HNI_Christine

Here's a quick glimpse of a couple of the bowfishing products I saw at the Archery Trade Association Show.

Muzzy Reel


This reel really does look like it will be the closed-face to use for bowfishing. Thanks to Mark Land for explaining the features of this reel and modeling it for me.

Specs: Dual bearing support for the spool shaft and dual bearings for the gear shaft. SS and brass gears. Dual, cushioned selective anti-reverse, oversized roller pickup pin (this thing is almost 3/16in.) Automotive type disc drag system, convertible retrieve, high retrieve ratio, large line capacity, over sized line hole in cover, dual pin supported push button, SS polished covers, heavy duty composite frame and of course, a Muzzy logo on reel.http://www.muzzy.com/

The reel



Check out the size of that pick-up pin!


Innards.


Innerloc Broadheadshttp://www.innerloc.com/ came out with a new line of bowfishing heads and shafts.

They have three shafts. The Hybrid Max which is a composite arrow with a fiberglass core bonded to and aluminum wrapped exterior.
The Glass Max, which is a 5/16 dia. orange fiberglass arrow.
The Glow Max... a 5/16 dia. glow in the dark arrow shaft. (it meets my 'coolness' stamp of approval)

They came out with three bowfishing points. The Grapple 2, the Grapple 3 and the Gator Grapple. The barbs have a 2 3/4" open diameter. (I think they'd be perfect for buffalo fish.)

The Grapple2 has two folding barbs. The Grapple3 has three folding barbs and the Gator Grapple is a three barb point that is drilled for a detachable rig set-up. All three points are available in 22/64 or 5/16 dia.

The big tip screws off and can be replaced with a Grapple broadhead point. This provides for fast bleed-out on bowfishing's big game such as sharks and gators.

Another feature is that the tips have a small insert that is supposed to keep the tip from unscrewing on retrieval or vibrating off.

Here are two photos. I'll try to put up some more in a bit.



Head with broadhead attachment screwed on.



This product, called the BowSlingBlindhttp://www.blueskyarchery.com/ is a bow case/sling that with a zippered attachment converts to a blind.

I think it's cool for bowfishers because one model is neoprene. (easy to clean carp slime off of) It would be a great way to protect a bowfishing bow without the bulk of an entire case. Part of the bow is still exposed after being put in the BowSlingBlind. This means you don't have to take off the reel or retriever. The bow is 'disabled' when inside the BowSling, so it works for hunting season too.

BowslingBlind


The downside? I don't think that an Oneida or recurve is going to fit inside it..... But...
The AMS Fishhawk would.

I've heard of the Fishhawks, but this is the first time I saw them up close. Built by Genesis and rigged for bowfishing, these are nice, compact bows. Totally set up with a reel, rest and finger tabs.. it only retails for around 320.00. Not a bad deal at all.
See the AMS website at http://www.amsbowfishing.com/


The Brauns with their AMS Fishhawks.

They had a cool display too. Lots of archers were attracted to it. I overheard several people say. 'I need to get back into bowfishing' or 'I'd love to try that.'

Display


I had the pleasure of meeting Robin and Keith from Aimlow Productions http://www.aimlowproductions.com/and Renegade Archery.
Their video preview looks great. Of course, it's that monstrous gar that was really grabbing people's attention.

New DVD (coming soon)

HNI_Christine

I have to add this too. It's not bowfishing related, but it's high on the scale of 'coolness'.

It's the Airrest and it uses magnets to 'float' the arrow in the rest at full draw.

I poked at it and was amazed at how stable the arrow is. You really have to poke at it pretty hard to get it to move.

I didn't get a chance to try it on the range tho'.

Snood Slapper

Thanks Christine!! This is the first time I've seen anyone give the scoop from the ATA show as far a Bowfishing is concerned. I like Innerloc EXP's for turkey, so I'll definitely be giving their new bowfishing heads a try. Did you happen to see anything of the new Browning Barracuda Bowfishing bow?

HNI_Christine

Snood,

I didn't check out any of the bows besides the Fishhawk and a couple of the Bowtechs.

(that was supposed to be Justin's job)


Sorry!

fishngame

Ah! So many things and so little money! I'll have to start saving my pennies!

Mikey

Shootstuff4570

thanks for sharing all that. i have a couple questions...
Where was this show at?
You said that the tips screw off, so would the 3 grapple tip fit on my AMS arrow?(i lost a fish once because of the tip i had on the arrow, so i think that would help hold the fish on a little bit better.
And do you know how much the tips would cost?

Thanks
Tyler

bowtech die hard

those heads look SWEET!

hogmess

I bought finger tabs for my Browning Barracuda Bow and don't understand how you put then on. If any one could give me some pointers I would appreciate it. Do you have to cut down one side. I was told you had to slide them on your string but I dont have the tools to take my string off.

Bulzeye

Looks like some great gear!
Thanks for the info. It's good to know somebody on the inside.

Did you happen to notice if the Innerloc barbs are spring loaded, or free moving? Either way, they look great for those soft fish I keep tearing up.
How do the barbs reverse for fish removal?

With the Airrest,can it suspend an arrow before it is drawn, or does the magnetic field onlywork onthe arrow when the bow is at full draw and the steel point is close to the rest? Could work for bowfishing if it will hold the heavy arrows, kinda like a touchless WB.

And of course my ever present question...Can it work with fingers?

HNI_Christine

This thread is from last year. []

Hogmess, what kind of string is on the barracuda? No glovs are supposed to be slid down the string. You might want to ask Fred at F&D Archery for pointers. He sells the Barracudas and is very helpful. http://www.fdarchery.com/ (715) 597-2022
[email protected]

Bulz, Innerloc barbs are free moving. They hold very well. The points are pretty soft and dull easily, that combined with the excellent holding ability will make you pick and chose where you use them. I don't use them around roots or rocks. They are great for bigheads and silvers.

I did manage to break a barb off of one of them while horsing in a silver carp from a moving boat. (that's a lot of pressure on the barbs) Still, I highly recommend them for that kind of shooting.

You have to completely unscrew the tip to reverse the barbs. A bit slow, but for bigheads and silvers, not a problem.

Airrest.. I'm not sure of any changes they made since last year. The ones I saw used amagnetic insert inside the shaft. The arrow wouldn't lift until the insertwas at the magnets(at the front-end of the arrow). Once settled the arrow is very solid. It does taketwoor three secondsfor the arrow to reach it's 'settled' point. This may make it too slow for some snap shooting in bowfishing. It's not the lightest or cheapest rest for bowfishing either. I don't know how heavy of an arrow it could handle or if it could be shot withfingers

I did see people using the rest at the range and it was getting lots of compliments.