Hunting & Fishing Bow Hunting

[Estes640]

Who here bow hunts, and if you do what bow do you shoot? I have always wanted to get into bow hunting and I finally have the chance to. If anyone has any suggestions on my first bow let me know. Not trying to break the bank, but I want a decent bow to shoot to get into it to see if I like it. Probably will be buying used so suggestions on older bows are also welcomed.

Ryan

 

[xdeano]

I'm using an older Mathews drenalin. It works just fine for killing a deer. Are there better more expensive, sure. Are they better, maybe. But if it throws arrows accurately then use it if it suits you. There are a lot of new bows on the market. I'd suggest heading to your nearest/largest sporting goods store and shoot a few. Pick the one that shoots the best and is the most comfortable. You also don't have to shoot 70+ lbs to kill a deer either. I've killed them from 45lbs on up. It's all about threading the needle in the right spot, just like everything else. Have fun and enjoy the ride.

Deano

 

[Luke]

Like you, I have wanted to try archery for years and I just picked up a bow this this past summer with the intent to hunt this past fall. Due to unforeseen circumstances I wasn't able to get out to hunt, but I have really enjoyed practicing with the bow and am looking forward to the 2018 hunting season.

I researched bows for awhile and finally decided on the Diamond Edge SB-1, and I couldn't be happier. It's fully user adjustable for draw length and weight. from 15"-30", and 7lbs-70lbs. There's a multitude of compound bows on the market, and once you start looking at the specs they're all extremely similar - I think it just really comes down to personal preference. My bow cost me $350 using a 10% off coupon at OpticsPlanet. I've browsed through the Lancaster archery catalog and have seen other bows that cost $1000+ and at least on paper have virtually the same or sometimes worse specs. There are some more expensive bows that will gain you another 10 or 20 feet per second - but for me personally, that speed advantage is not worth another $200+

I did upgrade a couple things on the bow and that was the arrow rest, and the sight.

I went with a Vapor Trail LimbDriver Pro V drop away arrow rest, for no other reason than it was in stock at my local archery shop and was suggested by a couple of the guys there. All I can say is it seems to work great. I can't speak to any other brands, but I think most of them get pretty good reviews. From my research the drop away rest was one of the best ways to achieve more consistent velocities from shot to shot vs. any of the full capture, Whisker Biscuit style rests. The Vapor Trail rest cost me about $120.

The sight I went with is the GWS AR-19 single pin adjustable sight. I didn't have the budget for a $200-$300 sight, so this did the trick at $60. The sight works really well, and has really helped my accuracy compared to the 3-pin sight that the bow came with. I have a 30" draw @ 60lbs and the sight gets me out to 90 yards. Lancaster Archery shipped me a sight with a broken sight bubble, so I called up GWS and they sent me an entire new sight housing free of charge with no hassle. Nothing but good things to say about them.

This entire package has proven to be very accurate. I'm no Robin Hood, but can group 5 arrows into about a 1 foot circle at 80 yards. and about 6 inches @ 60 yards. At 40 yards all the fletching are basically touching.

Links to all the equipment:
https://www.opticsplanet.com/diamond-edge-sb-1-bow-package.html
http://www.vaportrailarchery.com/product/limbdriver-pro-v/
http://www.lancasterarchery.com/gws-ar-19-sight.html
- Can't recall the name of the release I have -


Hope that helps!

Here's a 60 yard "cold bore" shot.

 

[264win]

The above opinions are all good options.

But if you are new to archery, you should be researching local archery shops not bows. Find a shop that has great reviews near your house and spend a few hours there shooting differnt bows. You will figure out what fits you and what you like.

Much like a first gun or car, you should test several and get advise from a pro before buying.

I started hunting archery 6 years ago and it is a blast !

 

[PD DUMPER]

I use an older PSE.

 

[WB300]

What's your budget? Tree stand, ground blind, spot and stalk? Intended game?

Used bows are a buyers market. A top of the line set-up costing $2K may only get you $600-$800 on trade 2 years later.

 

[Estes640]

What's your budget? Tree stand, ground blind, spot and stalk? Intended game?

Used bows are a buyers market. A top of the line set-up costing $2K may only get you $600-$800 on trade 2 years later.

under $700 fully loaded. As far as type, tree stand as well as a little spot and stalk. Mainly tree stand though. Deer are the intended target.

thanks for everyone's replies so far! I am learning lots

 

[WB300]

You should be able to do well for that budget in a used set up. Use the same process and precautions when choosing a rifle/scope set up. Good thing about bows, is that you can actually shoot several of them at the right shop.

Not sure what your physical ability is, but when i got started, a 50-60 lb draw weight was my choice. A year later after lots of practice, it was too light, so i upgraded to 60-70 lb draw. Now, 70 lb draw is easy. And with the potential for a large game and predator hunt out west, i want to upgrade to 80 lb draw. Of course as i buy new, i take a bath on my trade ins. Some will argue that anything over 60 lb draw is overkill for south GA deer, but i view it the same as my hunting deer with a 300WM... I don't care about overkill, but i do care about underkill, so i stack the odds in my favor. Just something i wished I'd thought about a few years ago.

