I see guys reviewing bows with low brace heights like 6 1/2" and see comments like it shoots real good even at that height. I'm wondering if these people don't hunt with these bows, live in warm climates, or have another technique that makes these suitable for cold weather hunting. I thought I'd do a little survey and see what everyone requires in a brace height for cold weather hunting. I'm currently shooting a bow with a 7 3/8" brace height and I find that towards the end of the season when the weather is real cold and I'm wearing a lot of clothing, the string hitting my bulky clothing becomes a real concern. I'm seriously thinking of going to something with a brace height over 8", like the Mathews SQ2 (8.5".
What are you shooting for a brace height and how cold does it get where you hunt? Any problems with clothing interference?
I have been hunting with bows that have brace heights over 7.5 inches for the last 2 or 3 seasons so I really can't give an opposing argument to your question.
I do wear bulky insulated clothing for the late archery season here in PA and have not had problems with string contact on my sleeve.
I tried out some bows with shorter brace heights and didn't care for them as much. I'm no Robin of Locksley and I need a bow that is more forgiving. I recently shot the SQ2 and was very impressed. As soon as the ole tax return gets here I might be picking one up.
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I like a longer brace height for hunting, just for that reason. I still wear an arm guard just in case. I live in PA, so it can get pretty chilly toward the later part of the season and second season.
I cant comment either though of lower brace heights. I never hunted with them. I have shot plenty of low brace heights and wonder about it.
I've found that by shortening my draw I can shoot a lower brace height bow without a problem. Kind of a trade off though as the lower brace height is faster, but you lose speed by shortening the draw length. With the speed that's atainable today there's really no reason to shoot the low brace heights for hunting, unless you can shoot them as well as the higher brace height bows.
Were I hunting in a county in NY or a state(like my home state of VA) that had an earlier archery season I would most likely be shooting a bit shorter brace height bow than I am now.
As it is, my season opens NOV 1st every year, and here in New York, usually the leaves are gone and it's getting pretty chilly in the morning and evening (barring the wacko weather we have had this year). So I like brace heights in the 7.25" to 8" range. I wear an armguard because I have bulky sleeves. I've shot bows w/ braces as low 6.5" in the same jacket in practice w/no problems but I like a little extra insurance w/ the speeds I'm shooting. Were I shooting at arrows speeds in 220-250 range I would not be as concerned (as a little "tick" on the sleeve usually won't make a big diff..) but my bows are shooting in the 270 FPS plus range and then things can get critical.
JeffB
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Shoot what you like and have confidence in - don't get wrapped up in popularity contests
I am hunting with a MQ32 with 8.5" of brace height. The coldest it gets where and when I hunt is in the 20's so I don't wear a huge amount of clothing. Still have an armguard, just in case. Even with the high brace height, I will occasionally catch a sleeve or the front of my jacket if it puffs out. Bulky clothing is a problem all in its own.
The Mouse
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HuntingNet Member since Spring 2001
I used to hunt with a Hoyt Viper that had a 5.25" brace height. Definately needed an arm guard but never had any problems. Now I hunt with a 7.4" BH.
Another question.... anyone using an armguard, is it just to squeeze in the sleeve on your jacket or is the bow string actually hitting it? It would seem to me that if the string is hitting it, that the extra noise might defeat the purpose of getting a quiet bow for hunting. This is part of the reason I asked the orginal question. On this years buck, I hit my jacket sleeve, but it did not interfer with the arrow's flight and the deer was so close, it didn't stand a chance anyway. But, it got me thinking that on a 20-25 yards shot, things may not have gone so well. It was a crisp 15 degree morning and I had a bulky jacket on. I was more concerned with the extra noise it made than anything else.
My new bow will be bought with only hunting in mind. Although, I'll 3D and target shoot with it, my goal will be only to shoot my hunting bow as well as I can in those activities. It would seem to me that the ideal bow for hunting would have a very high brace height, be very quiet and yet have enough speed to help out in range mis-estimation.
The arm guard held my sleeve away. The strign did not contact the guard. I would be more concerned with the string hanging up in my sleeve accuracy wise than any noise created from the string sliding across an arm guard.
Can you hunt with it?
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