Which bow?
09-28-2013, 02:52 PM
#1
Spike
Thread Starter
Join Date: Sep 2013
Posts: 1
Which bow?
I guess this is the place to ask, I'm wanting to get out of rifle hunting and venture off into bow hunting. I have a lot of friends who bow hunt, telling me to buy a Fred Bear or a Mathews, Does anyone have any other opinion?
09-28-2013, 07:39 PM
#3
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: North Idaho
Posts: 1,071
big difference between the two IMO....if you can go to an archery store and shoot as many different brands as possible...I had a fred bear..and I shot a Mathews and I was hooked...been using it since 2010 season...but you may like a different brand.
09-29-2013, 11:01 AM
#5
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: Kansas
Posts: 3,870
There are really so many good affordable bows and GREAT elite bows out there these days that it's hard to go wrong. It's mostly important that you test shoot a wide range of bows to determine what feels best for you, and do your research to decide what specifications in a bow are important to you.
For example, these days I only shoot binary, twin, or dual cam bows. I believe in the technology enough that level knock travel and blistering speed is important to me. I want a hard cam, heavy draw, and a lot of speed. I don't mind a short valley. I like grips that lock into my hand (not a round grip guy). I'm an above average bowhunter for accuracy, so I want a bow that will deliver enough energy downrange, i.e. a fast bow with heavy draw.
For me, it came up to a Bowtech Destroyer 350 as the "ideal" bow for me.
In terms of bows to look at, the Diamond Outlaw is a fantastic budget friendly bow. I sold a pot of them over the last few years working part time at a local shop, and I'm looking for a used one myself for a bowfishing rig.
Bowtech Destroyer has been discontinued, but they have a limited edition out. The Insanity CPX is a great bow, but I liked the Destroyer better. The Bowtechs are drag racers of archery though. Short valleys, hard backwalls, HARD cams, smooth draws, and blistering speed. They aren't for everybody. Drawing my Destroyer at 65lbs feels like drawing my Mathews Monster at 72lbs. If you have a creeping problem, then don't shoot a Bowtech with a thumb release, the bow will pull it out of your hand at some point.
Diamond, made by bowtech, are great single cam bows. As I mentioned, the Outlaw is fantastic, and I set up a Fugitive for a guy that really performed well.
The Mathews Monster Chill is next on my list of bows to buy. The Creed is a great single cam version of the Chill (ok, so it happened the other way around, but only dual cam bows matter). The "z series" are tried and true, very hard to go wrong with a Mathews single cam bow, and their dual cam Mcpherson/Monster series bows are top notch. The Heli-M is a fantastic little bow, but for $1200, the performance isn't there. It just feels like a lightweight Mathews, and isn't that fast.
The Bear bows are probably the quietest bows out of the lot, but they're ugly as sin, and don't quite have the performance as some others in their class. They are VERY smooth drawing in general.
Hoyt's are amazing bows, and I think, other than looks, they are the ones that really got the carbon bow right on the first try. The Cam & 1/2 Hoyt's is a great system, more efficient than a single cam, but not as aggressive as a pure binary/dual/twin.
PSE has really upped their game in recent years, but for what it's worth, it's kinda like the new luxury Fiat's. I could care less. They didn't jump to the front of the pack, they just caught up with everyone else.
So again, hard to go wrong with any of the mainstream bows out there. Personally, I'll shoot Bowtechs and Mathews Monsters for a long time coming.
For example, these days I only shoot binary, twin, or dual cam bows. I believe in the technology enough that level knock travel and blistering speed is important to me. I want a hard cam, heavy draw, and a lot of speed. I don't mind a short valley. I like grips that lock into my hand (not a round grip guy). I'm an above average bowhunter for accuracy, so I want a bow that will deliver enough energy downrange, i.e. a fast bow with heavy draw.
For me, it came up to a Bowtech Destroyer 350 as the "ideal" bow for me.
In terms of bows to look at, the Diamond Outlaw is a fantastic budget friendly bow. I sold a pot of them over the last few years working part time at a local shop, and I'm looking for a used one myself for a bowfishing rig.
Bowtech Destroyer has been discontinued, but they have a limited edition out. The Insanity CPX is a great bow, but I liked the Destroyer better. The Bowtechs are drag racers of archery though. Short valleys, hard backwalls, HARD cams, smooth draws, and blistering speed. They aren't for everybody. Drawing my Destroyer at 65lbs feels like drawing my Mathews Monster at 72lbs. If you have a creeping problem, then don't shoot a Bowtech with a thumb release, the bow will pull it out of your hand at some point.
