I've not really given much thought on this, till this evening... And I don't want this to become a biggest **** contest...I don't care how far you shoot. I'm working on my distance, so I'll ask this way... What do you think is your effective distance hunt to taget ratio? In other words, your max distance of comfort on an animal divided by what you would think your maximum target shot might be...? Explain... As an example, maybe 20yds effective and you feel a target confidence to 30 the ratio would be 2/3 (or .66666) The season is right around the corner.
^^You lost me at this line^^ I rarely practice shooting over 30 yards anymore. Most of my setups are twenty yards and under. I shoot effective at 20 yards, feel confident at 25, and would probably let it fly at 30 yards if the deer was NOT on edge.
20 is my sweet spot and probably won't shoot past 30 even though I am super comfy shooting a 35 to 40 yard static target. So 2/3 for me. Honestly tho, I would bet you most shots I've taken were all 25 or under. And I've still managed to mess some of those up dangit. Sent from my SM-G960U using Bowhunting.com Forums mobile app
40/110 4/11, or.... .36 repeating? 40 on a deer better be a perfect situation. Learned that the hard way over the years. On targets I shoot out to 110 for fun, I can pretty much always put 3/3 in a paper plate at that distance. On deer, 25 seems to be my sweet spot- I leave my top pin there, aim a touch low up close, hold a touch high out to 30. No need to split hairs guessing range. Dangit, now you got me looking at TAC dates/locations.
Since I am old and have become part of the hated devil-worshipping crossbow clan I may be comparing apples to oranges here. I practice on a very regular basis out to 70yds but I would never shoot at a live animal at more than 40yds. I practice at the longer distances so that the shorter distances seem easier. Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk
Me be offended by something? LOL! It was meant to be a joke, like "If it's not a big **** contest, I'm not interested" but my delivery fell short like usual!
25-30 is my sweet spot but with hopes of getting out west I practice out to 80 with the certainty of being accurate at 60.
this season, I'll leave my HHA Tetra at 27yds (I used to do 25 yd setting), which will give me to 33 yds as my 5-33 yd kill zone ... my 100% effective range is 35 yds, if I get a deer with a good angle/shot, etc. odd's are in my favor .. 42 yds is my longest kill with over 80 bow killed deer (most under 30 yds)..
I shoot targets out to 80 pretty regularly, it quickly tells you how your form and shot execution is. Plus some of the clubs around here like to put a bonus target out at 80 quite frequently at 3d shoots. Not the same for a live animal to me. For elk my absolute max shot distance is 60 and that would have to be an ideal situation. I have a lot of confidence if they are 40 or less, and 30 or less makes me start thinking about how I'm going to cut them up. (That comment will burn me this year I'm sure...) Twitchy, jump the string Whitetail deer are a different matter. I don't trust that they won't jump the string and so don't want to shoot at one beyond 30. I would very much prefer 20 or less. So elk would be 40 / 60 for .66 Whitetail would be 20 / 30 for a .66 also.
I'm confused by this ratio thing. What's the point of it? Just a talking point, or is there something I'm missing? I'll practice shooting 60 yards pretty regularly but won't shoot a whitetail over 40. In fact, I haven't shot one over 30 in quite some time now. I plan on being ready to shoot 60 for elk this fall. You guys can do the ratio math for me if you want.
Don't worry @Justin , I don't understand it either. At least what the point ratio is supposed to tell you anyway. I'm guessing there's some old article or something that this was derived from? Enlighten us @wl704 .
So how far I feel comfortable shooting an animal (lets say a whitetail) vs how far I feel comfortable shooting at a target? 40/80 or .5 I suppose
Practice every day out to 60 yards. I believe on a deer, max range is 35-40. IMO, too many things can happen past that. Bear would be the same, elk or moose is 50. Don’t want to figure a ratio, but feel free to.
Not sure there is anything terribly insightful. The concept started as an exercise to see if there may be any correlation. I think most folks seem to practice, for deer, slightly longer than they'd shoot. Why? Most seem to know, it makes the shorter shots seem easier. Most also know deer are twitchy, so there is generally a practical limit (sound, now speed and response time)... Out west, wind help make background noise, elk specifically last twitchy and bigger targets... Maybe distance opportunities too... Not sure maybe there is something here... Maybe not.
I shoot out to 60 yards on targets. If I get a good broadside shot with relaxed Mule deer my max is 50 yards. Longest mule deer shot I have ever taken was at 53 yards. Most my mule deer have been shot within 40 yards or less. On elk it is 40 yards. That is mostly for penetration. My longest elk shot was 45 yards. Most my elk have been around 30 yards or less. Whitetail I like to keep under 30 yards. My longest whitetail is 36 yards. Most my whitetail have been under 30 yards. So I don’t know what that makes me. (But odd)
I practice all the way out to 60, but 30-35 is my zone. At one of my properties, I have a buck that travels a field edge that is 45-50 yards away. I am repositioning a stand to compensate for the route he travels. There is not a tree in that area I can climb so I am preparing for that shot in the event it comes to pass.
Issues exaggerate with distance. It's always a great technique to find out your "wall". I personally leave the pie plate at around 75yrds. I normally mark spots in the woods and cut lanes to 30.
