new hunter
 

I want to start hunting but there is not much i know in order to get me started. if anyone has any tips or advoce they can give i'd really appreciate it thanks!

Spend a day at your local shotgun or rifle range.

Ask them when the next hunter safety course will be held, and attend it to start.

You're gonna love it !

Keep us posted as to how you're doing.

Read a lot of Books,get a few Hunting Magazines like Deer and Deer Hunting,Field & Stream,Outdoor Life,North American Whitetail and Bowhunters Magazine...rent several Drury Outdoors Hunting Video's and take it all in...see if You can go Hunting with someone that is Experienced in Hunting and go for walks in the outdoors.


There are several Books at the Library that You can read up on about looking for Deer sign and if You have any Land/Property You can go on set up a trail camera or 2 and enjoy the wildlife pictures.Go to some local Deer Classics or Outdoor Shows and get some info on Hunting...ask a lot of questions here and most will try to help You learn! ;)

You can learn everything you ever wanted to on this website.

That's a joke...I've been hunting over 40 years, you think I have time to sit here and type out eveything I ever learned???

okay thanks any recommended trail cameras i should get?
also any bows you could recommend that i should think about getting?

do you have your hunters' safety? that's the first thing to do, can't do any real hunting without it. i'm taking it now with my daughter. We're having a great time. You'll learn alot there, then ask questions when you have them.

what do you want to hunt for? what kind of guns do you have or have access to? although i can't offer much advice, we may have the same questions. I'm here to learn as well.

good luck :)

I must have been replying the same time you were. I see your into bows. i haven't had much experience with them except what we took in hunters' safety. so again good luck.

i dont really have access to anything im the only one in my family even interested in hunting. but i do want to hunt whitetail deer. I've been saying i want to start for awhile but just the other day i decided im gonna start this now instead of just saying im going to so this has been my first step. i did have someone that could of helped me but he can't help me anymore so im kinda on my own.

If Your going to start out with a Bow I recomend buying a good used one and trying to start out with it first,do a lot of target practicing and get efficent/good with it at 10 yards,20 and 30 and finally 40 yards out.As far as a brand new Youth/Womens Bow the Mission Menace is a very good smooth Bow made by Matthews.If You decide on buying a new Bow try as many out in Your price range at a reputable Archery Shop and make a decision after You find one that is comfortable to hold and shot.

Hunting Whitetails with a Bow is very challenging and takes a lot more time and patients to say the least...You also need be able to draw a certain amount of poundage on a Bow to be able to legally shot a Deer...check in Your State Wildlife Handbook or ask someone if there is a certain poundage limit?


Check out the Trail Camera Section here to see the different Trail Camera's that everyone uses and or reccomends.Personally I have had great luck with the Moultrie Brand Camera's specifically the D-55IR ($99.00 to $120.00 price range)that has great battery life and it takes day-time color and night-time IR (black & white) pictures.The D-55 is good also and the Cuddeback "Capture" Flash ($200.00 price range or less) camera is a good one also.

First, take a gun and bowhunters safety course- more practical experience in a couple eveneings than you can gain anywhere else. Next,if you want to learn to hunt and not just aspire to shooting, learn the basics: how to sharpen a knife, start and maintain a fire in an emergency (hypothermia kills more hunters than anything else), gun safety than marksmanship.
Buy a good compass (not a gps) and learn to use it. they are still reliable without batteries. The basics are very cheap. Next, spend all the time you can outdoors observing.Turn off the TV and computer. You will learn darn little on them, especially the TV shows. Zero hunting skills are taught, only merchandising. The time spent sitting could be spent in the woods. The most succsessful hunters spend far more time in the woods off season than in the woods during it. The Boy Scouts Field Book (not Handbook) is a great source of all the basics of outdoorsmanship. Hunting comes later. The best part about it is most of the basics you can teach yourself at home, then apply later in the woods.

