Rain/Archery - considerations?

[Timberninja]

I've shot in most weather conditions but living in southern california, I don't come across rain too often. Since I'm heading out to Colorado in the next couple of weeks, thought I'd get some thoughts on a couple of things.

1. I might be over thinking this one but how much does rain affect arrow trajectory? Obviously it depends on how heavy the rain is and bow/arrow setup. But say on average, for a 40 yard shot with a 400g blazer equipped arrow traveling at 290fps in a "medium" downpour. Is there an effect that is significant enough to compensate for?
2. Aside from keeping the string waxed, any other gear considerations to think about while hunting in rain? Any tips/tricks are welcome.

Thanks in advance!

 

[doverpack12]

Its not just arrow flight. Rain will bring out creaks and moans from your bow on occasion. Cable slides are notorious places for this

 

[KMT]

You don't need to worry about rain. It might rain one out of 7 days, and the rain will usually last only 5-10 minutes. Although it can sometimes rain all day, those days are very rare.

 

[SHTF]

What KMT said. Your best bet is to hunker down when rain hits in the mountains the storms move out fast. Youll get a 10 min to 2 hour rain storm then it will pass. Usually late in the day. I dont try to shoot during a storm. Just hunker under a pine tree and ride it out. Then get back to hunting.

 

[justin davis]

You don't need to worry about rain. It might rain one out of 7 days, and the rain will usually last only 5-10 minutes. Although it can sometimes rain all day, those days are very rare.

Except for this year in Colorado, where it has been raining (down pour flooding) everyday lately. Crazy weather

 

[OR Archer]

Living in the great wet state of Oregon you either learn to hunt in the rain or you just don't hunt. Extended exposure to the rain will saturate your string which adds weight. This will slow your bow down a bit and can cause you to hit lower. Also one thing to watch for while hunting in the rain is having water in your peep. If its in there you can simple just blow it out of there with your mouth.

 

[larryschwartz]

Wool string silencers will absorb water. This can slow down your string a little bit but the most annoying thing for me is when they shower me with water when I take a shot.

I don't think it affects the shot all that much. My real concern is how it might affect following the bloodtrail after the shot. I am always hesitant to take a shot if I think that the blood sign might get washed away, as in if it doesn't look like it will stop raining after I take the shot.

 

[Chuffness]

This year at BCATB it rained all day... After about an hour into the course i started missing shots by more than i should have.. I lost a bunch of arrows and couldnt figure out why. I knew My string was loaded with water but it shouldnt have made as big of a difference as it was making at 50+ yards. It turns out that my drop rest release string that connects to the cables stretched. This was causing my drop rest not to drop at the right time.... I now use a waterproof bow string cover.

 

[ScottP]

Except for this year in Colorado, where it has been raining (down pour flooding) everyday lately. Crazy weather

Yep, we've been getting consistent summer monsoon pattern t-storms with heavy downpours. Most afternoon hunts have been affected significantly... I've lost several afternoon/evening goat hunts to dangerous electrical storms.

The seven day forecast is showing this into mid next week....

 

[Chesapeake]

Other than water in my peep and on my sight pins I don't notice much difference out to the 60 yards I practice at. I keep my string waxed, axles lubed, and everything has blue lock-tight. My rest is limb driven cause I had issues with my cable driven rest having the cord slip up the cable when drenched. Where I live and hunt rain is a given, its the sunny days that are unexpected.

At some point I'll change out all the sight, rest ect... fasteners. They must use the cheapest steel and coatings on them included bolts cause they rust easily.

 

[Timberninja]

Thanks guys, really appreciate the feedback. Counting the days to head out there...

 

[vcb]

I was out in co for the first four days of season. Rained hard 1-2 hours every afternoon then the weather cleared out

 

[Chem-E]

Except for this year in Colorado, where it has been raining (down pour flooding) everyday lately. Crazy weather

"down pouring" is an understatement!

 

[boom]

just wax the string up great and go for it.