A Complete Buying Guide to the Best Bowfishing Bow

Getting Started

Bow fishing is normally done both at night as well as during the day with the hunter choosing to either stand on a boat or at the shore. Night hunting is quite romantic with nature and is a sure way of multiplying the thrill and joy not forgetting the fact that it’s more productive.

Important Tips

When planning to go for bow hunting, counting on your lucky stars will do you no good. Below are some of the tricks and tips that will keep you ahead in the bowfishing game:

• Practice to understand the water refraction factor
• The closer the fish is to you, the better your aim will be
• Spawning freshwater fish are far the best targets
• Knee deep waters offer the easiest playground for fish targeting
• Shooting at least six inches below your target compensates for refraction.

The Prey

There are numerous freshwater species that an angler will have the option of angling. These include the common carp, the grass carp, the alligator gar, tilapia, the catfish, bowfin, the bighead carp and the catfish among others. For saltwater angling, your options include the barracuda the redfish, the flounder, the rays and the redfish sharks among others.

Anatomy of the Equipment

Bowfishing is similar but not the same as spear fishing. The hunting employs the use of pointed weapons in the place of baits and hooks.

a) The Bows

Whereas the model as well as the build of choice will totally always depends on you, as per your own comforts and body type, there are some accessories that must just be considered.

• The Recurve Bow

A recurve bow is one such type. This features a long curved apparatus that has been constructed to aid spontaneous shooting. With a weight of about 50 pounds, the unit is easy to use. As you buy this bow type, make sure that the type you go for has a stabilizer hole. Due to its relatively friendly price, it is a great choice for beginners.

• The Compound Bow

This is a shorter accessory as compared to the recurve. The accessory features a “left off” or no “let off”. When these bows have the let off, it implies that they are characterized with the slowest possible shooting speeds. On the other hand, the ones having no let off have higher speeds which are still slightly lower than the speeds provided by the recurve bows. Though these compound bow types are energy efficient, they aren’t the best bets for newbie. It is a great choice for the advanced hunters who are seeking for humidity resistance, top-notch velocity together with temperature resistance.

• Bow Draw Weight

Regardless of the type of bow you want to consider, your methodology of choosing a bow based on its draw weight should obviously be different from the methodology followed in selecting the bows used in hunting the big games. Unlike in game hunting where you can draw your arrow once or twice a day, in fishing, you may draw it up to 50 times a day. A bow whose draw weight averages at least 35 pounds will offer the best services to adult hunters without tiring you up so much

b) Bowfishing Arrows

As mentioned earlier, the arrows used in bow fishing have greater heft and strength when compared with the standard typical archery arrows. This makes them able to penetrate through the denseness of water, hitting the target with precision. These arrows feature heavier weight fiberglass or solid aluminum construction. It can also feature pure carbon fiber or a fiberglass reinforced with carbon. In other words, the fishing arrows are normally not designed for speed but for force.

The feathers and fletching that are characterized with the typical arrows are absent in fish hunting arrows. Whereas these fletching are great in boosting the velocity and power of the typical bows, the same feature reduces power and velocity in water hence must be avoided.

When doing selection, ensure that you consider reducing the risks of injury by going for a safety slide which perfectly fits on the arrows.

c) The Line

The line mounted on the reel is normally made of Dacron, Spectra or nylon and have a weight rating that ranges between 80 pound to 400 pound tests. When hunting the alligators, lines weighing 600 pound test can be employed. These lines come in different colors with lime green, orange and white being the typical colors.

The lines featuring the above mentioned materials are the toughest in the market and the most ideal for the hunting activities. They are the only materials that guarantee you smooth bowfishing sessions

d) The Reels

In bowfishing, you have the options of choosing between the hand wrap, spin cast or retriever reels. The simplest is the hand-wrap type that comprises of a circular spool where the line will manually be wrapped during retrieval. For the retriever reel, a bottle holds the line in place. The perfect choice for advanced bow fishers would be the spin cast reel, thanks to its high speed and precision.

It is important to know that the wrong selection of a reel type can greatly hurt the angler. It is thus recommended that an angler goes for the automatically releasing reels that keep off tangles. The snap back types have the capability of greatly hurting you.

​The AMS retriever is a specialized type that ensures smooth shooting that is free of tangles.

e) Rest

A good rest comes handy in enabling you hold your arrow (s) in place. The roller rest is an easy to use option, which comes with a fair price tag. On the other hand, the Whisker Biscuits should be considered if accuracy of shooting at peculiar angles is desired.

f) Optional Accessories

• The polarized sunglasses can offer an added advantage when it comes to easy target sighting even when the sunlight rays are glaringly bright.
• There is also the option of using rubber hip waders to keep you dry as you fish in shallow waters or at the shores.
• Gloves may be necessary for keeping the angler’s hands protected
• Good quality light comes handy for night fishing
• A flat bottomed boat having rails and a quiet motor.

Reviews of the 5 Best Bowfishing Bows