I would go with a long bow...Although I have shot both...for me..there is something unique about a kill with a longbow in hand....For some reason the long bow makes me feel more like an indian

Also - When you go to an Osage self bow...shooting off the knuckle...its different...try'em all!! Took a doe with flint wrapped in Sinew....it was the biggest accomplishment I've ever experienced since I hit the ground hunting at 11 years old in 1986. Have fun....start out in an area that holds small bucks and lots of doe(s).[8D]..I don't want to see you lose your mind on a 150+ during your first year of Trad...it could make you go back to buttons and whistles really fast....get confident....practice....and put some deer under your belt with traditional...thats the key...you gotta put deer on the ground....thats how you will grow and become more successful....

Here is a doe I took 1997with a homemade laminate longbow by Dennie Rowe of Michigan..Purple Wood & Osage....Cedar 4 fletched arrows....Zwickey Heads