Let’s Go Deer Huntin’ (and win an Athen’s Bow)

I announced my archery project in preparation for the 2014 season a few weeks ago in It’s Not the Weapon.

Lord willin’ I’ll be hunting big bucks in Idaho and Nevada as summer wanes.  I’ve seen and killed some good deer then and look forward to the hot days, cool nights, and images of big velvet bucks in my optics (and my peep!)

This blog series follows the set up of my archery gear leading up to the Live Hunts that will be posted right here on the Rok Blog.

In 20 years of hunting big mule deer with a bow, I’ve learned that my bow must be accurate, forgiving, and compact.  This is for several reasons:

• In the early season, mule deer inhabit the most open portions of their range.  You must be proficient to 65 yards or your chance of success drops significantly.  
• I’ve killed all my big deer from different postions between kneeling and standing so I don’t get to use my target form very often.  A forgiving bow that gets the arrow to where I pointed it is what I want.
• Because virtually all of my hunting occurs far from roads, I ride horseback to many of my hunting areas.  I’ve found the best carry is to sling the bow over my shoulders and across my back.  This requires a shorter bow to navigate overgrown trails.  

Accuracy is king when it comes to killing big mule deer and I go to great lengths to achieve it.  I choose my equipment carefully and shoot 1,000 to 2,000 arrows preseason to make sure I’m up to the task.  I’m no expert, but I am proficient. 

Based on those requirements, I took a hard look at the Convixtion bow by Athens Archery.

A relative newcomer, Athens Archery was founded in 2008 by Jason and Amanda Hudkins of Rochester, Indiana.  With the downturn in the auto industry, Jason—a passionate bowhunter—turned his huge investment in CNC machines to manufacturing bows. His bows are widely known and revered in the Midwest and East and are starting to show up on many western hunts.  Athens Archery is an American success story: born out of adversity, fueled by passion, and built brick-by-brick on cash flow. 

I contacted Rodney Rudd (rodney482 on Rokslide forums), part owner, designer, and staff coordinator for Athens Archery. Turns out, Rodney designed the Convixtion himself.  I gotta say that talking to the man behind the machine was a real bonus.  I asked if he’d supply a bow for this project.  Not only did he say “yes,” but he sweetened the pot in a very big way for you all (keep reading). 

The bow arrived early spring.  Pulling it out of the box, I noticed the compactness of the Convixtion’s 30″ axle-to-axle and 7″ brace height.  Throwing it on the scale, she weighed in less than 4 lbs naked.  

The Convixtion is built with solid glass limbs with an IBO rating of 335 fps.  It’s equipped with a 452X BCY string that doesn’t stretch (in weeks of shooting, my peep has not rotated).  The grip, by design, is small and sits in the web of your hand minimizing torque.  This is the first bow I’ve been able to shoot without a grip strap.  

The cams are a mirror-image, two track slave system, so synching is not a problem.  The draw weight is advertised at 65-80% and I’m shooting right at 80%. The Convixtion is set up with adjustable limb stops so you can shoot against a good wall with no sponge but still retains a good valley.

Athens Archery also offers a custom shop so your bow can be ordered to your specs.  I chose mine with an olive drab riser and Kryptek Highlander Reduced on the limbs.  Besides looking great, for open country mule deer, the camo pattern is a perfect match. 

I’ve been shooting about six weeks now.  The Convixtion has been a pleasure. I’m shooting 65 pounds and can easily draw horizontally (that minimizes movement when I’m close to a buck) and without the arrow jumping off the rest.  I can hold long enough to get settled without the dreaded strain that ruins accuracy.  The bow is as accurate as I’d hoped; when I do my part (and there’s no wind), the bow will put five arrows in a 3″x4″ spot at 60 yards.   As I shoot more, I’ll increase the weight to 70 lbs if my accuracy doesn’t suffer.  Right now, I’m shooting a 350 grain arrow around 265 fps.  

In my upcoming posts, I’ll write about the accessories that are enhancing this accuracy: Black Gold Ascent Sight, Ripcord Code Red Rest, and Tight Spot Quiver.

So, now the big news!  Rodney is so convinced that the Athen Archery’s line of bows is perfect for western hunting, he offered up a Convixtion bow to one lucky Rok Blog subscriber.  That’s right, you can win this exact bow and have it in hand by September.  

Here are the rules

1) Subscribe to the Rok Blog (upper right at “Subscribe to blog” under Fitness/Other links)

2)  Like and Share both the Athen’s Archery Facebook page and the Rokslide Facebook page

3) Post up in the comments your favorite western species to bowhunt.

I’ll draw for a winner after the Live Hunts either in late August or early September.  

Thanks to Athens Archery, this will be the single biggest giveaway on the Rok Blog ever. Follow along and win this bow!