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JANUARY 2015VOL 16 - ISSUE 01SOUTH AFRICAR34.00 [incl VAT]USA $ 6.50OTHER COUNTRIES R29.82 [Tax excl]

Bowtest: Hoyt Carbon Spider ZT Turbo

Tom Miranda:Teeth and claws

Giraffe hunt Trap for live

capture of jackalBroadhead test:

Silver Flame 125 grains

Bowhunting klipspringerThe simplicity of simplicity

bowhunter

Maintenance time

3JANUARY 2015 AFRICA’S BOWHUNTER

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HTR-fp_210x265.pdf 1 10/22/14 2:51 PM

4 AFRICA’S BOWHUNTER JANUARY 2015

CONTENTS

5 Comment: a new era for Africa’s Bowhunter

7 From our readers

8 Maintenance time

12 Testing Hoyt's Carbon Spider ZT Turbo

16 Teeth and claws: a grizzly bear adventure in the wilds of British Columbia

22 Hunting giraffe with bow and arrow

25 Nuut op die rak: sakboekie vir elke jagter

27 The way I see it

31 ABO news

33 Two days in the mountains

38 For the kids: colour me in

39 For the kids: wildebeest quiz

41 For the kids: bowhunters quiz

42 Trap for the live capture of jackal

45 Readers' trophies

46 Scientifically proven

47 Readers' trophies

48 Broadhead test: Silver Flame 125 grain

52 Year of the pig – again!

54 The simplicity of simplicity

56 Lighted nocks

57 Works for me...

59 Subscribe

62 Bowhunting opportunities

63 Bows for sale

64 Letter from the rookie

Cover image: Girraffe / 123RF.com

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5JANUARY 2015 AFRICA’S BOWHUNTER

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It is now 15 years since we moved into the new millennium and, as of yet, the world has not ended, computers did not crash worldwide and a

huge comet has not taken out the earth. Life continues as usual.However, not everything stayed the same. Every year the world

changes a little, sometimes for the better and sometimes not. This also happened in the bowhunting industry and to Africa’s Bowhunter. I am sure everyone reading the magazine has their own story of change to tell.

Africa’s Bowhunter was launched in the first year of the new millen-nium and is still running strong fifteen years later. Since then the bow-hunting industry has grown by leaps and bounds and is a well-established and respected way of hunting at present. Gone are the days that one had to convince people that it is an effective hunting method. Today most hunting farms allow or even embrace bowhunting, and bowhunters are welcomed everywhere in the country.

During the years we have had an excellent relationship with many other magazines, such as 3-D Bogensport in Austria, Traditionell Bogenschiessen in Germany, Archery Action and Bowhunting Down Under in Australia, Primitive Archer and ArrowTrade in the USA and more. In South Africa we have always had close ties with Game & Hunt magazine.

In 2015 Africa’s Bowhunter is moving into a new era, where it will join forces with its old friend, Game &Hunt magazine. Do not fear – Africa’s Bowhunter will continue pub-lishing bowhunting and archery articles exclusively. Only now it will be part of a bigger and stronger company, which will enable it to expand in all directions, bringing you a bigger and better magazine.

If you are interested in alternative energy sources, how to produce your own food, how not to waste as much, and in general just in living off the grid or being more self-reliant, you should not miss the second Laatlos/Off the Grid magazine currently on the shelves. In this magazine you will read more about non-consumerism, harnessing natural energy, producing your own food, how to improve your home security, how to think for yourself, how to live more healthily, what wealth is, and about letting go of unnecessary things that clutter up or complicate your life.

Talking about simplicity: In this issue Cleve Cheney writes about the simplicity of tra-ditional archery. He also explains how to take care of one’s compound bow and how to trap a jackal alive, should one be so inclined. Other articles in this issue include the well-known Tom Miranda’s article, “Teeth and claws”, Frank Berbuir’s giraffe hunt, Dr Adrian de Villiers’s endeavours to bowhunt a klipspringer in the mountains and Lance Nienaber’s article on warthog hunting. You can also read Harry Marx’s bow test on the Hoyt Spyder ZT Turbo and Cleve’s broadhead test on the 125-grain Silver Flame.

