looking to buy my 1st bow

[25-06rem.model700]

ive been watching a lot of bow hunting on wild tv and i decided i want to buy me a bow. I think for the price i will probley get me a bear instinct. Plus team primos use them and they seem to do well for them. A buddy of mine just moved about 4 miles from me and is gonna set up a 3d range in his back yard so i can go their and practice when ever i want.

[sinawalli]

Don't get fixated on a brand, or model! Go to a couple of archery stores, and shoot every bow in your price range, then decide which on YOU find shoots the best!!

[7 REM MAG]

do lots of reasearch before u buy, i just bought a new bow and i have been researchin em for over a month and a half

[albertaboy74]

I also just bought a new bow. I just new when I shot it, that it was the one for me, But I have been shooting for a number of years as well.

When I got my first bow, I wish I waited to find the right one.

As stated before, check out lots and shoot lots, you will know when it feels right. Just like a rifle,, you just know.

[Muskeg]

if you can't go to a place to shoot 50 different bows then buy it.. you've thought about that bow for awhile.. chances are that it shoots great.. and you will get used to it. and probably buy another bow the following year or the next after that.. good bow, good price, sound endorsements

[WILDTV]

Shoot a number of different bows and choose the one that feels the best for you.

Most of today's bows are so close in technology, it really boils down to which one shoots the best for you.

scott

[Muskeg]

It is the best thing you can do but not everyone is capable of making it to a bow shop for many reasons.. And really spending time feeling out various bows can be time consuming! Especially when you live far away from the shopping centers of Alberta.

[MountainTi]

Bowtec sells a nice complete little package, all ready to go except for a release and arrows. I think it retails for around $600. If you make it to Calgary, I recommend checking out JimBow's. Very helpful, good service, and he has a shooting lane there where he will get you set up.

[25-06rem.model700]

i did look at a bowtech package last fall it was fairly nice. I beleive the draw weight was 50 -60 pounds which is where i would like it since im young and would probley struggle with 70.

[Hoochie Papa]

Definately can't go wrong with a Bowtech. You won't find many- if any- guys that will say a Bowtech felt awful to shoot. They may have liked something else better, but won't say Bowtech is bad.

When I can figure out a way to wreck mine and make it look like an "accident"
Bowtech is my next string.

When you buy one though, gotta change your handle. :D :D

[Dr. Fish]

I just picked up my first bow this year and got a 06 Darton Maurauder and its a pretty sweet unit. Just my 2 cents. Got it for around $600.

[Cowboy Al]

I'll second the Bowtech recommendation! (I purchased the Tomkat, everything you need to get started for less than $600). And I'll second the Jim Bows recommendation as well, best service around.

[Mountain Guy]

On the contrary to researching a lot for the bow that would be right for you, be careful of the '' paralysis by analysis '' condition.:confused:
I got overcome with that sickness with the bow I just purchased.
Spent over a year researching ,reading , picking the right accessories , etc.
I found the more I researched the tougher it got.
And you know what... I still don't know if I made the right decision.

My first bow was much easier.
Went into the shop , picked a bow , shot it , it felt good , got them to throw some accessories on it , shot a few more times , went home and had fun.:)

There'll all good bows nowadays.

[johnnyringo]

x2 on what Mountainguy said...true dat!

[25-06rem.model700]

Found my bow!! bowtech TomKat Its fast, and enexpensive and i havent heard anything bad about it either.

[Hoochie Papa]

Excellent choice. Be sure to shoot it a few times first if you can, just to be sure. If it doesn't feel good to you, you won't want to shoot it. Not likely, but you never know.

Some people think th PSE X-Force is the greatest bow ever made. I shot one, and will never pick one up again. Each to his own.

[The Bit Runner.]

Like lots have said bowteck is good,if you get a chance shoot the diamond
very smooth nice shooting bow for a very good price compared to some.

I shoot matthews myself,i have owned 3 in the last 4 years and i will say the
new dxt to me is the sweetest shooting machine i have ever owned.What a tree stand,stalking bow,cant wait.

I thought it might not be as good for 3d shoots but it improved my scores.
If you can afford one and its in your price range you will not be disapointed.

Like every one said b-4 shoot them all,dont hurry like i did and bye the first one you pick up.

Either way bowhunting is where its at to me,any bow in your hand and the outdoors you cant go wrong.

