Fixed Pin or Pendulum?

[RickV87]

Just for your opinions.....Would you prefer a fixed pin or pendulum sight?

[8pt~Bowhunter]

Fixed pin!

[Tuco]

I shot Pendulum for years, first a Keller then a Trophy Ridge. This year I got a new bow and went with a fixed pin. Next year I am going back to a Pendulum. I only hunt from a tree stand and I like taking the guess work out of ranging. I found myself using my range finder a whole lot this year and. I will probably go with a Vital Bow Gear. The Keller is very well built but I need the fiber optic(eyes over 40).

[redneck buck hunter]

Pendulum is the best IMO. I have the keller pendulum now but it sucks in low light.

[deerhunter518]

fixed pin range estemating takes some practice but you can take longer shots easier

[gzg38b]

Fixed pin.

I don't buy the science behind pendulum sights, unless you hunt from 40 or 50 feet up the tree or higher.

[125py]

ORIGINAL: gzg38b

Fixed pin.

I don't buy the science behind pendulum sights, unless you hunt from 40 or 50 feet up the tree or higher.

sorry.....but i have to laugh. Not much science involved in the sight...40 or 50 ft up to work?????WHAT...i have a Keller and it works great....oh my stands are all 15 to 18 ft high. No problems AT ALL in 11 years.

[gzg38b]

ORIGINAL: 125py

sorry.....but i have to laugh. Not much science involved in the sight...40 or 50 ft up to work?????WHAT...i have a Keller and it works great....oh my stands are all 15 to 18 ft high. No problems AT ALL in 11 years.

I'm not saying they don't work. My point is that they are completely unnecessary under 99% of treestand situations.

Do the math. If you remember the pythagorean theroem from high school trig class, plug in the numbers, being careful to make sure your units are consistent (feet or yards, not both). You'll see what I mean.

Of coursea pendulum sight works - if it didn't nobody would buy them. But the math will tell you that in most normal bowhunting situations the adjusted distance vs. the horizontal distance is only off by 1 or 2 yards at the most. So a pendulum sight is completely un-necessary. Does it work? Yes. Is it needed? Heck no.

[Tuco]

They do work because when you bend from the waist the pin moves. On my old bowtech I was good from 0-35yards, I could not then or now with my new bow hit the same spot with a single fixed pin. Also try ranging stuff from the ground and then from the tree stand, there is a difference, that is why the new rangefingers have the "true" yardage feature.

[gzg38b]

This table shows why I don't understand the reasoning behind pendulum sights. Under normal bowhunting conditions, the "adjusted distance" really isn't different from the horizontal difference (not enough to matter).

For example, if you are 18 feet high in the tree, the brilliant self calculating pendulum sightis going to tell you that the deer that looks 20.8 yards away is really only 20 yards away. Big deal. I'm still using my 20 yard pin either way. Why do I need that pendulum sight?

At further distances (like 30 yards) it becomes even LESS significant. And if your treestand is 15 feet instead of 18 feet, it's even LESS significant.

It only becomes significant if you hunt really high in a tree (say 40 feet or higher) AND you are shooting at really close animals (less than 10 yards). Otherwise, fixed pins are just fine.

In my honest opinion, the pendulum sight ranks right up there with the Butt-out tool and Gum-o-flauge. Products that technically do work but are totally and completely un-necessary. Practice from your tree, bend at the waste, and you'll be just fine.