Hi Folks
The good news is that Emirates are opening up a route to fly direct from Dubai to Harare, starting next spring. My Zimbo neighbour and I are planning frequent fishing and hunting trips.

The bad news is that as non-UAE national (I'm British) I cannot have my firearms in the UAE and I have to store them in the UK, causing me a great deal of sadness. So I'm thinking it is about time I took up bowhunting!

Could you recommend a forgiving mid $$ range outfit for a newbie bow hunter, suitable for plains game? I'm lefthanded, if that makes a difference. I'll be buying it off the web, so a visit to a shop is not on the cards.

Thanks very much.

There are plenty of good mid priced bows to choose from.Your best bet is to try as many as you can and go with feels good to you.Be sure to check with friends as to which shops to visit though as not all "pro shops" are equal.Some are staffed by people who know little about bows and proper setup.

I've heard a lot of good things about the Bowtech Assassin.

The package is set up professionally. If you are buying off the web that's probably a good way to go.

Don't know if these folks ship to UAE.

http://www.huntersfriend.com/2...cam_compound_bow.htm

Look for 7" or more brace height and 33" or more axle-to-axle (often A2A) for a forgiving bow. The short A2A bows are for treestand hunting, IMHO. Do not go for the highest IBO speeds, except within the brace height and A2A above.

But the best advice is to shoot as many and as much as possible, as already stated.

My left-handed brother likes Hoyt bows, if I remember correctly. I will ask for you. I generally like Bowtech and Mathews, but do not choose bows by brand, but by individual design and trial-and-error. The latter may be difficult in Dubai. PM me and I will give you my kak-handed brother's email address. He is a hunter, not a 3D or internet specialist.

You are probably looking at more than $1200USD for a complete setup delivered to Dubai. I would suggest getting someone like my brother to assemble and test the rig for you.

There is a great bow shop in Grand Junction, CO. http://www.redrockarchery.com/ If you want a non-family reference, I'd choose them. Ask if they have a left-handed staffer to test the setup for you.

Please tell them the reference was from a Goldston, and give them my thanks. They did a great job at the last minute for my nephew opening day of archery elk here in Colorado. They are hunters and afficianados. (Zeb took a cow.) Since they are 5 hours from me, I obviously have no other connection to them.

As another lefty I can recommend Jefferson Archery both Chip and Karen are bowhunters and they go the extra mile. www.jeffersonarchery.com

Very good advise from Don G

Thanks very much guys, that is some great advice. Don, I'll be in touch after I've done some more research.

I've been looking for a replacement for my 1o1st airborne, and I think I found it - the Elite Archery "Pure".

7" brace height, 36"A2A

I've sent an email asking if they make it in left-hand.

How strong are you? Most African hunters would want 70-60#, but a 60-50# bow would do the job for anything smaller than Cape Buff.

Shoulders/elbows OK? Arthritis? At any rate, get a bow you can handle easily. A bow you can shoot a lot is the best one!

Have to disagree with the 50-60 pull weight good for anything short of buffalo, not in my experiences with African bow hunting.

Use a heavier arrow, and get closer. I do prefer my 73# or 80# bows - makes range estimation a bit less critical for a given arrow weight.

They do make the Elite Pure for lefties, BTW.

Deerdogs: I don't know how old you are, or if you have ever had shoulder issues. If you are on the wrong side of 50, I recommend you consider a bow like the Diamond (Bowtech) Black Ice. It is extremely smooth, very easy to shoot accurately, and the breakover point in terms of pull is extremely shoulder-friendly. I tried to pull a couple of new PSEs the other day and had to put them down or schedule surgery.

Lovely advice so far. I'll say I have done very well with a 55 pound draw.

These were easy pass throughs:







I've killed several warthogs and impala with arrows. I would say your choice of broadhead is also very important. I started out with Muzzies and switched to Steelforce and have been awed by the consistant results I get with the Steel's. That baboon took an arrow that went shoulder to shoulder and it still passed through him.

Good luck putting your set-up together and welcome to bowhunting!

Deerdogs, Is there any archers or friends that do target or have their own bows in UAE? Even if you do get the perfect setup via internet you will still need to set you peep sight, sight and learn correct shooting form. Do you know your draw length? All these are important issues.

Is there any way you can get to South Africa as there is a lot of archery stores that would be able to assist you and have you test different bows.

Do remember you can't buy a bow and go hunting straight away, you'll need to practise a lot and then start off with the smaller and cheaper critters to build your confidence.

With the lighter 50-55 pound bows you have to make sure that your arrow and broadhead setup is spot on to get maximum penetration and be a confident shooter hence practise, practise.

You want a broadhead with well constructed central column (feral). I prefer cut on impact 3 blade broadheads i.e G5 Montec, G5 Striker, NAP Thunderhead, NAP Hellrazor or 4 blade Slick Trick Magnums.

A number of years ago I bought a bow on hear-say, biggest mistake I ever made and since then when I'm looking for a bow I shoot it first before parting with my money. Any of the bow brands mentioned in earlier posts are good bows. At the moment I shoot a left-handed SR71 and Infinity from Strother Archery. With my Elite Syngergy I shot my buffallo, also a good bow.

Take a look at the Mathews "Craze" model. It is adjustable from 35-75lbs and 24-31" draw iirc.

The nice thing, is the tremendous adjustability range.

I have seen way too many guys take up archery, and get too heavy a starting draw weight. That macho thing. Next thing you hear, they have dropped archery, and are waiting for rotator cuff surgery.

