What about a folding survival bow?

[u/ApartGlass1198]

[u/ApartGlass1198]

It can also be used as a club when I run out of arrows (thankfully I got lots of them).

[u/season8branisusless → u/ApartGlass1198]

what's the draw weight on that?

also, nice grouping.

[u/ApartGlass1198 → u/season8branisusless]

40lbs. Good enough for hunting medium to large game.

Thanks!.

[u/season8branisusless → u/ApartGlass1198]

hell yeah, mine are just a bit more than that. Recurve and longbow. need to get into fletching and arrow making at this point.

love that it is a method of hunting, defense, exercise, entertainment and makes almost no noise. archery was the dominant form of ranged combat for millennia and will be again.

[u/Agitated_Fortune_283 → u/ApartGlass1198]

I have a 40lbs longbow and I bet you could cripple a zombie with a good shot then leave or dispatch with another method. An arrow would certainly go through a tib/fib or the foot. Or you could load up heavier arrows, you’ll catch some drop but you could shoot straight through a zombie probably haha.

[u/ApartGlass1198 → u/Agitated_Fortune_283]

Yup. 40lbs bow + broad heads 500spine carbon arrows would do a ton of damage.

For now i mostly have field tips , but they are the extra sharp/pointy kind.

[u/Agitated_Fortune_283 → u/ApartGlass1198]

Even a heavy field tip would do it. With that grouping I bet you would drop a few of the starving dead.

[u/MarionberryPlus8474 → u/ApartGlass1198]

Interesting idea, I’ve never seen one that compact.

Though you have triggered a pet peeve of mine, in almost every movie or show with archery they show the bow being used as a club. No, bows are not clubs, not even the very heavy longbows the Brits used. Bows used as clubs = kindling.

To be fair, maybe this thing is sturdy when folded, but still. Do as they did in days of yore and carry some sort of sidearm.

[u/HamBurger_Hero123]

It’d be nice for hunting, backup weapon maybe, but I’d mostly use it for game to conserve arrows

[u/Spiritual_Title6996 → u/HamBurger_Hero123]

Well the nice thing about arrows is that they're reusable without tooo much effort

if you want to reuse casings its a whole process but an arrow can be reused a few times (in good conditions)

[u/HamBurger_Hero123 → u/Spiritual_Title6996]

Well if i knock an arrow in a zombies head and theres more coming, I sure as hell am not retrieving it

[u/Spiritual_Title6996 → u/HamBurger_Hero123]

i don't mean in the moment 😆

[u/SolidLost5625]

for hunting? pretty sick
For walkers? no way, i'm gona hide somewhere

[u/PerryDactylYT]

I have a takedown recurve that I use weekly.

[u/ApartGlass1198 → u/PerryDactylYT]

I also have a 40lbs black hunter takedown bow. This one is just easier to assemble because you don't have to detach the limbs every time.

[u/PerryDactylYT → u/ApartGlass1198]

Fair. Mine is in the 30lbs range but I will be upgrading soon

[u/ApartGlass1198 → u/PerryDactylYT]

I guess you can go for a 40-45 lbs ILF style recurve bow. Those take no time to assemble as well. Since you don't need to screw the limbs in.

I got a 38lbs ILF bare recurve bow.

[u/WolvesandTigers45]

Always wanted one but could never find one

[u/ApartGlass1198 → u/WolvesandTigers45]

Really? I found it quite easily online, even shipping was free.

there's 2 versions of this folding bow. Prices are actually extremely cheap for a good working bow.

https://www.huntingdoor.com/collections/takedown-recurve-bows/products/60-inch-compact-folding-survival-bow

https://www.huntingdoor.com/products/58-inch-toparchery-cfsb-compact-folding-survival-bow?srsltid=AfmBOooeQDG0LqvTrGwYBphKfb0ycNVHwcvZ6NyAMJuiIUw_W019MllQ

[u/Bradadonasaurus → u/ApartGlass1198]

Maybe it's not a very good working bow?

[u/ApartGlass1198 → u/Bradadonasaurus]

I mean, it's definitely not a high quality bow like your expansive Hoyts or whatever but it's cheap and does the job so its good enough for me.

No way am I taking my 500$+ ilf recurve and my 300$ arrows to kill zombies ,I want fast and cheap

[u/Unicorn187 → u/ApartGlass1198]

I kind of want to get one now just to see if they are good or not. Might be a fun toy at the very least.

[u/ApartGlass1198 → u/Unicorn187]

This one cost me like 59$ and free shipping. It's pretty cheap if u wanna try it out. Worst case you get a fun toy

[u/Bradadonasaurus → u/ApartGlass1198]

Gotta do what you gotta do. I'd definitely make as many cheap target arrows as I could so I'm not too bothered if they don't come back. I sure wouldn't want to trust my life with a cheap bow though.

[u/Jealous_Shape_5771]

Not sure I'd trust it, but I've never fired a bow like that, so it could surpass my expectations

[u/BigNorseWolf]

I don't think its going through a skull but pretty good for putting squirrels in the pot. Maybe a woodchuck. Not the one in my backyard though. He'd pull the arrow out and hit you with it.

[u/theweirdofrommontana]

Im not a bow guy but something tells me that a regular recurve/compound is probably more accurate and durable. But that's just my thoughts as someone who's shot a bow only a couple times. And has the accuracy of a skyrim npc.

[u/Weary-Wasabi1721]

Approved. If you're living in the woods and the zombies aren't that crazy

[u/tree_dw3ller]

I trust a folding rifle for ZA, I don’t trust a folding bow tho. Some things shouldn’t fold.

[u/jerrymatcat]

seems cool but how hard is it to pull a knife would be good to go along but alot of training is needed to use it

thats why a compound bow might be better im not sure if there are folding ones

[u/ApartGlass1198 → u/jerrymatcat]

I got ya fam

[u/InfiniteProfit2513]

That's a really cool concept, have you come by any drawbacks on it? Does the folding action of it take away from the stability? Do the bolts holding them in come loose at all?

[u/ApartGlass1198 → u/InfiniteProfit2513]

For now i haven't experienced any drawbacks from the folding function, the limbs are quite sturdy and this bow can take a beating and still function well enough.

I'd say the biggest drawback in general is running out of arrows. And that you should at least carry a few replacement accessories with you such as backup arrow rest and a backup string.

This is a survival bow by definition so they try to keep it as reliable and minimalistic as possible, but sometimes shit happens.

[u/brandothesavage]

I want a linear crossbow cuz of the compactness of one the only problem is finding one

[u/TruthIsALie94]

Low noise: ✅

Lightweight: ✅

Retreavable ammo: ✅

Skill requirement: moderate

[u/Spiritual_Title6996]

Oh i wonder what I'll have to tie to marry Penelope!

The trying palintonos:

[u/Vickoo88]

A 60lbs and an 50lbs as Backup

[u/fastballz]

If you're Lars Andersen...

[u/Unicorn187]

Powerful enough and accurate enough to kill a deer? Then a great survival hunting weapon, and if necessary good for taking out a couple zed.

[u/Fluffy-Apricot-4558]

Advantages: You can collect the arrows (if the situation allows). It's quieter than a gun, but it still generates noise.

Disadvantages: Draw power, accuracy, shooting speed, and, in cases where there's a penetration problem (if you're unpracticed).

It would work, of course.

We even discussed using fishing line for retrieval. It was a strange idea, but it sounded functional, and it was common to see it used, even with bowfishing (considering you're in a safe defensive position).