I shoot 40 pounds and I killed 2 deer this year. Both were complete passthroughs/double lung shots, and one went 25 yards the other went 10 yards.

You should shoot what you are comfortable with. Sit on the floor with your legs flat and draw. Is it easy? Personally I have my FeatherMax set at 70lbs.

Some states have a min. on draw weight.You don't want to overbow yourself though because you will develop bad habits and do more harm then good.I shoot 75 now and when I was your age I shot between 90-120Lbs.,but these days you don't need it.

i shoot 75 lbs....you need to start w/a weight that you feel comfortable with. when i say "comfortable" i don't mean what you can draw when its 70 degrees outside and you're wearing a tee-shirt. im talking about what you can draw after sitting in a treestand in 30 degree weather for 2 hrs w/3 layers of clothes on. i've seen far too often guys make the mistake of overbowing themselves for field conditions just because they can shoot 30 shots in a 3d tourney. also huntinfool14 said he killed deer w/40 lbs. that may be however check your states hunting laws because some states have minimum draw weights for hunting. here in Ohio you can't deerhunt w/a bow less than 45 lbs.
good luck.

For years I shot my PSE set at 76 pounds. I was flinging 525 grain aluminum poles at 252 feet per second. 2 years ago I bought a Darton, dropped it to 67 pounds and now I fling 425 grain carbons at 265 fps. I'll never go back. I figure I can still knock down a big V8 Dodge Ram Truck with one shot.

53# recurve. Overkill for deer.

JRW

Between 65-70 normally. I usually hear "40 lbs" as the minimum that most places have set for draw weight in terms of hunting deer.

45# Recurve
60 Pound Longbow
70 Pound compound

I would start with 55lbs, and shoot it 3 times a week. Then go up by 3-5lbs, and repeat until you're shooting your hunting draw weight. You don't want to start off with a rotator cuff injury. I started with 70lbs and shot three times a week because I could pull it back easily with my right arm. What I ended up with was a sore left shoulder that still hasn't completely gotten back to normal, two years later. I shoot 60lbs for hunting whitetail now.

I use 71#, i could pull more comfortably but this is more than enough