Bob I usually agree with 99% of what you say but no way will I agree its easier to pull a Traditional bow back verse a compound in cold weather!

That OK.

IMO, the draw cycle starts on most of the modern compound bowsvery near peak weight. While the traditional starts very light. That initial pull on the compound until the cams flip is the though part IMO since itstarts near and proceeds near or atpeak instead building up and finishing at peak. The traditional bow hasmore of a shotrythm. IMO pulling back a compound (before the cams flip) is a bit tougher then pulling back a trad bow. But, keep in mind that different muscles seem to be used between the two.

Holding the bow back atanchor in a whole different thing IMO.

But make sure you read the disclaimer below.....

Lmao!! I'm with ya Bob on the disclaimer part!

I guess different Traditional bows stack different and some are much heavier in draw weight then other bows. Mine stacks terribly (one thing I hate about my recurve) and my draw weight is up there. I guess when I shot my compound it had a 50% let off and I was pulling 60 lbs back. That thing was a heck of allot easier for me to pull back in cold weather then the recurve I shoot now in cold weather.

But then again what do I know!!

I'm sure I'm not the only one, but I learned many years ago that during practice, target shooting, field or whatever that we get our practice shots in and then shoot whatever we're shooting. This has the muscles all loosened up and warmed up so I shot a certain poundage.

The same cannot be said for hunting situations. We sit on stand for hours, maybe days without drawing the bow. Muscles are not warmed up. Maybe it's cold out which compounds things. If the poundage is too high this is a good scenerio for what you describe---not being able to draw the bow. It is also a ripe moment for injuring those muscles---not good.

Some go the opposite way, but I found that it's much better to turn the bow down about 5# from whatever I've been shooting all summer. I'm not a kinetic energy freak by any means when it comes to deer hunting. It just doesn't take much to blow through a deer with today's equipment.

Having shot many thousands of shots all summer, in hunting situations I've drawn my hunting bow with such ease that it almost scared me. I've found myself standing at full draw, aiming at a deer, and hardly remember even drawing the bow.

To me, that's how it should be. No muss, No fuss.

Stacking is tough. The fluidness of the shot is ruined when it kicks in hard. I have a 1965 Bear Kodiak mag (was my fathers) that is 52" and 45#'s at 28". It feels like I hit a brick wall and I'm fighting with it at my draw length.

Big Doe came in from behind me and had tried to pull back while she was @ 8 yards, but my safety harness was set to short and couldn't completely turn to get my shot off.
I wiggled a bit trying to free myself enough and she spotted me a bolted.
I now have a new safety harness!

First year of hunting, I was about 9 or 10 years old and I was with my dad. I was pulling a 40 pound bow back which I had no problem at all when target practicing. Well My very first buck that I have ever seen came from behind me and it was at a weird angle. My safety harness was helping me not get there which really ticked me off because this would have been a nice first buck. Well anyway I finally got to a right angle, when I tried pulling back but I couldn't get it past to roll in the cams. By the way it was freezing outside also. I tried so hard I almost crapped my self. And it was freaking me out at the same time because that buck was just standing about 15 yards broadside scraping at the snow for food. Well after 2 minutes of trying to pull it back I got a idea where I will turn straight on my stand then pull back there then turn. Well that worked, I got it pulled back and I turned but then I couldn't get to the right angle as I was before. I was trying so hard to get there when I acually gave a second to see what the deer was doing...... no deer....

That was a day I will always remember.

I had scouted an area in the summer and found a great pinch point along a river bottom. The first time I headed down into this spot with treestand on my back I could not find the right tree to hang my stand. I quickly made a ground blind and climbed in for the morning hunt. Just after light a wide racked 10 point came through exactly where I hoped. This was going to work out great. One problem, in my haste to set-up a ground blind I failed to allow enough room for me to draw. When I stood up to clear the brush he spotted me and took off. Since that day I take great care in making sure I can draw and shoot to many areas around my stands or blinds.

I got busted last season on opening Rifle day (I was carrying only my bow). I was sitting with my back against a tree in a little thicket and grunted a couple times and sure enough a nice big buck came heading in and I got so flustered and nervous(would have been my first buck with a bow) that I didnt sit up on my knees to draw back until he was about 15 yards from me and he spotted me in mid motion. I would have shot from my butt if it was at all possible but have you ever tried to shoot a bow from your butt siting against a tree? Its pretty much impossible, and needless to say he didnt hang around to let me get into position.

My story is similar to your Trevor. It was my first year bowhunting and i was trying to get my first deer with a bow. I wanted a big ol doe. I had several come by at 15 yards and i just simply couldnt get it back cause i was so nervous. After trying a few times i stopped and relaxed, waited about a minute and tried again. This time i got the bow back, settled in and shot. The shot deflected of a limb though and i missed.

Still funny looking back on that...