How far would you shoot?

What is your comfortable range? How far would you shoot to kill a deer?

Most shots should be within 20 or so yards if you have position yourself in the woods off the trail just right.

I am asking if you are off a field. What is the furthest shot do you think you could comfortable take without any thought.

I can make a 50 yard shot with no problem. I have never taken a deer that far but I have shot a turkey that far with my bow.

I was watching monster bucks and seems like those guys make some pretty far shots. I know it depends on practice/ability/bow you shoot/confidence and a bunch of other factors. Some people can make some long shots.

25 yards but I do shoot a recurve!

For me it would be 35 to 40 yards max. I usually don’t hunt field edges and a shot past 40 yard is rather rare in the hardwoods where I hunt!

I’m comfortable out to 50 yards, but I try not to shoot over 40 yards. I’ll take a 45-50 yd shot if the conditions are just right, i.e. being able to hold my pin very steady, low wind, deer not alert.

Those conditions are rare though..

My comfort range under “Ideal” Conditions is 41-42 yards. Top 3 things that “Ideal” includes is: calm conditions (no or very little wind), good light and relaxed deer.

I can shoot well and very confident out to at least 50 yards. With all that said, the farthest shot I have taken is 25 yards. The longest shot I have taken on a buck is 22 yards.

35 thats it

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35 thats it

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agreed, I have shot my bow out to 40 yards, but for me it gets a little too jumpy on the site pin.

When taking a shot on a deer, I won’t go past 25 yards. I’m ok on a target out to about 40, but just wouldn’t want to take the chance of a non-fatal shot. My confidence just isn’t there on the longer ones.

When a person says they are confident or comfortable out to 50 yards, are they saying they can shoot a tight 1″ group at that range? Or does a person mean that they can plunk one shot within a few inches most of the time at 50 yards but will be way off on some?

Just wondering what others think. I know I am not accurate at that range….not even close.

I can shoot a 4″ group at 50 yards, with no WTF arrows… Would I shoot at a deer at 50 yards ????? If everything was ideal, yes. No wind, broadside, unalert deer…. the farthest I have shot is 32 yards on doe, she piled up in 40 yards

big G

To me, accuracy is 3″ diameter of a center mass perfect shot. So if you look at the vitals, the perfect spot for me is top of the heart, straight up the back of the front leg. Put a 3 inch circle around that and I’ll take my chance tracking and finding that animal won’t be an issue.

So that being said, at any distance, I better be able to get 6 out of 6 in there in my opinion. I grew up in windy, treeless SD so we practiced out to 50 all the time. Especially spot/stalk hunts for mule deer in the river breaks. I don’t ever recall getting a calm animal, no wind day. So for me at that time 40 yards was the “max” but I was very comfortable with my 50 yard pin. I believe to accomplish this,
1. tons of practice
2. finely tuned bow/arrow/broadhead combination
3. environmental conditions

I believe each individual must decide this before he/she goes into the field also.

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When a person says they are confident or comfortable out to 50 yards, are they saying they can shoot a tight 1″ group at that range? Or does a person mean that they can plunk one shot within a few inches most of the time at 50 yards but will be way off on some?

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To me, 3-4″ groups on a consistent basis is what I consider being confident enough to make a shot. Right now, I am fortunate enough to make this type of shot at 50 yds, but I have the luxury of shooting my bow every day. Even than, I would still refrain from taking a shot over 40-42 yds under almost all circumstances.

Put some shaking, wind, and spooky deer into the picture and I think that max shot goes down to 25yds.

Good Points Chowdski and Koots!

I guess if I have wind it does not bother me too much, because I practice in those conditions also, but it does knock down my confident range a little (35-40 yards depending on wind speed)). What mostly knocks down my comfort range is an Alert animal. Also my above conditions are mainly for tree stand or blind hunting Whitetails. Spot and Stalk, Mule Deer, or Elk might be a lil’ different story.

Also note to the guys that don’t practice long shots, you should. It is amazing how after shooting @ 50 yards, 25 yards seems like 10.

