Since you all want to see my setup...

[halfseminole]

Here's some picks of what I'll be carrying in the field this fall.  Everything here is custom made, I have real problems with off the shelf parts.  They're all made for shorter draws.



That's my Manchu type arrow versus my wife's 28" carbons.  They started life as 32" Surewoods Douglas fir, tapered hunter shafts 90-95# spine.  They got Reparrows walnut footings and socketed bone nocks to build out to length.  The nocks are oval, in true Manchu style, though I have no cherry bark, birch bark or stingray skin to wrap them with.  The end where the nock meets is wrapped with sinew and burnished down.





This is my bow, it's Mark Daniels' prototype static recurve.  The riser was originally left handed, but epoxy putty and a rasp fixed that, as well as a thumb rest and I cut down the shelf to right on top of my hand.  The riser is painted black with epoxy paint with a satin top coat as I'm deathly allergic to Osage, and the riser is Osage and bocote.  With the epoxy putty and epoxy paint, my tongue no longer swells when I pick up my bow.

This thing is a beast though, at my 38" maximum draw my scale reads 70#.  It feels about like fifty, but it puts arrows through stuff with impunity.  I'm still working on repeatable accuracy after the blind spot in my right eye, but it's getting there.  Season opens October 15th here, so I have time.

Now you guys know what it takes to suit my draw, and why I ask so bloody many questions.

Anyone know a good source of 11/32 dowels to use my new Arrow-Fix tool on?  I'd like to make my own point and nock footings, preferably out of heavier woods.  Teak, ipe, leopardwood, those kind of stuff.  Any help is appreciated.

[reddogge]

I'm thinking you could contact one of the shaft manufacturers to make you some shafts in your length. You have an unusual problem.

[kadbow]

I would like to see a picture of you.  38" draw! Do your knuckles drag the ground?  

Lots of ingenuity at work there. I am really curious about that left to right conversion, like how much arrow shelf is on the other side of the riser? Where does one anchor that has a 38" draw, or how tall are you? You go ahead and ask all the questions you want. But understand that others that are amazed by your set up may have a few of their own. I think the arrow nock is really cool.

[nineworlds9]

Please tell me you're not ruining your fletching shooting THROUGH that Wally World target with that 70# beast.  LOL!  My 50ish pound bows will blow through those foam block targets.  That's wifey's target right??        I need to see a pic of you at full draw.  It has to be epic.


*****Wait wait I JUST looked again and caught the Shot Block sitting behind the Wally target!!  I knew there had to be more to it!!  

[Jake Scott]

Very impressive Half,
I have been curious to what your setup looks like.  I would say you are well on your way to being prepared for deer.  Will you be using a commercial broadhead, or something more in the Manchu tradition?

Jake

[elkbreath]

Honestly?  A 38" draw to 70# on a static recurve...I don't think he needs a Broadhead!  Might need to get bigjim to make 3" 3 blade.

More pictures!

[halfseminole]

This set of arrows (more accurately the other six shafts I have yet to make up) is going to be fitted with Bodkin 125 grain points, but I want to make up a set with heavier tanged broadhead.  Forrester will make point and nock footed arrows with proper Manchu tapering.  He even will precision bore the tips for proper seating of better arrowheads.

I do want better heads though.  I'm considering making heavy bone arrowheads with a lead-filled tang for FOC on these things.

I'll get a picture of me at full draw.  My anchor point is at my cheekbone, I can draw a light bow past my ear in a kyudo draw for somewhere close to 40" but the bow needs to be 35# or lower.  

The shelf is on the opposite side from your bows, which is why I started with a left handed bow.  I can only shoot with a Mongolian thumb draw after crushing my right hand in my early twenties.

If I thought I could afford it, I would love to have custom broadheads made.  If someone wants to do them for free, I'd love to test something heavier/tougher.  I've already curled the tip of one of these tips pretty badly on a pass through on both targets into the ground.

All right, next round of questions...

[reddogge]

OK, that explains it. thanks.

[Cavscout9753]

That's awesome. Quite the home brew of a set up! Since you seem to be quite handy with some tools, I saw somewhere (maybe on tradgang here) about a fella using spoons that he cut, pounded, filed, and sharpened to make broadheads. I don't recall the finished weight, but it seemed rather doable when I read it. The metal should be easy to work (rather than like an old file or something hardened already) and depending on the spoon size you start with you can make some pretty wide heads. Either way, i dig your set up. Good luck afield!

[halfseminole]

That's almost full draw, the bandage covers a third degree burn from resting a heat gun on it since I can't feel it well.  Keeps me from pulling 100%.  That's still a solid 36".







And that's what it does.  Through a 40# bale of cardboard and almost sticking out the back of the foam.  And that's with a field point.  I'm making up the other six now, with very different nocks and possibly different feathers, not sure yet.  Picks when I finish them.

So there you go, that's what a draw like mine looks like and hits like.

To explain how I can do this, go to Marfan.org and read up on my genetic disorder, and what it will and won't let me do.  I'm in the sub-5% that have the greatest problems, so it's often safe to assume I have a listed issue.  Archery is freedom for me-it's something I have no negative handicap at, once I get through my issues with the blind spot.

[macbow]

Ever since I stared reading your posts some time back I too wondered how you achieved such a long draw. Understood the thumb ring and left handed bow.

Thanks for posting and clearing up what the issue is.
I checked out the Marfan.org website.

Kudus for making this work. I wish you many happy hours with your bow and happy hunting.

[nineworlds9]

Makes me smile when a person overcomes any kind of 'limitation', but in this case with such a powerful setup what's 'limited'?  Not much that I can see     70@38 that's got to be like the equivalent power of like 90@28 or something!?  I doubt it quite works that way but there must be some parallel.  Keep it up.

[halfseminole]

My goal for next year is 100 pound draw weight.  I want to see what the limits really are.  I'll have to have new limbs for that, but it'll be worth it.

I'll see if I can get a pic of it vs marine grade plywood.  That should be a hoot.  That's a 772 grain arrow (I weighed it) so I need to grow about 225 more to hit right.  It's hitting kind of weak.