Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Bowhunting Would like recommendations on what older used bows to buy??

I'm looking on Craigslist and Ebay and everyday there appear to be about 30 people dumping a bow on Craigslist.. I'd like to get into bow hunting because we got way too many does in our property and unfortunately our property lies one mile out of the antlerless firearm zone in Missouri (they should move it to encompass our property) so I better learn to bow hunt to get more meat for the family and church.. I don't want to buy a new bow since they just lose their value instantly, but I have no experience on what good bows used to be made in the past 5 or so years.. I'd like to get one with all of the necessary accessories but since I'm so unfamiliar with bow hunting, I still don't know whats needed.

If you guys could recommend a good older bow along with the necessary equipment for it, that'll be great..
Some bows I see on Craigslist are Hoyt Magnatec, PSE Straflite, PSE Polaris, XT2000

Like to know what sights are good, etc, what I should be looking for in a bow..

I've been told get a whisker biscuit, stabilizer, but thats about all i know.

I'm not new to archery, I'm just new to compound bows and hunting accessories.. During my summers in college (a couple of years ago), I taught standardized testing in South Korea and I had a girl cousin who was aspiring to be an Olympic archer so I spent some time learning and shooting with her. She majored in physical education and spent about 2 hours shooting a day but if you know anything about women's archery, South Korea just has too much talent.. I shot her recurve bow with about a 40-50lb draw weight on it. I was okay, at about 25 meters I was getting consistent groups of 3". I just hope with a little bit more practice I'll be shooting as consistently as I did with a compound bow. I don't plan on shooting at a deer any further than 40 meters away, I'll probably try getting anything within 25 meters.

As for myself, I'm 6'0 and 190lbs so I'm guessing I'll be needing a 60-70lb draw weight with a 29" draw length. My arm length is about 74". Any advice/recommendation would be greatly appreciated. Oh and a good tree stand/blind for a bow hunter would be a good recommendation as well too.

Thanks

If your going used, be sure the bow has some adjustability in draw length. I'd recommend a Hoyt Ultratec, Protec, Magnatec or similar with Cam and 1/2. I think a guy your size would be best served with a bow in the 36-40" axle to axle length, and a 60# peak weight is plenty for anything in the US. As for sights the wrapped fiber optics are very nice for low light shooting. I like the Trophy Taker drop away rests and Easton or Beeman Carbon arrows. If there is a local club or friend that has some experience he will be able to save you some of the beginner mistakes and get you started off right.

Be sure to check out the classifieds section on the archery talk forums as well. Lots of good used bows go for good prices on that site, much cheaper than ebay in my experience.

I personally would go for a used Mathews or Bowtech, but there are other good bows as well. A good used Mathews or BT will give you a lifetime of use if you keep it maintained.

Lots of good sights out there. I like Toxonics sights, but there are alot of good ones on the market. For lower priced sights, Truglo makes some good sights as well as Cobra. The WB is a great rest IMO, especially for hunting. Gold Tip arrows are good as well as the PSE X weave, Vapor, Easton, and many others.

You'll need a release as well. I prefer caliper type releases, but I would suggest trying a few to find what feels best to you. You'll need accessories such as a string loop, Sims String Leeches, Sims Limb savers, a peep, and a quiver. The Bohing Lynx 4 is a descent quiver IMO. You may want a stabilizer, but many shoot w/o them on the modern bows. You may want a wrist sling as well.

Have your proshop put on the accessories and paper tune your bow. If the used bow has a well worn string and you put new strings/cables on and have it tuned, you will need to check the tune after a bit of shooting.

Practice, practice, practice....

Hope that helps alittle.

Have a Good One,

loder

+1
You can pick up a 3-5 yr old Matthews Outback or Switchback (or another good top-of-the-line bow) for $400 to $500 fully loaded with sights, rest, etc. and you will be set for many years of happy hunting. You must however, take it to a local pro shop and have it tuned and checked over. This should run you $25-$50.

Best of luck and welcome to the addiction.

My only issue with Mathews is that unless you get your exact draw length the first time, it will cost you $100+ to get a new cam to change the draw length. Definately find a bow with some draw length adjustment. Any of the major brands build good quality shooters.

Good point. I guess when I bought my last bow, I knew exactly what draw length I needed. Unless you have been fitted by a pro shop or have previous experience, you won't know your length.

I would highly recommend buying a 3-5 yr old bow over a 5-10 yr old bow. The small initial savings will not be worth it.

Archerytalk.com is a good place to buy, but I prefer a local (state DWFP) forum if you know of one in your area. You may be able to meet the seller face to face and try a bow out before buying.

Used Bowtech Tribute.. fully adjustable..

I'm somewhat new to bowhunting as well and I found my Fred Bear Element on Ebay....I absolutely love this bow and from the shooting I have done, it can definitely hang with some of the more expensive bows. I got mine fully set up for about $230 and I am about to put a Ripcord drop away rest on there instead of the Whisker Biscuit.
Hope this helps

dont get something too old( within 5 yrs) also look for the biggest brace height you can find 7" and above and dont get hung up on the speed. if a deer is going to outrun 300fps, it will outrun 325 fps. also go with a small axel to axel if you hunt from stands (34" or smaller) a big bow in a stand can be cumbersome at times good luck

First, go to a proshop and get your draw length. This will cost you nothing. From there, the world is an open book. I've shot Mathews since the first one came out, and have not even dreamed of shooting anything else.

You can pick a good used one up in the classifieds I'm sure. I would be careful on Craig's List, at least from what I know in the Dallas area, as its easy to get ripped off.

I will pm you some other info.....

another bow company to consider : Elite Archery

they have a Lifetime Transferable Warranty , regardless of owner - no questions asked


first time this has ever been offered in the archery industry and creating a buzz

basically if you ever experience a cam or limb problem, call Elite customer service and they send you a replacement set free of charge

Elite also uses Barnsdale limbs which are arguably the best in the business


just one of my Elite bows

Have you traditional archery out? There are distinct disadvantages of course but there are also significant upsides.