Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Bowhunting Looking to pick up my first bow

I plan to get into archery hunting to take advantage of some unique Alaskan bowhunting opportunities for moose and caribou. I have shot friends' bows over the years, but never took an interest in getting my own. I have too many other hobbies, I suspect.

Anyway, I have been bow shopping for the last few weeks and doing some internet research to familiarize myself with basic archery terminology. My price range is $750 or so, for a complete package, not including arrows. I have shot a Bowtech Tomcat and a Kodiak Outdoors Bow Logic 34. Between the two, I preferred the Kodiak. I plan to head back to the archery shop and shoot a Diamond Liberty and see what Mathews has to offer in my price range. Are there any others I should consider?

Is there anything else I should know before making a bow purchase? The standard answer I seem to be getting is, "Shoot them, and buy the one you're most comfortable with." Anyone care to offer more specific advice? I don't know much about archery equipment, so I am more comfortable shopping for new bows. I wouldn't even know what to look for to assess a used bow's condition or quality.

Thanks for helping an archery rookie.

I agree with the standard advice but will add a few things. Don't skimp on the accesories such as rest, sights, release, and get a good case. Don't be afraid of last years models, as there isn't a whole lot of change between years. If you get a bow quiver get the one for the bow, they are quieter and more secure. And if you aren't already, get a bow with 80% let off, this will allow you to shoot with a higher draw weight.

Check out Renegade bows if you have the chance. I always used Hoyt and Matthews until I was going to buy my dad a bow for Christmas. Didn't have the money to dump $800 bucks in one so checked out the more affordable bows. Ended up buying him a Non-typical XL and the next year, because I liked it and it shot so much better than my more expensive bows, bought one for myself and have used it since.

What's your draw length? I've got a couple of year old Matthews in the Classified's for $200...

I bought a bow last week after a 20 year hiatus. Wow, what a difference a couple of decades make! Unfortunately, that makes me an archery rookie much the same as you, but with a couple of extra weeks of trying bows and a week or so of visiting Archery Talk.

The things I have learned in no particular order are: (1) it�s much harder to understand than buying and shooting guns; (2) the advice of �buy the one you�re most comfortable with� is the best, because every person has a completely different perspective on each and every nuance of each and every piece of equipment; (3) at least at the top end, you can buy a bow with different nuances but they�re all pretty good; (4) be sure you get your tech support as part of the deal; in other words, be willing to pay more for the bow from a pro shop that will help you with learning the bow and the accessories, unless you have some good buddies who are willing to serve as free tech support and (5) if you are pretty confident that this is the real thing and not a passing fancy, don�t compromise on the bow; it doesn�t have to be the fastest, but you will spend more later if you really get into it.

In the past few weeks, I went into my local shop a number of different days and tried just about every bow they had. I tried the Bowtech Tribute, Guardian and Allegiance, Mathews Drenalin and Switchback XT, and the Hoyt Vectrix. They ALL were good bows, and I think I couldn�t have made a bad choice.

In the end, I spent $729 on the bow alone. I didn�t buy a quiver yet because I don�t need it until September. I didn�t buy a case because the shop was out. I spent $38 on a release, $105 on a higher end sight, and a friend gave me a Whisker Biscuit that retails for $59 at Cabelas, so I�m a couple hundred bucks over your budget. I could have saved some money on the sight and had a serviceable rig. I probably could have shopped the forums or bought accessories used from friends and acquaintances. It makes more sense to me to upgrade the accessories than the bow, because there is a really high depreciation factor on bows. Also, if you go the pro shop route, you don�t need micrometer adjustable gadgets because they will set them up for you as part of your purchase.

At first I was freaking out about the money I had pumped into a bow and extras. Then I did the math on shooting a $6 arrow 100 times compared to shooting 100 Game Kings or Ballistic Tips or Triple Shocks and started to come around.

By the way, I ended up with a Bowtech Allegiance because it drew smoothly and shot well. I liked the fact that they have �speed� and �smooth� modules and I picked �smooth.� I also like the fact that draw lengths are changeable with a relatively inexpensive module change, unlike some draw length specific bows that cost over $100 to change draw lengths. That makes a difference to me because I have a son to pass it on to, and it also helps if I want to sell it.

You have �unique Alaskan bowhunting opportunities� that most would have to spend a fortune to enjoy, all for the cost of the equipment and a resident license! Don�t compromise on the gear you think you need. If you can do it cheaper, that�s great. If not, what�s a couple of hundred bucks for opportunities like that.

Good luck!

imo i'd stick with a top-end bow mathews, bowtech or hoyt.Probably can find a 2 or 3 year bow on archery talk with accs in your price range.

OK ILL probably start a FLAME session here, but why not start out with a far cheaper new or used bow, perhaps a few years older, design. buy some good carbon arrows and put in some serious practice? gets some good cut on contact broad heads?