Africa’s Bowhunter wishes all its readers a wonderful 2015. May this be the best year yet, may all your arrows hit the target and may you hunt that animal that is still on your bucket list.God bless

Rean SteenkampEditor

AFRICA’S BOWHUNTERAfrica’s Bowhunter [ABH] is an independent monthly publication for the archer, bow hunter, game farm owner and nature lover. Copyright on all articles and material published in ABH resides with the publisher. No part of ABH may be copied or reproduced without permission of the publisher. Opinions expressed in articles or advertisements do not necessarily reflect those of the editor, editorial committee or publishers. Submission of articles for publication is welcome, but although care is taken, the publisher can accept no responsibility for loss or damage to any material submitted.

Africa’s Bowhunter Magazine cc[CK/] 96/32848/23PO Box 31688Waverley, 0135South AfricaTel: 012 330 3464 Fax: +27 86 615 7044E-mail: editor@africasbowhunter.co.zaWebsite: www.africasbowhunter.co.zaOffice address: 880A Crots Street, Rietfontein, Pretoria .

PUBLISHERRean SteenkampE-mail: editor@africanarcher.com

EDITORRean SteenkampE-mail: editor@africasbowhunter.co.za

HUNTING/ENVIRONMENTAL EDITORCleve CheneyCell: 082 922 5547E-mail: cleve@africasbowhunter.co.za

COPY EDITORMariette KrielEmmerentia Steyn

DESIGN AND LAYOUTAndré van SchaikE-mail: repro@africasbowhunter.co.za

REPRODUCTION & PRINTINGImpress Printers for Sheetfed, Web, Digital and Packaging printingTelephone: 031 263 2755

DISTRIBUTIONRNA DistributionHazel LuüsTel: 011 248 3639

SUBSCRIPTIONSSantie LiebenbergE-mail: santie@africasbowhunter.co.za

ADVERTISEMENTSYolande SteenkampE-mail: yolande@africasbowhunter.co.zaLizandre van RooyenE-mail: lizandre@africasbowhunter.co.za

A new era for Africa’s Bowhunter

2015

6 AFRICA’S BOWHUNTER JANUARY 2015

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7JANUARY 2015 AFRICA’S BOWHUNTER 7

Africa’s Bowhunter and Game and Hunt join forces

Two well-known and popular magazines in the hunting and wildlife industry, GAME & HUNT

and Africa’s Bowhunter, will in future be managed by the same company. The two parties have entered into a collaboration agreement, which will see both the titles operating under Jan Louis Enterprises.

The collaboration means that readers will still enjoy high-quality articles, and the combining of resources will ensure that knowledgeable writers will be available for information.

GAME & HUNT, the magazine of choice for game ranchers, hunters and conservation enthusiasts, recently celebrated its 20th anniversary, while Africa’s Bowhunter has been of service to bowhunters, archery enthusiasts and game ranchers for 15 years. Jan van der Walt, managing director of Jan Louis Enterprises, is of the opinion that this initiative has many advantages. ‘Although both titles will be kept unchanged and still focus on their respective markets, we believe the closer cooperation will add value for both our advertisers and readers. We have been family for a long time, we are now only moving in under the same roof,’ said Van der Walt.

Both the monthly magazines enjoy excellent support from loyal readers, and in future much attention will be given to the fulfilment of specific needs, as identified through communication with our readers. The agreement will come into effect on 1 January 2015. T ABH

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BLOEMFONTEIN

8 AFRICA’S BOWHUNTER JANUARY 2015

By Cleve Cheney

With the hunting season at its end it is time to reflect on what has been, but

it’s also time to look forward to what is to come. It is time to start dreaming about this year’s hunts, planning for them (which is part of the fun), practising (don’t wait until a week before) and perhaps even making early bookings. There is one thing that we should not neglect to do and that is to maintain our equipment. As a result of our weak currency archery equipment is becoming very, very expensive. Maintenance should not be neglected because it not only saves money in the long run from equipment breakages (often at the most inconvenient time like when you are hunting) or medical bills (!), but also ensures that your equipment is ready and in good order for some competition shooting, practice or testing. An ounce of prevention IS better than a pound of cure (those of you young ’uns who grew up with the metric system might not understand this).

