Uploaded March 2017 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
My Gear List (with purchase links): diy-sportsman.com/2017/12/29/deer-hunting-gear-list-2017
Podcast: sportsmensnation.com/podcasters/diy-sportsman
Bow hunting with a homemade reflex deflex longbow: This is the bow I put together back in the winter/spring of 2015. I have a link to the build-a-long video below. It has a bamboo backing and ipe belly, is 68" tip to tip, and is currently rightly about 59# at 28" draw. I hunted with the bow a few times in 2015, but this past fall I used the longbow for everything that wasn't a metro hunt (where I needed my compound to pass sharpshooter proficiency tests) or a firearm hunt (My Wisconsin gun hunt is a longstanding tradition for me).
This coming fall, I will not be doing any of the city hunts, which will free up more time to hunt with a trad bow. A 68" tip to tip bow poses significant challenges from a tree stand relative to a parallel limb compound. It's certainly doable; however, there were certain shot angles I had to cross off the list completely. The bow I'm finishing up for 2017 is a 58" hybrid design between a longbow and recurve.
I hunted out of both a hang on stand and a saddle. This was my first season using a saddle to hunt out of. Moving forward, I will continue to use both the saddle and the hang on, as they are both specialized tools that have their own sets of pro's and con's for different situations.
Build-a-long video for the bow:
youtube.com/watch?v=xljOvsexlkg&t=661s
Shooting the Homemade Longbow:
youtube.com/watch?v=zvHJAeQQzpo
DIY Saddle Setup:
youtube.com/watch?v=z_OVhk7U2JY&t=129s
My Gear List (with purchase links): diy-sportsman.com/2017/12/29/deer-hunting-gear-list-2017
Podcast: sportsmensnation.com/podcasters/diy-sportsman
Bow hunting with a homemade reflex deflex longbow: This is the bow I put together back in the winter/spring of 2015. I have a link to the build-a-long video below. It has a bamboo backing and ipe belly, is 68" tip to tip, and is currently rightly about 59# at 28" draw. I hunted with the bow a few times in 2015, but this past fall I used the longbow for everything that wasn't a metro hunt (where I needed my compound to pass sharpshooter proficiency tests) or a firearm hunt (My Wisconsin gun hunt is a longstanding tradition for me).
This coming fall, I will not be doing any of the city hunts, which will free up more time to hunt with a trad bow. A 68" tip to tip bow poses significant challenges from a tree stand relative to a parallel limb compound. It's certainly doable; however, there were certain shot angles I had to cross off the list completely. The bow I'm finishing up for 2017 is a 58" hybrid design between a longbow and recurve.
I hunted out of both a hang on stand and a saddle. This was my first season using a saddle to hunt out of. Moving forward, I will continue to use both the saddle and the hang on, as they are both specialized tools that have their own sets of pro's and con's for different situations.
Build-a-long video for the bow:
youtube.com/watch?v=xljOvsexlkg&t=661s
Shooting the Homemade Longbow:
youtube.com/watch?v=zvHJAeQQzpo
DIY Saddle Setup:
youtube.com/watch?v=z_OVhk7U2JY&t=129s
