A new bow brings new challenges to shooting

So a few weeks back I ordered a bow from a guy named Nate Steele of Bama Bows out of Tulsa, Oklahoma. I went big with the thought of someday going to Africa to hunt big game. I selected the most basic model because I like minimalist bows and the price was right. I asked him to make a 100 pound draw longbow and it arrived some six weeks later. I recieved the new bow two days ago and have been actively shooting it as much as I am physically able.  Yesterday I took four shots with the bow and today I took about a dozen. The physical toll this takes on the muscles is amazing. The process is like a workout with shooting, two of my favorite things. Today I have taken about 30 shots in a series of two sessions. The accuracy is nothing to brag about but I can hit a four inch circle 4 out of 6 shots at ten yards. The penetration that this setup is achieving is incredible. From 15 to 20 inches into target backers is common with the two types of arrows I am using.

Something for the Revolver guys..

On the 16th of October Virginia and I were invited to attend the founders of Zombie Shooters Association's wedding match. I was working on a ship at the time so I had to request time off to go. We made it down to the ceremony and shared time with our good friends John and Melinda Zaczek. These two people rock! I've never seen two folks so excited to see us. I tried to take a video of the ceremony, but I messed it up with a double tap to the record button. So I offer my fast recovery video instead. I only missed the first few seconds.

The match that occurred afterward was something special also but pales in comparison. We took no video because we were both so rusty at the revolver game. The highlight of the match was that my HearthCo moonclips were proven bomb-proof or stomp-proof whichever you prefer. I was on a squad that was not revolver saavy and thus not revolver reloading device friendly. I had to straighten one of my Ranch Products clips after the match and that took some doing. Good news John! I hope you saved the bent .41 Mag clips.

Been a while...Part 2

Practice for me started out at 10yds and lasted two and a half hours. I shot to closing time at the local BPS and hardly realized it. The reason I had for shooting indoors were that it was temperature controlled and I would not have to deal with heat fatigue and that it was easier to recover my arrows, a big key to expediting progress. Having to search the ground for lost arrows flat out sucks. It takes time away from practicing and the grass/ground/leaves are hard on your fletchings. Over time I was able to keep more and more of my shots on the five spot target. Imagine a piece of paper with five 6 inch bullseyes on it say 12"x14". Now imagine a foam block 4'x4'. Now imagine missing both of those from ten yards at times. Indoors is the way to go if it's available. If it is cost prohibitive I recommend a large field where the grass is kept cut for a close second. So I guess a whole month or so rolled by before I even tried the twenty yard targets. As I came to shoot at the BPS more often a second advantage came to be realized: someone was always watching. Sometimes it was just employees, other times it was customers looking through the windows, and the best of all was other people coming to shoot their bows.  This was the first great thing to happen to my shooting ability, the ability to compete against other shooters. At first it was a given that everybody under the sun was better than I was, but then I started to get better and better. There is nothing like the feeling of shooting with another person and testing yourself against them and sharing the excitement and letdowns of the results downrange.

So it's been a while....Part 1

I appologize for taking so much time off from the blog. I have decided to lay down the semi-autos and revolvers for a while and get back to the basics . I have been devoting my time to the bow and practicing for the up coming archery deer season. After watching the two seasons of Top Shot and realizing that I was really lacking in this particular area of marksmanship it really bothered me. I have decided to forego the modern technological race with supercams and mechanical broadheads. I am using semi-traditional archery equipment this year opting for a modern minimalist longbow and carbon arrows. The arrows are at least feather fletched although I am pursuing a high Forward Of Center (FOC) setup where much of the weight is in the front of the arrow for increased penetration. The broadhead I have chosen weighs in at 250 grains. This is due to a mis-step on my part where I had my arrows cut to fit my draw length before considering how stiff that would make them. I ended lucking out in that this particular setup shoots very nicely off several of my bows and has tremendous hunting potential both on and off this continent.

Starting out, the road was not an easy one as I made many mistakes and had no guidance. I had owned the bow for 2 or 3 years but had not done anything serious with it and it rode the corner of the closet most times. I had taken it hunting once and missed by the slimmest of twigs a nice buck causing me to lean away from this platform altogether. I recently checked on the equipment and saw that almost all of my arrows needed to be refletched and that the shelf of the bow needed attention. I made a note of what I needed ventured into the local Bass Pro Shop(BPS) and ran into a guy named Dean. After a few questions, he told me what my options were and that refletching arrows was not difficult at all. I told him that I wasn't set up for it and that I spent most of my time reloading ammuntion. As luck would have it, he was in need of ammuntion for his handgun and I had just run into my new best friend. Having acquired a source to get my arrows refletched, I had conquered the biggest hurdle I had in archery so far. The next step was going to be the longest of the whole process...practicing.