Just curious, roughly where do you live and what is your age? I started hunting with my grandsons when they were about 12 years old and although they are now 17 and 19 they depend on going with me hunting most of the time. You need someone you can depend on for a few years. As nobody in your family hunts, do you have a boyfriend that hunts?

im 18 and i live in canal fulton ohio i dont know if you know where that is sorta near canton. and no i dont have a boyfriend that hunts i did and thats where i first started liking hunting cause he had taken me with him and i was always with him putting up trail cams and checking them, putting up tree stands, etc. but i dont really have him to help me anymore.

I would check if there is an archery shop in your area and try a few used bows out to see what would fit you proparly. Some of the shops have indoor archery ranges and can give you some great advice. Also visit the archery forums as some great advice will come from there as well. There is nothing wrong target practicing while waiting to take your hunter safety course. Just keep asking your questions even if it may appear kind of stupid to you as there is no such thing as a stupid question here. Good Luck on what you decide.

By the way welcome to the forums.

I have yet to see a pro shop that sells used bows, you can find used bows on ebay and forum classifieds, but personally, Im not a big believer in used compounds, you have no idea what the previous owner did to it, or how they maintained it, and by the time you have it re strung, which i would definitely do when buying used , its really not worth the few $ youll save. I would look for a new low poundage bow 40-50# with adjustable drawlength Ive seen pretty nice ones in the 300-400$ range. have a pro measure your draw and tune it for you.

I never told her to buy one at a proshop.. I do think it is a good idea to try a few different ones out though.. Some do have trade ins though that may or may not suite her needs..

...The only used bows Ive seen in a, "archery shop" "pro shop", whatever you wanna call it, are the ones people drop off to be worked on. How is she gonna try one out? What the point in trying out a used one anyway? Shops usually have a demo bow for most new bows they sell.

Like I said most used bows are sold privately, not in stores, bad avenue for a begginer looking for a rig.

For a rifle or shotgun, used is fine, for a bow Id buy new.

Yup i gotta agree DBH. Go to proshop and get a bow that is meassured to you.They'll measure you right,get you setup with the right poundage and you might even run across a hunting partner if you hang around the joint awhile;)

okayy thanks i know theres one or 2 around me for sure.
i believe my friend has a bow that she used to use but she no longer hunts and i think she'd let me use it do you think that'd be ok?

As long as you're the draw length as she is.If a bow doesn't fit you properly you will not be able to shot it accurately.I would take the bow from your friend and head to the proshop and see if it fits you right.From there the proshop could advise you.

Most womens/youth bows have easily adjustable draw lengths , if you can have your DL measured correctly and the bow adjusted and tuned, I would say its a good place to start, if youre gonna hunt with it, Id have it checked over, by someone who knows what theyre doing, and I would strongly suggest having the cable and string replaced.

okay thanks a lot i'll talk to her about it

I'm the one that mentioned buying a good used Bow...and "Yes" our local Archery Shop has Used Bows that Customers are allowed to list there for sale and/or leave for potential Buyers to check out.Usually the Used Bows were bought from that very same Archery Shop and the Owner or person selling the Bow knows how it was kept up and the Owner will also check out Used Bows to make sure they are in good shape or not!


Why buy a Used Bow...if Your not sure Your going to stay with Archery/Bow Hunting or want to just target practice its better to try a Used Bow out to see if Your going to like it and stay with it and not waste Your hard earned money....go price a Brand New Bow,Your talking about $250.00 and up for a bare Bow unless it has a package plan with it.I priced a Mission Menace Woman/Youth Bow for my youngest Daughter....it has an adjustable draw length and adjustable poundage/pull weight so as she grows up it can be adjusted to fit her needs,and it can even be set up for me to shoot.

Bow Only $259.99

Plain Package $79.99
Basic Package $129.99
Bow Hunter Package $159.99


The Packages consist of the different types and qualities of rest,sights etc....!You still need to add in a hand release,arrows,feild tips and/or broadheads,quiver etc....New Bow's can be expensive,Buying a new Bow and then selling it later on...Your not going to get Your money back,Bows are constantly changing and improving un-like a nice Rifle that will hold its value over the years.

okay thanks a lot i do know i want to stick with bow hunting im thinking about trying to find a used one for target practice and then maybe in a year or so get a new one