GUYS HES JUST STARTING OUT HERE!
HE NEEDS A $700 bow like he need 8 thumbs,
Ive killed ELK and DEER for YEARS very effectively with a used $100 bow and decent arrows and a good deal of familiarity with my equipment and practice! and you know what my 15 year old JENNINGS UNISTAR , with its 31" 87 lb draw puts 32" carbon arrows with decent broadheads clear thru ELK, and KILLS JUST FINE!
YOU DON,T NEED THE LATEST AND BEST, WHAT YOU NEED IS THE SKILLS TO EFFECTIVELY USE WHAT YOU HAVE IN YOUR HANDS AND THE SKILL TO GET INTO EFFECTIVE RANGE
sure I might be down a FEW FPS, but the ELK are just as dead and I seldom have arrows not zip cleanly thru on chest hits

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/t...dex&indexId=cat600266&hasJS=true

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/t...ndex&indexId=cat20074&hasJS=true

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/t...ndex&indexId=cat20069&hasJS=true

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/t...dex&indexId=cat600339&hasJS=true


http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/t...dex&parentId=cat20059&id=0004531


http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/t...ndex&indexId=cat20061&hasJS=true

Good equipment will always be such, wether just starting or an old hand. Purchase the best for your budget from the git go and you won't be replacing so soon.JMO

Im not saying buy crap, but a two or three year old top of the line design in great shapes goes for significantly less cash and the deer/elk won,t suspect its not the latest and greatest as the arrow zips thru..is that not any less reasonable than those of us who hunt with a bow we purchased a few years ago?
I hunt with a 15 year old design NOT because IM cheap!,(Ive purchased newer bows) but because theres been few if any effective improvements in performance over what IM useing, I can hit a 6" paper plate out to 50 yards and drive an arrow clear thru most deers chest, how do you significantly improve on that with a bow!, yeah! the newer bows are a few ozs lighter and a few inches shorter, big deal!most game is shot in the 20-35 yard range and I doubt theres any effective differance, especially after watching the results I see in the field from others, MOST NEED SERIOUS PRACTICE!
good equipment is nice, but familiarity,skill & practice with what you have will beat gimics any day

340mag, your posts make a lot of sense that should be evaluated by anyone considering a bow. I think starting out slow with a used or mid-range bow is fine, if it works. My problem is tech support. A friend from out of state gave me a 6 year old Oneida bow with a whisker biscuit, and I started out wanting to put a sight on it and start flinging arrows. I went into the local shop to get a sight and arrows. They didn�t discourage me, but it was apparent that they were not familiar with the bow and would have been no assistance in setting up and tuning it. The guy who gave it to me was 6�4� and I�m 5�10�. I couldn�t tell if it fit or not. Anyway, I started out flinging arrows all over the place. It also was easier to hold back than the Hoyt I started with in 1986 (using finger release; never used a mechanical release before), but it sure wasn�t as nice as a new one. I went to the web and tried to find tuning tips for this bow, but there were few, and they were way over my head to the point of being useless.

I e-mailed a friend and asked a simple question-what is the Remington 700/870 of bows. It turns out that there doesn�t appear to be such an animal. His response was �buy quality the first time� and be done with it for a while. Well, I learned from doing the rifle thing for a few years that it makes sense to do that, and that was the only analogy I have to draw upon. I am a little leery of packages because I don�t know if I would be getting a Remington 710 package or Winchester M70 or Savage package. With the 710 you�re looking at a total replacement and with the Savage or Winchester you probably will be ditching the scope in short order and buying a much more expensive one. In the long run it could be more expensive, although it could make sense to someone who needs to time the expenditures.

I definitely don�t have the guts to mail order a bow at this point in my archery career. I certainly would have considered a prior model year at an appropriate discount, if the tech support came along with it. But, it�s not going to work to mail order a bow or buy one second hand from someone off the street, then expect the local shop to jump through hoops providing free advice and tuning.

In the end it came down to this: did I want to buy a $400 bow with a possible cost of $1,100, or just spend the $700 now. I felt a little decadent buying the expensive one now, but I am not so na�ve to think that owning a high end bow makes me a high end shooter or serves as a replacement for extensive practice. In fact, by eliminating a lot of equipment variables, it means that most if not all deficiencies fall squarely on my shoulders. Take care.

