hi, i'm 16 years old and from southeast Kansas,my friends and i want to get into bowfishing. What equipment works best or what works for you. Please be specific. Thanks

Welcome to the addiction Hawkeye.
To best answer your question read an article written by Jason Wesbrock for HuntingNet.

http://www.huntingnet.com/articles/articles.aspx?articles_id=504

He covers, as the article says, the basics. If you still have questions afterwards, Ask away.

How did you get interested in Bowfishing? Do you shoot a bow now?

There are several good options out there as mentioned in the article.
Most of the bowfishers I know eitherexclusively usethe simplest hand wound spools (cheap but slow),or they have one of everything (like me) so that they can try them out, and have a spare set as backup for a competition or something to loan out when we take out new guys.

Do you have a place near you that has carp, gar, buffalo, or any of the rough fish that may be legal to take with your bow?

How far are you from Branson?

Well first a Bow, doesn't matter what type, just a bow you can shoot alot. you will on average shoot at least 50 times during anytime bowfishing. Second, an arrow of course, preferably white fiberglass, with good fish point, this will give you many shots of enjoyment and misery, lol.
The point can be a cheap or pricey your choice. They all work, some better than others. Now, you need a reel. I say go cheap, till you know you love it and can afford it. A Hand (open face) spool will last a lifetime and has less hassle. But, not as fast for getting more shots off. If want a fishing reel, need a real seat, buy one, or if have a stabilizer get some hose clamps and clamp one on. There are all kinds of little tricks to do this. But once you decide to do it all the time, invest good money in good tackle, give you more pleasure.

First of all i would like to thank you for your responses! Well i first was interested in bowfishing when my friends and I were talking what we were gonna do this summer and we go to state lake in montgomery county KS. Which is just a couple miles from my house by country roads. We have a "secret" spot where the water is bout 3 to 5 feet deep and pretty clear, and when we get alot of rain it's awesome. Well there are quite of few gar that are pretty good size and we always were talking how we wanted to catch them well i got to thinking. When i was little I was fishing at the river with my dad and saw someone bowfishing and thought that was weird! But I immediately knew i wanted to try it. When I toldmy friendsthat we could bowfish well to say the least they laughed and i got on the pc and showed them pics and told them that this would be fun. I got them hooked. As of right now i don't own a bow, my dad hunts birds and deer with a rifle. Thats what he was raised on so he doesn't adventure to far from it. I love hunting and fishing and like my dad says, if it breathes i "try" to hunt it.lol Well i have been gettin interested in bow hunting deer and turkey so i thought i would try this too.Also my b-day is in march so this is why i wanted to know what kind of stuff I needed. lol

Hey Hawkeye I sent you a PM. Keep your eyes peeled you can pick up a decent bow to set-up pretty cheap!!! Every once in a while you can find full set-ups on e-bay as well. A couple guys I know use youth compounds but I like having the proper draw length it's just what I'm most comfortable with. I think for under $200 you can have everything you will need to shoot those gar!!!

Hawkeye, that 'secret spot' of yours is about to become your full-time hangout just as soon as you hit that first fish. You'll want to get out early, stay late, and get ALL of your friends into bowfishing so you have more people to share it with. For gar, I recommend a good point with a sharp tip, like the Muzzy's.


Most people thinkgar taste better than carp and buffalo too. You just need tinsnips to clean the toothycritters. Here's a demo that will help you deal with the armor-like scales if you haven't done it before...
http://www.illinoisbowfishers.com/gar.html
There is also a gar-cleaning video link at the bottom of that page from our friends at Aim Low Productions.

Also, you don't need to invest a lot of $ into BF gear to get started.
My Dad introduced me to it 20-some years ago and we shot fish sharing a single bow with a homemade hand spool for 15 years. Get a bow setup for yourself, and then take your friends with you and pass it around. They'll be saving up for their own bows in no time.

Gar can be a pretty skinny target for beginners, so don't get frustrated. Just have fun and pay attention to wheather your first shots are too high or too low. Once you can hit a skinny gar, the other types of fish are easier.

-Bulz