Good luck and happy hunting...:)

[stand junkie]

good choice on the bow tech it wont disapoint you I have had a dimond Black Ice for a year now a still love shooting it. Good luck with your new bow

[bruin19]

im in the same boat, looking to buy my first bow. i've been looking at the browning rage. anyone shoot this bow or have any opinions on it?

[Mountain Guy]

OK.... I give in.
Bought a Diamond Black Ice. Best feeling bow in the hand and super....super quite with no hand shock ( sts installed )
I considered it after it won the '' best hunting bow'' shoot-out on archery-talk
You should try one.... if your into the ''shooting lots of bows before you buy'' mode.
I haven't got it dialed in yet , so I won't say it's the best thing around, but from preliminary shooting it's a keeper.

[grandslamer]

black ice x3

[Hoochie Papa]

Browning rage is a fine starter bow. Do you have a budget you need to stay within? You would be surprised what another $100 would get you over a Rage.

[bruin19]

no i don't really have a budget to stay in, but i don't want to buy something to expensive and then find out that i don't really enjoy it.(but i doubt that will happen.)

[Hoochie Papa]

Well then you are in a better position than most people looking for your first bow. All we can tell you is what we each prefer, and what is most popular.

But as far as bang for your buck- I would suggest Browning Myst, or Bowtech Tomkat. If you want to top end right off the hop, then Bowtech Guardian, Hoyt Vetrix, or Matthews DXT.

Because you don't have much, if any, experience, when you go try a few out, you will feel some differences. Whichever shop you go to, your dealer should be able to point out the minor differences in each bow.

[7 REM MAG]

i was in the same boat as you last month, went into shpk lanes and dave set me up real good lol shot probally 20 different bows and ended up buying the bow that i had shot first, funny how it works out sometimes but if you buy bowtech you wont regret it. If your in the edmonton sherwood park area and want to shoot a general with the sight etc. on it drop me a pm and you can shoot mine

[nekred]

Each bow has its own unique charactaristics.

The important thing is geometry..... and there are 3 variables i use for each one... Speed, accuracy(forgiveness), convenience
ATA Axle to Axle.... As it increases usually bow is more accurate and stable, but bow is longer and less convenient. with parrallel limbs the ATA has shortened without accuracy being as affected because of increased riser length. What I look for here is string angle and a short ATA bow with a long Drawlength makes for a steep string angle which affects accuracy, peep placement is far from eye requiring big peep. If you are a 29/30 draw length than don't go shorter than 36" on ATA, 27-28 go down to 34. The supper short PSE bows that are less than 30" have a steep string angle and are not Pope and Young legitimate archery tackle if you want to enter animals. For me witha 28.5 inch draw I have a 34" Guardian for 3D, at 32" Outback for Hunting (string angle is a small issue) and a 37" target bow.

parrallel limbs.... For hunting i feel these are a must. they work like a longer ATA non-parrallel bow but more convenient.

Brace Height: Short brace height adds speed long brace height adds forgiveness... again this is related to draw length. If you have long draw length and a short brace height bow will be very "twitchy" Short draw length and big brace height bow will be accurate but slow (shorter power stroke:

Draw Cycle:.... Smooth Draw cycle: Advantage is it is easier to draw and stay concealed but it is slower. Aggressive draw cycle... is faster but when you grunt when drawing you give your position away.

Here is where I recommend using an aggressive draw cycle but taking the draw weight down. You get best of both worlds....

For Hunting here is what I recommend!
For a dude that is 27" draw I recommend an aggrssive draw cycle..with 32-35" ATA, short brace height (7" or less) at a manageable draw weight... what is manageable... if you canshoot 50 arrows and still be able to shoot with ease... that is manageable...

For someone that is closer to 30" draw length i recommend a 35+ ATA and a 7" or more brace height. smoother draw cycle

Speed for hunting i recommend 280fps it is fast enough yet not twitchy!... these combinations will usually do that regardless of brand.

What you are trying when you feel the bow is the draw cycle, and the feel when bow fires. Some bows are lively and people have preference for that, and some bows are dead and people have the preference for that. The other thing you want to concentrate on is the grip... is it fat, to skinny, too round, too square... are there pressur points (this causes torque), How does it hold on target... easy or are you fighting....