You can buy the bow with sights, etc, already set up. All you would need are a release and arrows.

Rich

a begginer bow that ranges from 60-70 pounds on a compound is great for africa

a full grown male should not be pulling under 70 pounds unless he is either cripple,or old or female shooters of smaller size there is absolutly no excuse for shooting a lite "target bow" unless you fall into those catagories

a normal full grown male should have the stregth to pull a 70 pound bow with absolute ease heck iv been using a 70# recuve since i was 14 years old im 29 now and use a 90-120 pound bow for the bulk of my hunting.

i see countless hunting vids of people useing these ultra fast 300 fps bows but the dip shits are using 400 grain arrows and there getting only 6" of penatration and there woundering why....i suggest a min arrow weight of 550-600 grains absoltu min for any big game hunting and 700-1000 grains is much much better.

compound bows are more far more effient when it comes to energy figures and gent dont require as much poundage as a longbow recurve to achive certain figures so if your planning a buffalo hunt or elehunt with a bow think 90#+

iv seen cape buffalo shot with 70# bows and 1000 grain arrows and as long as the range dosnt ecced 20-25 yards youll get ample penatration but wont get a pass thru thats why bos 90# and up are suggested for them..

sorry for the wall of text just heping a new guy out

Do you have anyone to teach you how to shoot a bow with good form?
Can he/she do adjustments on the bow, sight, rest and release for you and teach you how to do this?
Do you know what your draw length is or how to measure it?
How strong are you? It is better to have a 50-60 pound bow you can draw without struggling than a 60-70 or bigger that makes you red in your face drawing it back.
Draw weight is not a macho thing. The most stupid and least macho thing you see is when someone is over bowed.

The Bowtech Assassin package is very good for a beginner, but you need someone to help you to adjust it to fit you perfectly when you get it, or it will drive you nuts trying to become skilled and confident with the bow and your shooting. This goes for any bow you choose to buy.

You can always learn this by yourself, but the learning curve will be very steep and long.

Make sure to have the right stiffness for your arrows and focus on having heavier arrows with good penetration than having light ones for flatter trajectory.

check out www.huntersfriend.com

they specialize in selling bows by mailorder and have a pretty good website to back it up. Their preset packages are pretty good and they have a sale on bowtech destroyers. look at the 340

dew

quote:

Originally posted by DEW:
check out www.huntersfriend.com

they specialize in selling bows by mailorder and have a pretty good website to back it up. Their preset packages are pretty good and they have a sale on bowtech destroyers. look at the 340

dew

I have a Bowtech Destroyer 340 myself and I am very satisfied with it

quote:

a normal full grown male should have the stregth to pull a 70 pound bow with absolute ease heck iv been using a 70# recuve since i was 14 years old im 29 now and use a 90-120 pound bow for the bulk of my hunting.

700 Nitro
The reason you can say this is because you have been pulling a bow fro the age of 14 and have developed the muscles to do so.
I have seen far too many adult males ending their bow career with their first bow due to trying to pull too heavy poundage.
I am firmly of the belief that all average males should start at 55 lbs and build up muscle tone, good form and accuracy before pushing the draw weights.
You can get clean pass thoughts all the way up to Kudu at 55lbs if you choose your shots and are within 30 yards.

I would suggest you look at Hunters Friend for ready to hunt, shot in bow packages. www.huntersfiend.com
There is an archery club down near Nad al Sheba that shoots compound bows as well as others, they will be able to help you getting going and tuning etc.

For hunting I believe that the biggest factor in getting it right is getting familiar with your setup and being able to place your arrow in the right place. You will never get that right if you are pulling too heavy a bow and are only able to shoot three arrows before you get tired and loose your form or worse yet start to feel pain because you are ripping your shoulders out to pull the damn thing.

Good luck with getting the bow into Dubai and whatever you do dont pack your broadheads in the same bag etc. I know they had tightened up security there a while back.
Use DHL to courier it as they pre clear 99% of their shipments and are not as open to scrutiny as many others

Cheers
HQ

i agree and i should have elaberated for a "first bow" its fine to start with a 50-60 pound bow i will admit it much easyear to learn how to shoot a bow if you have had no formal training that area

i also have 1 more majour advantage and thats since the age of 20 iv been into weight lifting

i devote at least 15 hrs a week to archery min for example i wake up in the mourning grab my coffee and with in 30 minutes of waking up im on my back pourch flinging at least a dozen arrows...

i leave for work the next day when i come back befor i enter the house ill shoot another 12 arrows

after i cook dinner ill shoot another 12....ect and it gose on and on spreads out the practise so i dont get over tired and makes shure i get lots of practise in.

700 Nitro
You are clearly very dedicated to your sport. If all archers practiced as often as you there would be very few if any poorly placed shots in the hunting field.

I would be happy having your kind of bow hunter out to hunt any time as with that level of dedication it means less potential for things to go wrong.

IMHO, everyone can draw more than they think they can if they use the proper technique. You see people starting with the bow pointed up and waiving it around while they try to get to full draw (bad form as the motion will spook everything in sight, not to mention it's simply comical). Then you see people holding the bow straight on and just drawing straight back (ideal and fine if you can handle the weight).

But if you want to increase your weight and not spook everything in the territory, try this: with an arrow on the rest and your release on the string, and the arrow pointed at the dirt about 3-5 feet in front of you, simply bring the bow up and draw at the same time. You will pick up at least 10 lbs. on your draw weight, especially if you practice it a little. Using both arms and your back muscles makes a difference.