I think it is all about ones confidence level. If you shoot alot at a said range, you build your confidence level to that range. If you draw on a deer at say 40 yards and you think to yourself, “I hope I can put her right where it counts”, then you probably shouldn’t shoot. I like others shoot all the way out to 50 yards on a regular basis and am very confident on my abilities at that range but anything over 30-35 I will only shoot if I have time to verify the distance with my rangefinder.

Fifty yards? Are you guys serious? You do know how far fifty yards is right? I look at the yard lines at the local football games and picture, even 35 yards, and always wonder if guys honestly know how far 50 yards is with a bow. Truth is I’m not even sure my old 36MX Darton can throw an arrow that far! These new fangled bows and carbon arrows must really be something.

Truth of it is I always figured if I can’t get a deer within 20-25 yards I don’t deserve it with a bow. Thankfully, I guess, we don’t have huge bucks to tempt me beyond that range. If bullwinkle himself strolled into sight and stood broad side at 40 yards from me he’d most likely sleep sound that night. I’m sure I’d be better equipped to run him down than to shoot him at that distance. I’ve never shot my bow past 35 yards. 25 yards and under I can rip fletchings and break knocks off arrows by stacking them so tight in the target. Good enough for me with what I use.

Good point Musky Whenever I sit down in a new set, I will range objects all around me. I build a picture in my head where my limits are and what ranges they are at. I can say, I have never ranged a 50 yard perimeter, when I sit down, I hunt mostly in the woods. Where I used to live, I would hunt over an alfalfa field quite often, I literally got a can of white spray paint and marked off 20 yards, 30 yards and 40 yards, in an arc in front of my set. This was before I even heard of a range finder

big G

Riverrat, with my old bow, I wouldn’t think of over 30 yards… with my Hoyt, I have no problem setting my Block out at 50 and drilling 4″ circle. I know it is 50, because I used my rangefinder to establish my distances. It is a long ways for sure, but with practice and muscle memory, with time, it’s like shooting at 20 yards. I shoot for a good month, before I even attempt to check my longrange pins

big G

Also note to the guys that don’t practice long shots, you should. It is amazing how after shooting @ 50 yards, 25 yards seems like 10.

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agreed i practice mostly at 40 yards makes 20 seem like a layup

Practice is what it takes to make any shot. The right practice is even more important!! See a lot of people who shoot alot miss often. Shooting from an elvated position is differnt than flat ground. Putting out a target at 20yds standing there and expect to shoot a deer or anything from 30ft in the air could be costly.

I have elevated stands all around my yard. I practice taking shots out to 80yds from 15-30ft in the air. Also take some of them on the ground. very confident I can make a killing shot at those ranges normally.

Right now is not normal though for me. Pulled the bow out 2 weeks ago and the limbs had delaminated. Going back to an old back up gloden eagle bow I have tossed a bunch of arrow in the bush. With the old gear 50yds would be max now.

I rarely hunt field edges but I wouldnt shoot over 30 yards, I just feel like to much can go wrong any further out no matter how good you shoot.

Riverrat,
Why do you say if you can’t get a deer within 20-25 yards you don’t deserve it?? And why are you glad you don’t get shots at big bucks Isn’t that why we hunt…

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Riverrat,
Why do you say if you can’t get a deer within 20-25 yards you don’t deserve it?? And why are you glad you don’t get shots at big bucks Isn’t that why we hunt…

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For me I’d rather have the skill, luck, and timing to get a deer in at close range. It’s why I bow hunt. My comment about big bucks is simple as well. I have no desire to shoot past 20 or so yards. I’d estimate my longest kill was my first at about 25-27 yards. Without having the temptation of a huge buck standing just outside my comfort range I don’t worry about taking an unethical shot. (Side note: This year I was able to gain a lot of momentum with neighboring hunters to begin putting mineral out for deer. My hopes are that this will be the beginning to some better management practices and a higher quality deer. Certainly it won’t hurt. Maybe I’ll have to upgrade my bow and sneak up to the football field at night and get some practice!)

