Just for a little fun, thought I'd post up some figures on the bows I have shot in the last couple years, and what they were calculated to shoot like, which is almost exactly as they shot... First my current shooter, Bowteck Tomkat 55# at 28.5" shooting a 415gr arrow.... Shooting 243fps out of the bow, custom strings, probably made a little difference, and I zero'd it for 22yds, and it's hits about 2-2.5" high at 15-16yds... From there, it drops in to 22yds, and then down to about 4 .5" at 28yds, so I set my second pin for 28yds, from that 28yds mark, I set my next pin for 35yds, the drop from 28 to 35yds is nearly 7" therefore from there, I expect 1" drop for each yard past 28-35yds. I didn't even set up a pin past 35, because the limited KE of the bow really isn't worth taking a shot past 30 for hunting purposes in my honest opinion... My AM35 with Z3 cams shot a 445gr arrow 273fps at 29" and 64#, so I set my 1st pin at 24yds, having a peak in the trajectory of about 2" at 17yds, dropping into 24yds, then at 32yds, I was 5" low, I set my second pin at 32yds (seems like the settings I've used a lot over the past several years), and then from 32, I dropped down to 7 more inches to 40yds. So again, I figure 1" per yard past 32yds or my second pin. I also set a 48yd pin on this bow, and it's another 9" down to 48yds, again, another roughly 1" - yd drop. My AM35 with std. cams that was set at 70# and 29" shot the same arrow 274-276fps, and the trajectory for it was almost exactly the same. So what are your REAL WORLD numbers???
Those are some good honest numbers for some who should perhaps see them. One thing to remember however is that you will not maintain a constant 1" per yard drop for long. As drag continues to slow the arrow, the amount of drop will continue to increase with each passing yard. By time you get to say 45-50 yards, you are more likely to experience several inches of drop per yard... beyond that... who knows?
Not sure on my actual drops, but here are my numbers... PSE Bowmadness 27.25"@70# Shooting a 430grn arrow at 266fps. 4-Pin's set to 20-30-40-50 on an adjustable base allowing shots out too 100.
Very true to a point, the drop once past 50 with the two AM set-ups is about 1.25-1.5" between 50-60, and I can't see well enough anymore to shoot that far anyhow. Arrows actually carry pretty well, but some people don't realize how much drop there is past 35-40yds. thus the point of the post... Even with a 450gr arrow at 350fps starting out, the calculated drop from 30 to 40yds is 4.79" maintaining a speed of 332fps at 30yds, but once you get to 40yds, you should have about 7" of drop from 40 - 50yds, and the speed will have slowed to 326 at 40yds to 320-ish at 50yds.... But that arrow has stayed in the air nearly half a second to that point as well, so it's really not too surprising. It interesting the number of guys who are "newbies" to archery who say they set their bow up to shoot from 20 - 70yds..... Most guys have NO IDEA how much drop to compensate for to even set up a 70yd pin.... How well can you really shoot at 100yds??? Looking at 3" of drop per year at that range, I just can't see the point with a bow. Not sure how exactly you adjust a 4-pin sight to do such a thing??? I hear guys claim to shoot this far, yet I've shot with some pretty decent archers, and 60-70yds seems like about as far as any archer really can keep much consistency, and I'm talking about some REALLY good shooters (some sponsored, some semi-pro, etc.), not average joe's who shoot an occasional 3D in the summer to get ready for bow-season.
Here is the sight I have http://blackgoldsights.com/Bow_Sight_Ascent.aspx With this I can reduce pin cluster and still practice out to 70-80 yards. Without stacking pins. Mine is a custom 4 pin model I had built, with my 40 yard pin being my "slider". How well can I shoot out to 100 yards? Not sure, have only ever shot that far a few times. But my sight does have enough movement to allow me to hit that point. For the record, I am not "an average joe who shoots an occasional 3D in the summer to get ready for bow season".. I work with and shoot bows everyday and am regularly logging 10,000 arrows/year and have for the last three.
I get the point; Law of gravity and drag dictate that without lift and propulsion, you will continue to slow down at all distances. I can't imagine that at 100 yards you drop only 3" per yard. I bet its more, though I find no real practical reason to check the theory. I know my bow set up at 75 yards shoots completely over my block target at 73 and misses about a foot short at 77. Of course I do use larger helical vanes with more drag and I am not getting the speed you quote. Factor in human error plus I am certainly not expecting to be the next Robin Hood.
Not quite sure who this was aimed at? I have a FOUR pin set up. My pins are sighted in at 20,30,40, and 50 yards. The 40 yard pin (yellow) is my sliding/adjustable pin. If I know a target is at a given distance (x), I simply dial my sight to "x" and use my 40 yard pin. The pin does not move, the housing does.
Thanks for sharing.... I think it gives a much better perspective on arrow trajectory. I found this interesting. Shot at 200 yards... He is aiming 15 ft above the target. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fgl-KQt0-AI
Very easy adjustments. Wheel is on opposite side of sight tape. We are using Archers Advantage to create the tape. Simply dial to to whatever yardage indicated on the pin and your good to go. Has been very accurate
Okay... now I have a question if you have time . I shot fingers for 30 years before switching so much of the hi tech stuff is still relatively new to me. I never used a peep before because my anchor point was the middle of my chin. Now I use a peep and a release. The Peep is set to be the same size as my sight's glow ring to give it a scoping effect. Does moving the entire glow ring (correct?) affect your anchoring position, relative to the sight window?
I never thought of building a sight tape for a multi-pin sight like that, interesting concept. Gives you a basic set for out to 50yds, then you can start dialing in past. I have a pretty nice Toxonics adjustable similar to that, but I have a single pin with a 4x lens on it, I may have to look at some options to toy with beyond what I've been using it for. Thanks for the feedback, and I wasn't insinuating you were a "newbie" by any means, just stating how it's interesting to hear a guy just started shooting 2 weeks ago and has his bow set up for 20-70yds and is hitting a 3" group at 70 yds...etc, etc.... I've already accepted that my BEST days as an archer are behind me, as my eyesight won't allow too much distance between me and the target, and my body sure as hell ain't getting any younger either....
May be stepping out of turn, but yes, it does affect it a little in my experience. When shooting a target peep, I had a small 1/8" peep, and I actually centered the pin in the peep, rather than the peep on the ring, and then adjusting elevation. Another, "if I could have my younger eyes back thing," but I shot very well for a couple years that way, but as the eyes get worse, I upped to larger peeps, that do encircle the housing, and shoot by adjusting my elevation with the housing centered in my peep, rather than the peep. The anchor is more consistent now, but my shooting has gradually gotten worse.... 7 yrs ago, a 60yd shot seemed easy to keep to a nice 4-5" grouping, now an 8-10" grouping is more likely...
