Podcast 46 – Western Bow Set Up with Jake Bell

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Tis the season where we scramble to get our bows dialed in and set up for the upcoming fall hunting season before we go afield with arrows knocked. On today’s podcast, we are joined by Jake Bell, a bow technician from Steamboat Springs, Colorado to cover how to properly set up your bow for western big game hunting.

Jake puts durability and reliability at the top of his list so he offers some tips on how to “bomb-proof” your bow and accessories so that nothing is left to chance in the field. We cover arrow weight, FOC, draw length, brace height, and axle to axle measurements to better understand this terminology and its application towards an ideal setup for you. If you’re hunting elk this fall and you’re used to hunting whitetails, make sure you tweak your setup (if needed) so that you’re ready during the moment of truth!

Topics Covered During This Episode Include:

Jake Bell’s background and where he grew up
How he got into archery hunting and how he got started working on bows for a living
Technical specs of bows such as draw length, brace height, axle to axle length, let-off, and how they affect performance and draw cycle
Setting up a bow for a beginner who is new to the archery world
Determining arrow spine and FOC in regards to which species your hunting
Common problems with bow setups that Jake sees when people bring their bows to him to be worked on
Paper tuning a bow, how it is done, and why it’s so important
Bulletproofing an archery setup for western hunting
Wrist strap versus thumb trigger releases and the pros/cons of each