I guess I look at this question in a different way. I don’t ask myself how far will I shoot? I ask myself how confident am I in making a killing shot at that particular instance. There are so many variables that can come into play and no two shots are ever the same.

One thing to remember is the further away a deer is, the harder it is to judge the distance. Most hunters miss because they misjudged the distance rather than not being able to hit their target. So being able to shoot accurately at 50 yards is only half the challenge. The other half is judging distances.

Every stand I’m in I will range specific kill zones in which I anticipate the deer travel route. Typically there are only 2 or 3 kill zones in each stand set up and with proper stand placement, more times than not, you will never have to worry about a 40-50 yard shot.

I practice long range shooting ALOT. Like 70 and 80 yards. And the reason I do is because (like someone else already said) I like the confidence that if a shooter steps out at 35 yards I can wack it. Long range shooting doesnt mean you are going to ever take a shot at that range.(although I know a guy who shot a cape buffalo 97yds I know it sounds crazy but I have seen the video) what long range practice is all about is extending your maximun effective kill range. The rule of thumb that I use is that you get about 2\3 of your maximum practice range as your kill range. For instance I practice at 70 to 80 and I am comfortable at 45 to 50 yards max under ideal conditions. I guess its all in what you want to hunt, if you are treestand deer hunter 20 to 30 is fine, but if you are ever going to head west to hunt mullies or elk you need more than 30yards in country that big.
just my opinion

If I seen a 160″ or bigger out at 50 yrds and had a very good shot with no doubt I was going to hit where I was aiming Id shoot at that distance. Does I wouldn’t shoot at that distance because its fairly easy to put a stand up to get a shot at around 20 yrds. It would have to be a situation where he wasen’t going to come in any closer and wasen’t on aleart, good conditions too.

I also do the majority of my practice at 40 yards. All of my stands are deep in the woods (no perimeter stands at all – I leave those to the boys) My longest clear shot in any of my stands is 34 yards and I have only needed to make that shot once – it was a clean kill. I do agree with practicing beyond what you need to shoot – makes the short ones a “chip shot”

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I practice long range shooting ALOT. Like 70 and 80 yards. And the reason I do is because (like someone else already said) I like the confidence that if a shooter steps out at 35 yards I can wack it. Long range shooting doesnt mean you are going to ever take a shot at that range.(although I know a guy who shot a cape buffalo 97yds I know it sounds crazy but I have seen the video) what long range practice is all about is extending your maximun effective kill range. The rule of thumb that I use is that you get about 2\3 of your maximum practice range as your kill range. For instance I practice at 70 to 80 and I am comfortable at 45 to 50 yards max under ideal conditions. I guess its all in what you want to hunt, if you are treestand deer hunter 20 to 30 is fine, but if you are ever going to head west to hunt mullies or elk you need more than 30yards in country that big.
just my opinion

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Very well put Corey!

“Whenever I sit down in a new set, I will range objects all around me. I build a picture in my head where my limits are and what ranges they are at.”

Big G

I do this all the time. Weather I am in the woods or just off a field. Sometime I like to pick out object in the stand make a guess and then check it with the range finder. I pratice this alot. So if I do have to make a call on how far something is I have at least an idea in my head. Being right on at distances that are between 30-50 can be huge.

A range finder is an important tool. It save me time and scent so I don’t have to walk out every single lane and make a mark for the yardage.

Good Point Guys. I only shoot those longer distances if I know the distance of the shot. Range Finder has been a big part of my arsenal for quite some time. It takes the guess work out of it. I do the same thing. As soon as I sit I start ranging objects and quiz myself through the day of what each is. Close shots it doesn’t matter but if I shoot longer shots I try to range the animal for exact distances.

Also I thought I would mention as I figured it was obvious, but an animal that is under “ideal conditins” is also stopped (not moving)and either broad side or slight qaurteing away.

My ideal shot would be 20 to 30, I will take a practice shot at 40 in my first sit on stand, just in case.