Just from what I've seen there are a lot of Mathews, Bowtech, PSE, Diamond, Mission and even some Elite guys on BH.com. Where my Bear Archery homies at? or do people consider Bear bows to be mid grade or bottom end quality nowadays and just don't really buy em? I think they are one of the best shooting and best made quality compounds on the market. Customer service is second to none and I could go on for days on how all the other bow companies owe a debt of gratitude to Mr. Bear for his contribution to modern archery and how it has flourished becoming what it has today but I don't want to be the one who single handedly turned Bowhunting.com into Archerytalk.com.
Well, I can't speak about any of the other bows because I have only owned 3 and they have all been Bear bows. I will say that I liked them all including the 2006 Fred Bear TRX 400 I am shooting right now. It was a Gander Mountain exclusive model if you have never heard of it as most haven't. I will also say that I am looking to upgrade to a newer bow, hopefully soon, and with my budget and with all of the positive reviews i have read on the new Bear Encounter, my next bow may very well be a Bear.
I have a Bear Lights Out, killed a lot of deer and turkeys and fish with it I also bought a Bear Kodiak Magnum tonight, so I'm stepping into the recurve world of deer hunting
My first compound bow was a bear. Missed a lot of deer with that bow when I was a teenager. :banghead: I'll always hold Bear bows in high regards. I still own a Bear Montana long bow. Sent from my SCH-I605 using Tapatalk 2
First bow i had was a Omni Pro, shot a newer model of my buddy's a couple times(some kind of Cabelas package deal), i'm sure with a better set of sights it would have shot just as good as some high end bows. In my opinion if you get yourself a good set of sights and maybe a drop away(whisker biscuits are good for hunting as well.... )you can get semi-professional results(if you shoot accurately to begin with). The sights that come with bows nowadays,and the cheap 30-40 dollar sights dont do bows justice.....
I'm Happy with my Z7 extreme, but I'm sure there are just as good bows in a lower price range.... but hey man, a z7 may only cost ya 5-600 now that the came out with their new line!
I have a Bear Strike. It shoots smooth and quiet. I got it off of the bay with ready to shoot a year or so ago for $320.00 shipped. I think Bear makes some great bows for a very reasonable price.
I've been shooting a PSE Nova for the first 5 years of bowhunting. This spring I bought a new Bear Empire. Amazingly smooth draw, little vibration. Very happy.
I'm slinging sticks with a 2012 Bear Legion. Its an amazing bow for the price point. I couldn't be happier with my final decision to get it.
Up until I bought my Assassin I used a 2007 Bear Element. I hunted hard with it for 5 seasons and it showed. I gave it a budget refurbish a few weeks ago as it just saved for a back up bow, nephew/brother loaner bow haha. The most expensive part was the string and cable, but even that was only $50. My wife made the paracord sling for me and the sight and stabilizer ore off my Assassin. The G5 Expert II was on it already I just painted it to match.
That element is beautiful coop, good job on the refurbish. By the way, just curious what stabilizer is that?
Thanks, it is still a great shooter for an older bow. That string stop really helped quiet it down. The stabilizer is a 6" Octane. It came with the R.A.K. package on my Assassin. I like it but got a good deal on a 7" Octane so I swapped them out.
I shoot the 2012 Legion as well and its my baby haha. And I am glad somebody else mentioned something about their customer service, they truly do stand behind their products. They are IMO the "working mans" bow. You get plenty performance out of an affordable bow and that is what sold me. I do appreciate Mathews and I am not saying that i would never get one, but for now, Bear is all i will shoot.
Been shooting Bear since I started 5 years ago. A friend gave me an old whitetail 2 and I got my first deer with it. now I shoot a 2008 truth 2.
Currently waiting on a new Bear Encounter to show up at my door step. $300 for a made in USA bow that shoots over 300fps, weighs less than 4 lbs; definitely a good deal in my book. I had to order a bare left handed bow from Amazon. BassPro didn't sell the Encounter in a lefty without the package and the local shops I checked had a 7 day lead time. Must be a popular model this season. I ordered it Sunday night, it shipped yesterday and it'll be here tomorrow! Already picked up all my other accessories and a dozen new arrows!
same here...first bow was a bear and i killed my first deer and my first bear with it, was a great bow and owe my passion to archery and bowhunting to my experience with my bear!
I just joined the Bear family with my 2013 Encounter... Smooth shooter, easy adjustments, easy set-up. I'm a very satisfied Bear archer. There is a group for Bear owners. I joined when my bow showed up. It doesn't seem very active, however.