mysticguido

Other then the looks of both a recurve & longbow, what is the difference? I have a recurve 55# My arrows our easton xx75 2018's @29", what would be the long bow for these arrows? my draw is 28"

Troy n Oh

WOW there is no deadset answer for that question. There are so many different styles of longbows and every design varies on its efficiency. Most longbows have a much smaller riser and are not center shot so you need a lighter spine to bend around the riser upon release. But there are always exceptions and some of the newer designed longbows are real screamers and are as efficient as most recurves. Personally when I think of the classic D shaped longbow my mind says lots of handshock not impressivley fast and quiet. When you go to the R/D longbows I think faster way less handshock and still quiet. Recurves have more mass weight in the riser which lends itself to a steadier bow arm and are normally centershot so they can shoot a broader range of spines with good results. Well I guess thats my .02 and I am FAR from an expert on anything so hopfully more folks chime in.

Calabash

With the new designed longbows out there now, there's not too much difference in perfomance. Seems like the biggest difference to me in in riser size and weight and the center shot sight window cut out on the recurves.. The grips on most recurves are also different, like low wrist, med. wrist and high wrist. That being said you can also buy recurves with a longbow type grip and cutout.. Botom line, buy both longbow and recurve and enjoy the best of both worlds.. lol..
JMHO,
Calabash.

Chimo!

im just gunna put in a quik point most of the arrows you see today unless they are alum or carbon (i myself like to use cedars) arent made as good as they could be because they are mass produced leaving most of the work to your arrows manufacturer if you have a query such as this and your gettin mixed signals on forums its alot easier to talk to your producer then the masses
Chimo!

LBR

Troy pretty much nailed it. There are lots of different longbow designs available--some are dang near a recurve, some perform as well or better than some recurves, some are cut 1/8" or so from center, some cut to center, some cut past center, etc. Too many variables for there to be one or two correct answers there. Your draw length may also change some, depending on the type grip.

As for the difference, again it depends on the bow. Some longbows feel and shoot like a recurve to me. In general though, a recurve is a little faster, noisier, and shorter; longbows are generally quieter and may have more handshock (depending on design) and generally have smaller risers. Some feel that one or the other is easier/more natural to shoot. I prefer longbows myself--primarily mild to moderate deflex/reflex designs--seem to have the best of both worlds with them.

Chad

IrishLad32

Not much needs to be repeated, but there is one thing I want to mention. It seems some people take a liking to one as far as accuracy. For me, I just seem to shoot better with longbows. I don't know why, maybe it's the way I shoot a longbow compared to the way I shoot a recurve. I was shooting my recurve and doing well at 15yds and so so at 20yds. I started shooting my new longbow and went straight to droping them at 20yds. Before a heart shot a 20yds was stellar, now it's pretty normal. Some people just seem to shoot one better than the other.

Brandan

mysticguido

What I Really mean is .. Is the draw weight the same on both bows? Does a 55# Longbow feel the same as a Recurve being pulled at 55#.

Arthur P

There is no answer to that question. Again, it depends on the design of individual bows. A bow's limbs can be designed to give different draw cycles. Some bows load up a lot of their draw weight up front in the draw. Some are designed so the draw is loaded up on the back end of the draw. Some have a pretty constant increase throughout their draw cycle.

Any bow that has a draw cycle that's front loaded will feel smoother to me than one that's designed with a back load. Some people are probably just the opposite.

A straight limbed longbow usually has a constant draw while recurves generally have a front loaded feel due to the recurves straightening out at the back end of the draw. A reflex deflex longbow has more of a recurve feel.

I wish I could say, "Yes, a recurve is smoother to draw than a longbow." Problem is, it could be true about one particular recurve compared to one particular longbow, but it would definitely not be true across the board. I've drawn some longbows that felt so smooth it was like wiping your arse with silk. I've had some recurves that felt like I'd replaced the silk with a corncob.

All I can say for sure is, a longbow and a recurve, both made to draw 55 pounds at 28" will both draw 55 pounds at 28".