Shot or No Shot

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Arcuites
Posts: 108
Joined: Fri May 04, 2018 10:17 am

Shot or No Shot

#1 Post by Arcuites »

So, I've been watching a large amount of videos and studying trad archery on youtube. It's a wide and varied sport for sure. I wanted to get this boards opinion on the subject of when to let an arrow fly, in a given circumstance. Again, I've been a hunter my entire life, but am new to recurve, and want any shot I take to obviously be a kill shot. So here's the scenario..... Stand hunting, 20', deer is 15 yds going away, shoulders at 11:00. Take a shot? and if so, where is the placement? What about 12:00? Obviously, the window is much more narrow, and if the hunter is comfortable inside a 6" window, what should my decision be? Thanks as always for your expertise.

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Graps
Posts: 6696
Joined: Mon Sep 08, 2014 8:39 pm

Re: Shot or No Shot

#2 Post by Graps »

I personally wouldn't take a shot like that.
I want to have a good broadside shot so I can get double lung.
"Maybe the truly handicapped people are the ones that don't need God as much." ~ Joni Eareckson Tada

Captainkirk
Site Admin
Posts: 12787
Joined: Tue Aug 26, 2014 8:19 pm

Re: Shot or No Shot

#3 Post by Captainkirk »

Quartering toward/away shots are always a crap shoot. Especially quartering away. You have to gamble on getting enough penetration with your trad bow to punch through the far side lung and will likely knock out the liver, etc on the close side, but even if you do it can be a loooong day of tracking. I second what Graps said; a broadside that will either take out the heart or both lungs. I shot one of those anatomical deer targets one time and was horrified to find what looked like a good solid hit missed every vital except clipping a lung. Most likely that would have been a lost animal in a real situation. Add 20' height to the mix (I'm a ground blind hunter these days) and you are asking for trouble, IMHO.
Aim small, miss small!

Arcuites
Posts: 108
Joined: Fri May 04, 2018 10:17 am

Re: Shot or No Shot

#4 Post by Arcuites »

Thanks for the feedback gents. Good info. Yeah, when you watch videos, obviously, no one is going to post without having killed their game. So to see these shots, it's 100% kills which is deceiving of course. These shots require expertise (which I'm lacking), as well as luck. One I can control, and the other I don't like relying upon.

Captainkirk
Site Admin
Posts: 12787
Joined: Tue Aug 26, 2014 8:19 pm

Re: Shot or No Shot

#5 Post by Captainkirk »

Yes, and they can edit one heck of a long tracking day (or into Day Two) to seem like they just walked up on Ol' Mossy Horns in 15 minutes or so.
I will say that I've never been so close to so many deer in my life then when I started blind hunting. It's really a freak-out being eyeball to eyeball with a deer at 15 yards.
Aim small, miss small!

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