But in order to be discriminating you have to shoot a bow for awhile to know what is what and people always will compare their second bow to their first.

like buying a car... hard to know what you want between different cars for handling charactaristics when you have not driven at all!

Hope this helps!...

[wctbowtech]

High Country Speed Force is getting blistering speed. Set one up for a guy the other day he was getting a blistering 372fps. Yes the bow has a harse draw cycle, but it produces lots of speed and not bad Kinetic Energy. (approximately 71 foot pounds of KE). :D

27.5" draw
70 lbs
33" Axle to Axle
7" Brace Height
231 grain arrow (3.3grains per pound)(Warrenty down to 3 grains per pound)

[DAVE]

i was in the same boat as you last month, went into shpk lanes and dave set me up real good lol shot probally 20 different bows and ended up buying the bow that i had shot first, funny how it works out sometimes but if you buy bowtech you wont regret it. If your in the edmonton sherwood park area and want to shoot a general with the sight etc. on it drop me a pm and you can shoot mine

Did the same think in 2006 Dave knows his stuff i still remember him from The taclke shop back in 1984 when i bought my first bow good person end up buying hoyt pwr tech after shooting 6 or 7 diffrent bows

[sony710]

Thanks for detailed explanation! :)

I have only one question - why 35+ ATA for tall shooters (30 inch draw)?

I have a bit of the issue to find a bow in that category.

Thx


If you are a 29/30 draw length than don't go shorter than 36" on ATA, 27-28 go down to 34. The supper short PSE bows that are less than 30" have a steep string angle and are not Pope and Young legitimate archery tackle if you want to enter animals. For me witha 28.5 inch draw I have a 34" Guardian for 3D, at 32" Outback for Hunting (string angle is a small issue) and a 37" target bow.

For someone that is closer to 30" draw length i recommend a 35+ ATA and a 7" or more brace height. smoother draw cycle

[russ]

I've always shot longer a to a bows better. Just me I guess.

[Mountain Guy]

Longer ATA is not necessarily better , although generally more forgiving.
For a hunting bow a shorter ATA may be better as far as maneouverability ( geez that's a big word !! ) over the advantages of a longer ATA for forgiveness.
What kinda hunting will you be doing ?
Tree stands / ground blinds and still hunting in the bush will find a shorter bow a lot easier to handle.
Open country mulie / antelope with longer shots may find the longer bow a better choice.
Although I shot a 32'' and a 34'' side by side and found the 32'' more solid and stable.

[russ]

Although I shot a 32'' and a 34'' side by side and found the 32'' more solid and stable.

Which could have been a difference in draw length not axle to axle. As little as 1/8" will change how the pin floats in the sight picture so it may have been that the d/l on the 34" bow was either slightly longer or shorter resulting in a different hold. Target shooters fiddle with this all the time, shorter = tighter groups with sudden pin movements & longer = looser groups & slower pin motion.

[Mountain Guy]

Which could have been a difference in draw length not axle to axle. As little as 1/8" will change how the pin floats in the sight picture so it may have been that the d/l on the 34" bow was either slightly longer or shorter resulting in a different hold. Target shooters fiddle with this all the time, shorter = tighter groups with sudden pin movements & longer = looser groups & slower pin motion.

I guess that's a possibility....but the difference was quite noticable.
Both were same make , same DL and draw stops the same.
I was really surprised.
I guess that's why there's so many to choose from..... everyone's different.

[leftiesarebetter]

hey there 7mm rem. mag. If you get a chance to be in red deer stop by the red deer archery center. They carry matthews, bowtech, diamond, pse and apa but they can get anything you need. They have a lanes to let you shoot any bow they have and if you have a budget in mind they will be able to find a bow and make a kit for it to keep you in budget. If you have any questions feel free to give them a call there number is 403-343-1153 their names are pat and john. They are located across from the kip scott dealer in the telebyte building. :)

[diamond k]

I own the Instinct and I really like it. Bought from Cabelas with the full package for 600 dollars and it has worked really well for me and Sherwood Park is a dealer and can help you set it up if you want. I would recomend it and I did alot of research before I bought.

[russ]

Bought from Cabelas with the full package ....

.....Sherwood Park is a dealer and can help you set it up if you want.

That's something I don't recommend. Buying it from a box store and then expecting a dealer to set it up. You should expect to pay for that kind of service and I honestly don't think asking $100 for setting up someone elses sale is out of line. In fact that's not enough!