Diamond, made by bowtech, are great single cam bows. As I mentioned, the Outlaw is fantastic, and I set up a Fugitive for a guy that really performed well.
The Mathews Monster Chill is next on my list of bows to buy. The Creed is a great single cam version of the Chill (ok, so it happened the other way around, but only dual cam bows matter). The "z series" are tried and true, very hard to go wrong with a Mathews single cam bow, and their dual cam Mcpherson/Monster series bows are top notch. The Heli-M is a fantastic little bow, but for $1200, the performance isn't there. It just feels like a lightweight Mathews, and isn't that fast.
The Bear bows are probably the quietest bows out of the lot, but they're ugly as sin, and don't quite have the performance as some others in their class. They are VERY smooth drawing in general.
Hoyt's are amazing bows, and I think, other than looks, they are the ones that really got the carbon bow right on the first try. The Cam & 1/2 Hoyt's is a great system, more efficient than a single cam, but not as aggressive as a pure binary/dual/twin.
PSE has really upped their game in recent years, but for what it's worth, it's kinda like the new luxury Fiat's. I could care less. They didn't jump to the front of the pack, they just caught up with everyone else.
So again, hard to go wrong with any of the mainstream bows out there. Personally, I'll shoot Bowtechs and Mathews Monsters for a long time coming.
10-01-2013, 06:43 PM
#6
Spike
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: Summerfield FL.
Posts: 34
I also like the Diamond bows, have two. the Outlaw and The Infinite edge. Not a bow guru, But Ill tell You that for the money I feel they are hard to beat. Don't get Me wrong, I like a couple Mathews bows that Ive handled. I may end up with one but I always get compliments at the range while practicing. a lot for how quite they are and how fast and smooth they are for a budget bow. Go shoot A couple Diamonds.
10-03-2013, 11:27 AM
#8
Spike
Join Date: Oct 2009
Posts: 13
Go to a pro-shop and try many different brands. Do not get hung up on brand names and internet comments. ie: "Matthews is best". The BEST bow is the one that fits you correctly and is comfortable to shoot for YOU! What is important is having the pro-shop measure you and then you knowing these measurements so that you can properly shop for a bow that will fit you. i.e. your draw length is an important measurement to know.
Unless you know your measurements, I wouldn't buy a bow off the shelf. I very much encourage you buying a bow from a pro-shop for your first one. Their job is to fit you to a bow. Shoot a bunch of different ones. You will get that Ah-ha moment with one of them. Once you have one and get accustomed to it, it will become easier for you to shop for a second one later on if you so choose. Just running off to a store and buying such-and-such a brand because you heard about it from a buddy or read about it on a forum will more than likely lead you to a disappointing experience.
As a side note: Don't get hung up on the advertised bow speeds! The old adage "a slow hit is better than a fast miss" is true when it comes to bow hunting. Most shots on critters are around the 15 to 25 yard mark. You do not need the arrow to be traveling at mach speed to kill a deer at those ranges. IMO, bow manufactures began publishing arrow speeds purely as a marketing tool and then they began chasing speed alone! This led to bows being made that sounded like .22's going off when the bow was fired. They also made the brace height so small as to render the bow almost completely unforgiving of form. The industry went down a path of selling overdraws and so forth which had people shooting arrows that were too short and too light! The point here is that there is a ton of crap to throw your head into a spin and it is all totally unnecessary and a waste of money.
Unless you know your measurements, I wouldn't buy a bow off the shelf. I very much encourage you buying a bow from a pro-shop for your first one. Their job is to fit you to a bow. Shoot a bunch of different ones. You will get that Ah-ha moment with one of them. Once you have one and get accustomed to it, it will become easier for you to shop for a second one later on if you so choose. Just running off to a store and buying such-and-such a brand because you heard about it from a buddy or read about it on a forum will more than likely lead you to a disappointing experience.
As a side note: Don't get hung up on the advertised bow speeds! The old adage "a slow hit is better than a fast miss" is true when it comes to bow hunting. Most shots on critters are around the 15 to 25 yard mark. You do not need the arrow to be traveling at mach speed to kill a deer at those ranges. IMO, bow manufactures began publishing arrow speeds purely as a marketing tool and then they began chasing speed alone! This led to bows being made that sounded like .22's going off when the bow was fired. They also made the brace height so small as to render the bow almost completely unforgiving of form. The industry went down a path of selling overdraws and so forth which had people shooting arrows that were too short and too light! The point here is that there is a ton of crap to throw your head into a spin and it is all totally unnecessary and a waste of money.