Bow maintenanceIf you have access to a bow press or if your bow can be disas-sembled without the use of a bow press, now is a good time of the year to strip it down completely to give it a thorough check. Just a recommendation: Before you disassemble a compound bow make a careful sketch (or take photos) of how the string and buss cables pass around the cams. It can be pretty confusing and frustrating if, when you want to reassemble the bow, you are not sure how the strings should run over the cams.

Wipe off all dust and dirt with a moist cloth followed by a dry one. Carefully inspect the bow – limbs and riser – for any cracks which may have been caused by someone dry firing your bow without you knowing about it. Don’t ever fire a bow that has cracks as catastrophic failure may occur. It is a good idea to inspect the bow when someone (who knows what they are doing) is drawing it for you as cracks sometimes open up and are only visible when the bow is drawn.

For compound bow shooters carefully examine cams and idler wheels to see that they are in good order (Figure 1). The walls of the cam channels in which the bowstring passes should

not have any nicks in them (which can be carefully filed down with a fine-tooth file) and should not be bent. Either of these conditions can cause the string to be damaged or slip off the cam with unpleasant consequences. A dry lubricant (e.g. graphite) can be used where applicable, but most manufacturers use self-lubricating bearings and do not recommend additional lubrica-tion – especially not anything oily. If you find rust anywhere on the bow, squirt a little WD40 onto a piece of fine steel wool and rub the rust patch off gently. Make sure that your cams are still rotating true (perpendicular) and have no sideways play. If you use rubber string leeches to help silence your bow, check them out and replace them if the rubber has gone soft, has started to crack or pieces have broken off (Figure 2). The soft rubber used for silencing bows or bow strings is prone to become brit-tle when subjected to heat.

Your bowstrings MUST be checked every time before you shoot the bow. They must be replaced every 6 months if you shoot on a regular basis and at least annually if you shoot less

LEA

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Figure 1: Cams.

9JANUARY 2015 AFRICA’S BOWHUNTER

frequently. Carefully examine your bowstring and buss cables. If there are broken strands or the string is becoming “fuzzy”, replace the string (Figure 3). If your strings are still in good order it is always a good idea to give them a good wax-ing with bowstring wax (Figure 4), followed by a good rub (burnishing) with a piece of leather to warm the wax and get it in between the fibres. Replace your nocking loop with a new one (Figure 5). This is inexpensive and will save you grief later. Check the serving on the bowstring and buss cables, especially where they run over the cams and through the cable guard slide as these are generally the areas of most wear (Figure 6). Replace serving if it is frayed or coming loose. Tighten all screws and bolts that hold accessories in place (Figure 7). Replace the peep-sight tubing if your peep sight uses one. If your bow is going to stand unused for a number of months you may consider backing out on your limbs screws to release some tension in the bow while it is “rest-ing”. Remember to mark the position of the limb bolts before unscrewing them so that they can be returned to their original position when you get to shooting the bow again. If your bow is equipped with a fall-away rest with the arms attached to the buss cable with a string or cable, check to see that it is still in good condition and firmly attached to the buss cable (Figure 8).

“Stickbow” shooters have it a lot easier when it comes to maintenance. Check the bow itself (handle and limbs) for any cracks. A light wood polish will help to nourish the wood on wooden

Figure 2.

Figure 3. Figure 4.

Figure 5. Figure 6.

Figure 7. Figure 8.

bows. If your recurve/long bow is made of fibreglass laminations, check to see that the laminations are still bonded. If they have started to delaminate, the bow has unfortunately reached the end of its life except, of course, if it has bolt-on limbs. In this case spare limbs can be made up. As with all bows where epoxies have been used to laminate fibreglass or carbon layers togeth-er, make sure the bow is stored in a cool place when not being used. If it is placed in a place that gets too hot (for example in direct sunlight) it may cause the layers to delaminate.

Arrow maintenanceStart by examining the shafts to see that they are straight. This is done by rolling the shafts (without fletches) on a flat table, countertop or sheet of glass. There is not much you can do with a carbon shaft that is not straight, so discard it. Wooden and aluminium shafts can be straightened in some cases. Now carefully flex (bend) the shafts slightly to check for cracks (Figure 9). Carbon shafts that have cracks may also feel “mushy”. Throw cracked shafts away. It is dangerous to shoot them as they may break in the bow when sub-jected to the forces exerted by the bowstring and may result in serious injury

10 AFRICA’S BOWHUNTER JANUARY 2015