Good luck. Let us know how it goes.

 

[EasternNChunter]

The great thing about new guys getting into archery/bow hunting is that they can buy last years top end bows for almost half price. If the original owner registered a brand new bow, then I have always heard it cuts the value 40%-50%. Some guys get a new bow every year so finding last years model isn’t hard. Bows have also reached their ceiling as far as how much better they can get as well so even a 4-5 year old bow is still comparable. However, i was blown away by the new Mathews Triax in how quiet and vibration free it was. Even my Hoyte obsessed local shop owner that competes nationally and doesn’t care for Mathews was reluctantly saying how impressed he was with it. If it wasn’t so short (28” axle to axle) I would have bought one and traded in my year old Halon 32. However, it’s so short and the string angle is so steep that the string doesn’t touch my nose at full draw, which was a deal breaker to me. I am sure Mathews will come out with a 32” or 34” version next year so I will just wait on that one. Anyway, check eBay and similar sites to find good deals on last years models.

 

[combat45acp]

Bowtech Commander, absolutely love this bow. Super forgiving, on the heavy side and older...but shoots like a dream! Knocked down this bad boy last year, ran 40 yards...one word of advice 2 blade rage broad heads are very effective, and fly true to practice tips.

 

[Shane C.]

A lot of good info here;
http://www.huntersfriend.com/compound-bow-selection-guide-research-contents.html

 

[186thFCo]

I shoot a struggle stick aka, a traditional longbow. shooting traditional is a real challenge and it took a little bit of time to be confident enough to take a shot at game. Traditional isn't for everyone but if your interested there are plenty of longbows and recurves out there for a good price.

 

[260284]

I'm using an older Mathews drenalin. It works just fine for killing a deer. Are there better more expensive, sure. Are they better, maybe. But if it throws arrows accurately then use it if it suits you. There are a lot of new bows on the market. I'd suggest heading to your nearest/largest sporting goods store and shoot a few. Pick the one that shoots the best and is the most comfortable. You also don't have to shoot 70+ lbs to kill a deer either. I've killed them from 45lbs on up. It's all about threading the needle in the right spot, just like everything else. Have fun and enjoy the ride.

Deano

I shoot the same, an older Matthews Drenalin. I used to shoo 70 lb bows, but I switche dto a 60 lb max draw weight and went left handed after shooting right handed for 30 years. I am left eye dominate and have had shoulder/neck problems. I shoot thru 90% of the deer I have taken. Not sure what I would buy if I decided to get a new bow.

 

[Anb618]

I shoot a "generic" Hoyt; a Reflex Charger. Many of the big bow companies have or had their own "generic" line that come without some of the high-cost new-age frills like carbon fiber risers and ridiculous weight reduction. For example, Matthews has Mission, Bowtech has Diamond (I think?), Hoyt used to have Reflex before they discontinued it. Personally, I'm not trekking into the Montana backwoods on foot for two weeks to hunt. I walk 1/4 mile or less from my truck to the stand, and back out at end of shooting light. I just needed an accurate modern bow.

Any bow made post ~2010 will be an excellent shooter. Advancements in cam technology, riser designs, and use of efficient string geometry have effectively doubled the ease of use of compound bows compared to earlier models. I bought my Reflex on sale at Cabela's for $399 to replace my aging Hoyt Supreme (1990 era). I slapped on a good QAD drop-away rest (an accuracy necessity in my opinion), and a decent 5-pin fiber optic sight and it shoots better than I ever will. I can be competetive in a few "300" leagues, and I can usually hold my own against guys running fancy target bows in my spring 3D league.

Buy yourself a budget bow from a quality manufacturer (Hoyt, Matthews/Mission, PSE, Bear, Bowtech/Diamond, Parker, Martin, etc...), add a few quality accessories (drop-away, a good sight), and don't cheap out on some quality arrows. Then just get practicing. Back in college, I was shooting paper plate accurate at 100 yards for fun. That made 50yd shots on Whitetail (my personal humane distance limit at my draw weight/length) a piece of cake.

As mentioned, definitely take an intro course at your local bow shop to learn the fundamentals. Many shops will give you a lesson on fundamentals for free if you buy the bow from them. Most shop owners love getting people started in the hobby, and are glad to help.

It's exactly like long range shooting. Solid fundamentals will make you look good...and poor form will throw your shots all over the place, even at 20 yards.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Phylodog]

I'm one of the new bow every year types (minimum lol) and in the past five years I've had 2 Matthews, 2 Bowtech, 1 Obsession and now have an Elite. In all honesty the differences are subtle and there are thousands of people who compete and hunt successfully with each of them, so any of them will work. Like a lot of things bows are extremely subjective and what works or feels good to you may not to the next person. Even the low end bows being sold today are pretty advanced when compared to where the industry was 15 years ago.

The best advice I can give you is to seek a little coaching as soon as you can. Bad habits are easy to form, breaking them is difficult and they can ruin the experience for you due to frustration. Once you've got your form down and you're shooting consistently do some research and find a good bow tuner in your area and pay to have them set your bow up. It isn't that expensive and you will likely see improvement in your consistency as well as in how much you enjoy shooting.