I taught both my sons to shoot with recurve bows, then I bought them compound bows from the BEAR factory outlet here in fla. once they showed some basic skill,with the recurves.
tech support sounds like its necessary, but whats necessary is decent equipment that functions correctly (mosty name brands)and a keen understanding of how and why a bow tends to shoot or not shoot correctly,how arrows stabilize, and understanding what changes are necessary, if its not shooting correctly. if your needing to relie on tech support for all your info, your already at a dis-addvantage.

there are many BOOKS, internet resources and quality archery shops and experianced archers that can help here!

http://business.auracom.com/madhouse/archery/bowtune.htm

http://www.archeryexchange.com/products/books_video/booksarchery/bks-105.shtml

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/joetapley/paper.htm

http://www.michigan-sportsman.com/sotw/nuge_tune.htm

http://www.fastestbows.com/articles/phillips/paper_tune.htm

http://www.alansarchery.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/Tuning/SuperTune.htm

http://www.centenaryarchers.gil.com.au/basic1.htm

the basics above,
a decent rest,a decent bow of medium draw, the correct arrow spline and a decent release , PLUS EXTENSIVE PRACTICE will allow almost anyone to get good enought to hit targets, hitting game requires field experiance also.
if all else fails join the local archer ranges club shoots, make friends and watch and listen, a GOOD EXPERIANCED ARCHER can take most decent equipment and easily out shoot guys with far less experiance but new GEE-WIZZ equipment.
not in the least way am I suggesting good equipment won,t help, but your need to own the BEST available, falls far lower on the list than basic skills and practice if your goal is hitting a target

Was kicking around the local shop last week and saw a "Mission X3" Wow, I was impressed and that is comming from a life long Hoyt fan. That X3 sells for $339 and looks like (because they make them) Mathews bows from 3-5 years ago. It looked like they took the things that worked and put them on a bow with a reasonable price tag. My only complaint is that the cam has no adjustment. But from what I saw that was a heck of a bow for the $. Check one out. As for the accessories, I like the Beeman Hunter carbon shafts, Muzzy Broadheads, Toxonics sights, Trophytaker Rests and Scott releases. I think you could be into a nice package for under $600. Good luck.

Thanks for the input guys and for the links, 340mag. I will look them over in the next couple of days. I am in no real hurry to buy a bow, since I have PLENTY of time, and I am enjoying the shopping experience. I am glad to point out that the folks in the archery shops are pleasant, even to me and my 1000 questions.

I shot the Diamond Black Ice side-by-side with the KO Bow Logic 34 yesterday. Holy crap! The Black Ice was smooth, fast, and QUIET. I think I'm in love! The local archery shop is getting a few more models in stock later this week, so I'll check them out. They carry Mathews, Mission, PSE, Diamond, and some others. More bows to shoot!

I am enjoying the archery gig so far. I can see myself getting into it, and it's another activity to make the Alaskan winters go by more quickly. I have a couple of friends that have dropped out of the archery scene for a while, but with all my recent archery questions, they are getting the bug to dig out their bows again. I think we can have some fun with this.

Thanks for the pointers, guys. I appreciate the help. Anyone else? Feel free to chime in.

basic facts
longer draw lengths tend to allow a higher energy to be imparted to the arrow,.
longer length bows TEND to be more forgiving of bad form
consistancy in your form and release tends to help accuracy
don,t get overly concerned with arrow speed, youll want a MINIMUM of about 5 grains of arrow per pound of draw and 6 grains tends to be better
cut on contact broad heads tend to drive deeper and be more consistant
it takes CONSTANT practice to maintain your edge

http://www.bowhunting.net/NAspecies/elk2.html

After a few weeks of trying different bows, evaluating prices, etc., I found a deal on Saturday I didn't want to pass up. I bought a new 60# Mission X3 set-up from a local bow shop. It was dressed with a Trophy Ridge Dropzone rest, Impact Hammerhead 3-pin sight with level, Sims modular stabilizer, wrist strap, Scott Short-n-Sweet release, 1/2 dozen Beeman ICS Hunter 400's with 100gr field points, and since it's a new bow, it has a lifetime warrantee. Total package price: $525.

I still have a few more items to get, but this will get me started shooting. With the bow set at 59# and arrows weighing in at 411gr, the chronograph reports 260fps. Before I left the store, I was shooting 2-3" groups on their 20 yard range. Needless to say, I had a good time.

Thanks again for the advice. I am sure I will have more questions before hunting season rolls around.

Good job and practice all you can.Good luck

DanInAlaska:
Thank you for asking the question that started this thread.
I last did anything semi-serious with a bow in 1968 or 1969 as a member of The Tuttle Creek Bowmen in Manhattan, Kansas when I was a grad student at Kansas State University. I used a $12 mail-order fiberglass recurve from Herter's and two dozen wood arrows from the same vendor. I don't have binocular vision, so I certainly didn't distinguish myself as an archer. But I had a lot of fun for a price that even a chronically "broke" grad student could afford.
From time to time I have thought about going back into archery, but the cost of current equipment and its apparent complexity have dissuaded me. But thanks to this thread, I now have some ideas on how to gather and evaluate further information. Even a retiree on a fixed income might be able to get into this game.
Thanks to a search after reading the thread on the Timberline No Peep, I discovered Robert "Bob" Ragsdale and his many Q&A essays. Ragsdale's essays can be accessed through the "Community" box of links at Bowhunting.net.
So thanks to one and all who made so much information available to me!