# any one have any tips or tricks



## the salmon kid

i am a new bow fisher and i want to know if there is any thing i should try to learn before going out to shoot carp i know how to shoot a bow


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## bowcarp

when you think you are aiming low enough aim lower


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## blhunter3

Like Trapper says "aim small miss small". Don't aim and the whole carp aim at a spot on the carp and then aim lower and shoot. Try not to shoot towards rocks as they will destroy arrows. PM carp_killer , he knows a thing or two.


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## TL1FAAT

spend the money on some good equipment right away. get a bottle reel and good arrow! i've had great success with the blue and black aluminum muzzy arrow. the aluminum arrow is heavy and a bit slower but it seems to pack a good punch on longer/deeper shots. finally, keep a sharp point!!

bowfishing as a fun and exciting sport, have fun!! 
(a spare arrow never hurts either)


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## Hick-From-Hell

Always use some type of safety side, don't tie to the back of the arrow.


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## blhunter3

Hick-From-Hell said:


> Always use some type of safety side, don't tie to the back of the arrow.


Why?


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## carper34

because the line can catch on your bow and bring the arrow rightback at you. unless you wanna look like a pirate or worse. use some type of safety slide


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## blhunter3

It hasn't happened yet, but then I don't shoot much by rocks either.


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## Duckslayer100

carper34 said:


> because the line can catch on your bow and bring the arrow rightback at you. unless you wanna look like a pirate or worse. use some type of safety slide


I used to think the same way...but then I figured out there are a couple variables at play when considering snapback.

First, what rest do you have? I strickly shoot off epoxy rests or the shelf, so there really isn't anything for the string to hang up on. Now, if you're using a manufactured rest like an AMS fish hook or roller rest, usually there are some parts sticking out that may snag line.

Second, what reel are you using? If you have a spool or AMS reel, I'd recommend using safety slides. This is because the line generally loops off the reel and hangs down, which, when drawn, could loop around parts, bow strings, your arm, etc. On the other hand, if you are using a spinning reel and are careful to wind up after every draw-down so the line stays tight to your shelf, you should have any problem. I've been doing this for years and haven't had a snap back. In fact, if you use slides with a spinning reel and your arrow sticks out past the reel when you draw back, you're WAY more likely to get a snapback because you may have forgotten to ingage the button. I

If you MUST use safety slides with a spinning reel, I urge you to buy a rod extension for your reel seat. This will allow enough line to come out when you draw so that if you forget to push the button, your arrow will fall off the bowstring harmlessly.

Is this a fool-proof theory? No. Like anything, it pays to play safe. But if you're careful, shoot off the rest/shelf, use spinning reel and USE COMMON SENSE, you should be fine tying to the back of the arrow.


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## weasle414

I have yet to ever have a snap back with tying the line to the arrow. Slides on the other hand I've had the line wrap around stuff hanging off the front of the bow; ie reel seat with spinners, handle on the AMS Retriever.. Worse yet is the time the line got draped around my thumb and didn't realize it in the heat of the moment. The arrow went out about a foot and came to a dead stop when the line got tight enough around my thumb. That's about the only POSITIVE moment I've had with the retriever was having that thick line so I didn't lose a finger 

To each his own, though, I'm not bashing slides, just stating my past experiences with them. I've got a lot more stories about them, but I'm not gonna go into it that much.. :bop:


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## carp_killer

buy a spinner NOT a ams retriever. buy cajun yellowjacket arrows with piranha points. SAFETY SLIDES ARE THE CAUSE OF SNAPBACKS!!!!!!!!!! you are much better off shooting without them. i have 2 scars from snapbacks both of them i had a safety slide on the arrow. tieing to the back is much safer and reliable, think about it this way, do you really trust a tiny screw and a piece of cheap plastic with a 30lb+ fish? i didnt think so.

best advice about bowfishing is DONT BE CHEAP buy quality stuff to start with


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## Hick-From-Hell

I would have to go against you on the AMS retriever, I have never had any of the 4 of mine break or fail me, Never last an arrow from not "pushing the button" everytime you want to shoot. I am an retriever guy all the way.


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## bwfsh

Don't buy into the spinner hype just because you read about it on a forum. I have tried a spinner twice and shot with quite a few people that have also used them and none of them are still using them. You proved you can kill fish with your set up and without spending a lot of money. Now see if you can find someone that has a retriever and a spinner that will let you try them out so you can see what you like better. I personally shoot a retriever w/slides, a variety of arrows, and Innerloc 3 barb grapple tips (unless shooting near cattails then I shoot Muzzy carp tips).


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## carp_killer

spinner hype? look at it this way, AMS is the avery of bowfishing uke: spinners are more accurate, you can shoot deeper, faster retrieval, dont loose line from holding bow upsidedown...... you just need to learn how to properly use them. someone use to shooting a spinner can get 3 shots off before a bottle shooter can get there second shot ready to shoot


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## bowcarp

well if you get a spinner get six you'll need them spend the money once I have a retriever mounted on one of my bows thats almost 20 years old have replaced a few parts on it but still going strong


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## weasle414

bowcarp said:


> well if you get a spinner get six you'll need them spend the money once I have a retriever mounted on one of my bows thats almost 20 years old have replaced a few parts on it but still going strong


