Fishing Forum

It's nice and manageable, so far no high water, still dirty in places, smack'N the carp... Did manage 1 nice cat while I was taking a break from the carp.... No shortage of carp... I'll post some pics when I get too the computer...
Matt
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That's awesome! Bowfishing is definately on my bucket list and I have been checking out gear recently. The AMS reels look pretty smooth. I'm thinking I want a right hand retrieve since I am right handed, I don't even bowhunt so It will all be new to me!
Any advice on what bow to use and or tackle would be much appreciated!
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Go with a compound, either a Alpine Mako or Ruckus, you will be fine with 50# limbs and a ams retriever and I use the Cajun Archery tips on a standard Bowfishing arrow, I used a recurve at first but there not as efficient for carping very much
Matt
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I completely disagree. Recurve all the way. I can shoot a lot faster and seem to have a much higher hit rate with it shooting instinctively. Compounds are for hunting with. Probably a ford vs chevy thing but after watching my brother work on his compound the entire day because his string kept coming off while I was sticking fish was enough reason for me. Much more can go wrong with a compound than a recurve.

I don't disagree at all... I started on a recurve, I now shoot a Alpine Ruckus, I tournament bow fish, so I need a versatile bow that will shoot deep fish and shallow fish with everything in between, with my 60# I had too limit my shooting, 4 ft. and shallower, I wasn't getting enough penetration too blow threw a carp and keep it on the line too put in the barrel, so a recurve has its pro's and con's, same with a compound, he did not specify the type of water or how often he is going too choose too shoot carp, also I do shoot my compound instinctively, anytime you wanna go out and prove me wrong I got a great boat and the time....
Matt
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I too shoot carp with a compound instinctively. shooting a 2003 martin jaguar. its a fifty to 60 bow and i have it backed off to 50 do to how many times i shoot in a day. gets upwards of 100 shots a day. havent had to much of a problem sticking a foot 4 feet deep though.

curious what broadhead everybody uses. I started using the muzzy stingray with great success.
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as far as tips I use the PIRANHA LONG BARB POINT by Cajun archery, holds really well even in the middle of the summer when they start too get "soft" and they can't spin off, just unscrew the tip 1 turn or so and the barbs fold forward, simple and has great holding power....
Matt
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I also use the cajun piranha tip with the yellow and black arrow. My recurve has 55 lb limbs and reaches down to 4 ft fish with ease. The only advantage i see with a compound is they are shorter and maybe a little more maneuverable, however after shooting a couple compounds they definitely are not for me. I also agree that the AMS retriever reel is the way to go.

I use a recurve, just because it was cheaper to buy for how often I use it. I bought one of the PSE Kingfishers, 50lb when it was on sale, never had a bow before that. My friend did it with me to try and ended up buying the stuff for his hoyt to do it. My opinion is if you already have a bow just spend 100 to buy what you need, if not a recurve is a good starting point instead of dumping in a ton to it.
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Well, as long as this has turned into a discussion on bow fishing I want to ask about reels. There seem to be two of them out there. One that looks almost like a toy, just a spool although I am sure it is just fine functionally and another that has the bottle that holds the line, I think it is the AMS retriever mentioned here a couple times. I can not seem to find a reason to not spend the extra money on the AMS in my mind even tho I have zero archery experience. I also know you can put other reels on.
I guess my question would be not so much what you would use but why you wouldn't use a particular one. I know I wouldn't want to use one that was a spin cast reel mount as I just know I would forget to push the button.
Any input from you bow fishers on reels?
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I have a spin cast reel seat and reel that I use as a back up if my AMS quits working, there are the cheaper side the reel is $20 and reel seat is about $20 also, look online, and put 100# braid on it and its quite a bit cheaper than a AMS, when I was doing it for fun, I used a recurve I got for like $150 and the AMS retriever, had about $300 in a setup with a couple of arrows, arrows are cheap, buy them without the nock and tip buy those separate and glue them on with some super glue from the archery shop, that way you can get the arrow and tip setup you want, go over and talk too Danny at Archery Central on the Caldwell Blvd. he has a ton of older used bows there for a good price and he carries all the stuff you need, Tell him Matt sent you and he might hook you up with alittle off, good guy, if you need anything else just let me know, oh and with the reel, you won't forget too push the button after a couple of times, it becomes habit, plus you can't draw without pushing the button, unless you are using an arrow slid, which you do not need, also you will need a rest or shoot off the shelf of the recurve, but I would suggest a rest, either a roller style or the Muzzy Fish hook rest, any other questions feel free too ask,
Matt
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I finally got me a bowfishing setup. Archery Central was definately a great help getting me setup. I bought a used compound that fits me perfect and they put the AMS Retriever and an arrow rest on it. Thanks everyone on here for the advice. I can't wait to get out and try this thing. I hit a can at 15 yards on my third shot. No sights on this setup. It's really awesome.. and used compounds are fairly inexpensive so Im in less than $200 for the Bow, Retriever and Arrow rest..
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Good luck! Sounds like a lot of fun. I have even seen where people have used step ladders on some flats to shoot from. Remember to adjust for the light refraction.
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