Reducing draw weight gets mixed reviews
Now this can be quite the controversy and I for one had always thought the more poundage you had the cleaner the kill. I don’t hunt with Bow and Arrow anymore basically because of a shoulder injury so I had decided to give it up and stick with the guns. I do miss it though and I do feel that lowering the draw weight could get more involved but am concerned the the weight change is an important factor. I would really like to hear other’s opinions on the subject so feel free to voice your thoughts.
By: Rick Kratzke
Critics concerned bows won’t produce enough energy for clean kills
The Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission voted in April to drop the minimum draw weight requirement for hunting bows. Beginning in September, deer and turkey hunters will no longer be required to shoot a bow with a draw weight of 40 pounds or more.
The change was made to encourage more bowhunting participation from women and youth hunters, or any men with physical problems that makes it hard for them to pull 40 pounds of resistance. Hopefully, say veteran bowhunters, the absence of a minimum draw weight will not encourage overzealous fathers to outfit elementary school kids with tiny tot archery sets and encourage them to launch arrows at deer, turkeys or other game.
David Lassetter is one archery advocate concerned about the change. Lassetter is a certified bow hunter education master instructor and he’s also a representative for the Lone Star Bowhunters Association.
LSBA encourages women and youth hunting, said Lassetter, but the organization asked the TP&W Commission to reduce the minimum draw weight from 40 pounds to 30 pounds, then do some research to make sure the lighter bows produce enough energy to dispatch game humanely.
The commission voted to eliminate draw weights altogether and most of the public comment favored that course of action. Approximately 30 states with an archery season require minimum draw weights that range from 30 to 40 pounds. Texas has joined about a dozen states with no minimum draw requirement.
I am in no way a professional - I really have no idea what the effects are, but it SEEMS to me that 30# and less is not much. I would think keeping it at 40# is a good thing for deer. This is purely my thoughts with no research or stats to back it up. But, man, 30# isn’t going to do much I wouldn’t think - and it would certainly limit the shooting distance considerably. Even with my older bow cranked up to 62#, I don’t like shooting past 50 yards because the arrow is really arcing and seems to lose a lot of ooomph beyond 50 yards. As for people with disabilities, do they allow hunting with a crossbow for disabled hunters? They do here in Idaho - and my grandpa loves it. He hunts with a crossbow during bow season as he can’t pull a bow - it works for him…he gets to hunt during the bow season and it is sort of like a bow and sort of like a rifle…a good mix, I guess.
July 8th, 2008 at 1:57 pm
Michigan has no minimum poundage requirement either, and I am honestly fine with that. My nephew, who is ten, is only drawing back 29lbs and his little compound (a youth bowtech model) is faster than the first compound bow I ever owned.
I think with today’s technology, that not having a minimum requirement is fine. I think most people are going to be smart and not let their little ones hunt with a toy bow from wal-mart.
July 8th, 2008 at 3:47 pm
Tom and Arthur, thanks for your input. Here in Connecticut there is a minimum poundage and I do agree that you should shoot at least 40# as a bare minimum. They do allow hunting with a crossbow in CT if you have the proper medical paperwork to prove a disability. I have been thinking of looking into it myself.
July 9th, 2008 at 7:10 am