Disagree: I bought *1* spinner 2 years ago, still using the same one after a few thousand fish, many of them 30-40 lbs and it's still working just fine. On the other hand, my first 2 years I had retrievers, first one was broken 3 weeks after I put it on my bow beyond repair. After that broke I went to spinners, loved them except I was still dumb and used slides so I would lose arrows from time to time. Next season came around and AMS introduced a "new and improved" model and I was dumb enough to buy the hype and blow $100 on another retriever. That one went well, it lasted a good 2 weeks and conveniently crapped out half way through a tourney :******: Next day, bought a spinner and have yet to think about going back to retriever since! It all depends on HOW you use the reel and how well you maintain it, along with how well the spinner is constructed. I have a Rhino reel (made by Zebco) with ceramic pins, never had a pin break, no pin holders break, drag system still holding up and reels in 4x's faster than any retriever ever made! 2 seasons done with this reel, bring on number 3!!! And my Rhino was less than $20, the 2 retrievers AVERAGED about $90 PER. I could've gotten 4 for less than the cost of a retriever and I went through 2 of the retrievers in 5 weeks worth of time


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## carper34

shot 3 spinners over 2 years. still shooting 2 of them and i just need to do some repairs to the one and itll be back in action. still shooting my original retriever too, but the spinners are faster so i keep shooting them and leave the retriever for guests.


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## carper34

the salmon kid said:


> i am a new bow fisher and i want to know if there is any thing i should try to learn before going out to shoot carp i know how to shoot a bow


back to the main point, besides this site, bowfishingcountry.com is another forum with helpful advice. most of us on here jump between here and other forums. for gear, backwaterbowfishing.com will get you your gear fast and without problem. hope our debate helped some


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## weasle414

Haha, of course you're gonna point him to backwater. Kind of a job now, eh?

It is a good site, though. I usually just buy my stuff locally, but they've got a really good selection of pretty much everything :thumb:


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## bowcarp

back to the original subject if using a muzzy or the cheaper pirrana points squeeze the barbs down close to the shaft (as long as they can still move freely) this will make a smaller entrance and exit hole not tearing the fish wide open helping to reduce pull offs


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## weasle414

Good tip Bowcarp, I do this with mine and it really helps reduce pulloffs and helps hugely with penetration with my 27# bow. I have also replaced the barbs completely with 420 stainless steel rods with pretty good success; while replacing them I decided to leave the barbs about 1/2" longer too and never had a single pull off with that arrow. Still gotta test it some more on some 40+ lb carp this season though.


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## bowcarp

I have never done but have heard of replacing the barbs with longer ones really helps with the softer fleshed fish


weasle414 said:


> I have also replaced the barbs completely with 420 stainless steel rods with pretty good success; while replacing them I decided to leave the barbs about 1/2" longer


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## carper34

dont need to make your own barbs, just use the high quality, fairly priced long barb pirahnas :thumb:


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## carp_killer

your staffing for backwater now pete? agree with ya that you cant beat the piranhas :thumb: but i would have to reccomend buying them from bowfishing extreme, in my experiences extreme is alot faster than backwater but i only ordered from backwater once


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## carper34

yup, im staffing for backwater because i have ordered from them since the beginning and they have proven fast and reliable. never done bowfishing extreme as i never had a reason too switch companies. backwater has always done right in my book.


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## bwfsh

After losing a lot of buffalo on the muzzy I switched to the Innerloc 3 barb 2 years ago and rarely have one pull off.


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## carp_killer

sweet! im the same with extreme always ordered from them and no reason to switch except i needed something they didnt have once so i got it from backwater. the 3 barbs will blow a very large hole if your bow is not tuned exactly perfect, if you need extra holding power go with the 4 barb lil stingers from cajun :thumb:


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## weasle414

bwfsh said:


> After losing a lot of buffalo on the muzzy I switched to the Innerloc 3 barb 2 years ago and rarely have one pull off.


Those grapplers are pretty sweet as long as youre not in shallow water... For buffs in deep water they work great, but I always end up spending 10 minutes digging them out of the mud if I'm in 3' or less. And don't EVER expect it back in tact if you stick it in a cattail root. Dam thing's got some holding power oke:


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## rednek

ouch alex ouch :rollin:


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## weasle414

rednek said:


> ouch alex ouch :rollin:


What?


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## rednek

> And don't EVER expect it back in tact if you stick it in a cattail root. Dam thing's got some holding power


that poor sparrow sittin on the bottom part of the cattail and you 2 bet me i couldnt hit...... :rollin:


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## weasle414

Haha, oh yeah...

I thought of another tip! ALWAYS BRING EXTRA NOCKS AND GLUE!! Found an open spot on a creek yesterday and saw one lonely carp from shore, took a shot, shot low and hit a rock. The nock cracked and fell off and I didn't have an extra.


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## blhunter3

weasle, you break anything and everything possible, and somethings that can't be broke.


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## weasle414

While that may be mostly true, I have yet to break my boat made in 1963! How long did Pout take to sink his fancy newish boat? 1 season? Hopefully him being laid up isn't gonna pass the bad luck back to me.


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## carp_killer

except it wasnt my boat that sunk. im done being laid up its time to **** **** up now


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## goldfishmurderer

the salmon kid said:


> i am a new bow fisher and i want to know if there is any thing i should try to learn before going out to shoot carp i know how to shoot a bow


The retriever/spinner debate will always go on. But I agree with Hick-from-hell. I've always shot a retriever and safety slides and i've never had a problem. Its easy and fast to reel up after a shot and i've never had a problem with snapback or the line getting caught on anything. Just might wanna try each one if you get a chance. Also I use the lighter Muzzy carp tips because they don't get stuck in the bottom so bad, I shoot with a guy that shoots the Innerloc 3 barb grapple. He shoots his bow closer to 60# and has less pull offs, but because I shoot that carp tip and closer to 55#, I spend less time getting my arrow back on missed shots. And like weasle said, always bring extra nocks, a lighter and superglue.


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