Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Bowhunting Best used bow

Hi all Years ago I bow hunted alot shot Pse and Hoyt. I have moved and would like to start again. I have been looking at Mattews bows but new ones are out of my range . AS I look on ebay and bowsite there are many models and I don't have a clue. Yes I would like to shoot the bow but when buying used its hard to always do this. I'm 54 years old looking at 29" draw and 50-60 weight no way I can handle 65-70 pounds. Any thoughts ? Thanx for your input DWG

Look for a clean Switchback XT or a Diamond Black Ice, Black Ice is lighter but personally I think they both shoot very similar to one another.

I'll be going on my 3rd season with my Black Ice, no complaints...

Would like to upgrade, but no way in h*ll I'm going to shell out what they're asking for new ones these days.

The Switchback is not just an Okay used bow, it's very likely the most sought after bow no longer made. If you find one bare bones under 400-450 bucks it will be a deal!

I had one, got stupid and sold it for a "new better bow" and then kicked myself. I have another one now and I won't be tempted to sell it again. It's my 100% go to bow for all my hunting today

Go to www.Archerytalk.com, there are lots and lots of Switchback bows for sale. I'd have posted a link to the Classifieds, but I am not quite that computer savy. There are no shortages of that bow on the used market, and I have heard they are an excellent bow!!!

Brent

Just get something that fits you and forget the hipe of adds and have funny with it.If your bow shoots 350fps that fast,if you can hit what you shoot at speed,arrow and broadhead is useless..

I'm in the same boat you are,I ran the wheels off a car looking at bows,read to all hours of the night and in the end I was about to pull my hair out.My choice of bows a Parker got everything for 185.00 bucks,shoots 252fps at 57lbs and quite.When to the woods for the first time since 94 with a bow on Saturday and loved it...just get something you can shoot and shoot well....Fred Bear said it best...youtube Fred Bears last question..He says it all.

Good Luck and good hunting...

visit a few shops - test out afew different brands - most carry used bows as a lot of guys gotta have the newest- fastest -
don't buy a bow you've nrver shot - test a lot then decide

any of the name brand bows have top of the line and economic class bows - thus all the names ya never heard of -

lots of really great used bows around for under 300

I'm a Hoyt fan myself. I think you would be well served with an older Ultratec or Protec with the Cam and 1/2. Not the fastest bow made, but kind of like an old Model 70 - solid. And with the Cam and 1/2 you can change your draw length over a 3" range in 1/2" increments. With the Mathews you will have to buy new cams to adjust the draw length ~$100 every time you change your draw length........

I have had good luck in buying and selling my mathews bows. Paid $550 ready-to-shoot,for a one-year old LX, used it for three years and sold it (bare bow) for $350.

Agreed! I shoot a 2003 model Ultratec and just haven't found a better bow. Very easy to shoot and adjustable for options like shooting off the string or trying a string loop.
www.Archerytalk.com is the place to search and buy, once you've found out what you want. Good luck!

archerytalk.com is definitely the place I would go. They have great deals and I've bought a Mathews S2 for $500 with nary a scratch on it. Also bought 3 stick bows on there all shoot great. Very decent people on there.

As for what bows I would look for a Mathews Switchback, Bowtech but not the General or anything like it stick with the earlier models like the Patriot. An Archery Research (AR) is a great bow. Elite, Mission, Hoyt, Martin, PSE are all good. Just watch out for the "newer faster" bows they have a very aggressive draw cycle and can be somewhat bothersome to draw. Going down in draw weight isn't a bad thing it's a smart thing for most of us that have issues. I am only drawing 62 lbs by choice and still get complete pass thru's.

Thanx for the insite guys I will look at those bow mentioned and visit a couple stores just to look and learn I don't plan to hunt this fall as I have a broken ankle so I can take my sweet time . This year I will just set in my blind when Gun season opens DWG

I'm surprised nobody mentioned the Hoyt Vectrix. I have one and it's not leaving any time soon. You can usually find one on Archerytalk for $300 or less.

That's an excellent bow. The one that came after the Vectrix had too short of a brace height (6" IIRC). I bought one of those off archerytalk but I wasn't as accurate with that as my old Razortec, so sold it and picked up an AlphaMax32. This AM32 is my best bow to date.

I am suprised nobody had mentioned Darton. They are sensational bows and you can get a great price on a used one. If you do a search on any forum you will see. Just go to Archery Talk and type in Darton. Go to any arcery site and type in Darton. I think you will be impressed with what you read. I draw my Darton AS300 at 70 pounds and it is dead smooth, draw length can be adjusted, it shoots super quiet at 275fps with my hunting arrows, and I bought it for $280.

Don't be afraid to consider a BowTech, too. I shoot a Mathews Outback and like it, but if I were in the market for a bow right now, I'd throw that into the mix.

If there is a 3D archery tournament anywhere near your area, it might be worth going there and talking to the shooters about what they like and why. Some of them get bows from the bow manufacturers, and might be willing to sell one at a good price.

Steve

Have you considered the simple elegance of a non-compound?

[quote=Naphtali]Have you considered the simple elegance of a non-compound? [quote=DWG7]

Dang, good call man. I feel a little ashamed not mentioning that.

I bought my married daughter a HIGH COUNTRY bow thru an eBay source for $129. Then her husband spent approx $50. for fit, tuning, and couple accessories at local bowyer. This is a VERY ACCURATE bow.

Sherwood

Don't buy ANY compound bow you can't shoot ahead of time!
If you can shoot the same model of a friends - or at an archery range that's fine. But to go in it blindly is asking for trouble. There's a whole ton of great bows out there that are not the "latest and greatest" and therefore lower priced.
I shoot several older bows.... a Hoyt MagnaTec, Holt Striker, Bear TRX32 for compounds and Bear Kodak Magnum, Bear Grizzly, and Grove Fireline for recurve bows. All shoot great and all will take deer. They are not the fastest, nor latest and greatest. But they will get a deer just as good or better then those high priced (and sometimes very rough draw cycle) bows. Forget the hype. Forget the speed. That speed.... and the way that the bow works to get it is what makes so much noise, which causes you to lose out on the deer. The deer "jumps the string" due to the noise, you miss, and the deer hunt is ruined.
The bow is never going to shoot an arrow faster than the speed of sound. So go with a quite bow, albeit slower, and... less expensive. You will spend less, work less at shooting it, and enjoy it way more.

OK The Shop has a Mathews outback all set up to hunt $550 What are your thoughts Thanx DWG

A shop near me has about 20 used bows for around $50. These are 20 year old bows. Some look like new. They killed deer then and they will now. I still have and shoot my Darton Lightning that I bought new in '83. Also still have my Oneida Aeroforce X80 that I bought new in '96. They are excellent bows. I found another Darton Lightning at a yards sale this summer for $20. $20!

I cannot justify a new bow today. They cost too much and they have no "valley." I got my Pro-Line Corsair (IIRC) for $100 and it's a killer! My BIL held his new Z7 in my face 'till i thought I would hurl. I'm glad he thinks he likes it but I am not gonna pay $1000 for a bow. I shoot better than he does anyway with every old bow I own.