Maximum range for deer?
 

Back in the day, the rule of thumb was a 40 yard shot with a compound bow while deer hunting. These days with the newest speed bows around 335fps, can you extend that range? What say you? Thanks...

If the deer is calm and unalert I feel comfortable out to 60. If alert I have a hard time justifying a 40 yard shot.

25-30 yards on a deer. I have never shot one that far (22 yards is my farthest in over 30 years of bow hunting) but confident I could. Good out to 50 on targets though.

Why push the yardage and risk wounding a great animal when bow hunting was meant to be a "close up" sport?!!!

35-40 is as far as I'll shoot at an animal calm or not.

I think I have shot pretty much all my deer at 20 yards or less(usually less). That is kind of the point of bow hunting for me I guess.

I don't think you can really put a rule of thumb on it. Abilities in people vary greatly.

Bows (even older ones) are more capable than the people shooting them.

I am not afraid to take a 60 yard shot. But where I live that ain't gonna happen. I might have 40 yards at the most. But at any given time its only about 30 yards



Hutch

45 yards is my max. I'm comfortable shooting 60 yards, but with a live animal, in the woods, too much can happen from the time you let the arrow fly to the time it gets to your target. I had a deer turn inside out at 17 yards this year and almost get under my arrow when I shot. Given I had to stop him in a shooting lane and he looked right at me but non the less they can be very jumpy.

When arrow flight times go over a half second, it doesn't matter how good of a shot you think you are. The animal has way too much time to move, jump, or drop during those 6 tenths of a second. It's a risky shot.

My longest shot was 40 yards. 95 percent of my shots have been between 15 and 25 yards.