of years. One is around 27"'s the other are over 30" to 31", they broke right behind the brass inserts. I have Monkey arms and can not shoot them. Are any of you interested in buying or trading for them? I can even have them cut to your length.

poundage @28 is just the industry standard so any shooter can compare one bow to another....its very anoying when guys get their bow marked at their draw i.e. 49 1/2 @  26 1/2 (yes I looked at a bow marked like that),it is just some sort of personal vanity....  

As far as performance, if you have a shorter draw,the shorter bows will work best as you get more of the powerstroke of the limb involved...my daughter was only drawing 25 on a 68 inch longbowand not getting consistant arrow flight as she was at the bottom edge of the power stroke so if she short drew just a 1/4 inch or so the cast would really drop off.

My draw is 25.5".  I tend to buy bows that are 60-58" in length to make sure I'm getting as much performance out of the limbs as I can.  Manufacturers/bowyers generally recommend shorter length bows for shorter draws.

I use a digital scale on my bows to get very accurate weight measurements (because I like to know). I find my bows loose 2-3 pounds (closer to 3) for every inch under the 28" draw weight rating.  

I've had a couple of bows marked at exactly the draw weight at my draw length (46 pounds at 25.5") but I don't recommend it.  If you want to sell the bow some folks like to see the specification at 28 inches. Of course how the bow is marked has nothing to do with the performance as your brethren above pointed out.

Boy do I have a deal for someone looking for some 27.5" arrows, made them lighter mass than the customer wanted and had to start over.
60-65# tapered back 10" , footed with Wenge, Sitka Spruce shaft that the finished arrow with a 160 gr point weights in at 520 gr.
Green cap dip with black and gold cresting and 5" shield cut with green barred cock and chartruese hens. 1/2 with Magnus 160 2bl and 1/2 with 160 field points. Normally these would be $226.00 but will pass on for $150.00 to some lucky short draw guy. Hunting season starts here in the morning so you better call as I may not be back to TradGang for a bit. 541-386-4503

Most of us THINK we have a 28" draw. Have someone mark your arrow at your full draw on a Trad Bow and see the TRUTH! I'm a 27" draw so when  you order a  bow @ 28"'s say 53#s so at my 27"'s it's 50 #s . Perfect! Ask any Bowyer, SHOULD I ORDER A bow 50#'s at my 27"'s or order a bow 53#'s @ 28"s!!??  They will tell you it dosen't matter. I cut my arrows 28"'s. TED I might have to talk to you. bentpole

yup i have a fox royal crown it is #48 @28 but i have a 26" draw and it takes any animal i shoot no problem.    oh yeah i cut my arrows for this bow at 28" they work for me

Short armer hear as well.  I only draw 25 1/2".  It's no big deal, just as everyone said remember to take this into account to ensure that you stay within legal draw weight.

I have a problem! I won't say it doesn't matter just because all of the other bowyers say it doesn't matter.( By the way, they don't all say that) When I build a custom bow I build it to perform at the draw weight of the person buying the bow. The numbers are there for his personal reference. Its built for him, or her not for John Doe or Jane Fry. A bow can indeed be built to perform to its max at a given draw length. Will it perform like a 28 in draw from the same bow? No. Butttttt it will perform as well as it can possibly perfrom at the draw, say, if it is built to perform at 25 inches.
To extrapolate a bow built specifically for 25 inches to what it will be at 28 may or may not work. When I build specificly for a given draw length the bow will not necessarily perform well at a longer draw. It may stack shortly after the specified draw length. Usually an inch or two after. But the shorter working area of the limb will cause the limb to return faster at that lenght than if the bow was built with a non specified length of draw. AKA the generic 28 inches. Hope this helps. Steve

It sounds like you are in good company.

26" draw here. I have always been told that most bows lose/gain about 3lb per inch above or below the 28" standard - I am sure that is not 100% but bet it is close for most bows (within an inch or so of 28"). My favorite bows are 57" and 58" long.

Sounds like Sixby can hook you up with exactly what you need  

I'm with Sixby all the way! I don't by used Hill bows anymore that aren't built for my draw length, or very close too it, because the performance difference, i.e speed, handshock, noise level, are vastly different! Bows built specifically for my 26.5" draw are much better in all the above areas than those i've had that were built for 28". When I ordered my Sunset Hills, Nate was adamate (sp) about knowing my EXACT draw length because the bow would be built and tillered specifically for that length...I'm talking "well is it 27 or 26.5 for goodness sake"! So for me, it does make a difference!

Spanky

I have a 27" draw.  My recurve bow is marked 65 @28" It actiually measures  64# @ 28". The manufaturer states that their bows are marked at the nearest 5# increment to ACTUAL weight.. They state that draw weight increases or decreases APPROX two (2) pounds for every inch the draw length is extended or shortened.

At my draw length it is 61# @ 27" which is consistant with the manufacturers claim though there is some varience.


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Yup I found out at full draw with the old mark the arrow trick. I was shocked cause im 6ft thought for sure id be 28-29. My cousin is smaller then me and has a 31" draw go figure.