I'm looking for a good place in the Twin Cities Minnesota area (even within an hour or so from metro) to purchase a new bow and have it properly set up for me. I don't know a whole lot like which brand yet but looking for a place that has good customer service and won't try to sell me something they need to get off their shelf. I've been to a couple in years past but haven't been too pleased with their customer service so am looking for recommendations.
Have you heard of Schaffer Performance Archery in Burnsville? John Schaffer and his staff are super knowledgable and very helpful. They are more than willing to answer any question whether you intend to purchase from them or not. I bought both my Mathews from them, including my NO Cam HTR this year. He's also got the Hoyt Nitrum and Carbon Spyder bows, along with a nice selection of used bows to check out and shoot.
They are the closest to me and yes i've been in there a couple times over the last few years. Their customer service was ok but I wasn't overly impressed. I've been reading bad things about them on other blogs about their very high service charges. After doing a lot more research since posting this thread (discovered some AT threads) it seems A-1 in Hudson might be worth the drive. I've been to Bwana in the past and found their customer service to be very lacking also. I don't have any bow hunting friends to give me advice and am somewhat new to bowhunting so really am looking for a place that makes me comfortable dropping at least a grand on something i'll have for years and consumes so much of my time so customer service is big for me. I know every place will have good and bad reviews but some reviews stick out and the overall number is an indicator also. Thanks for your response. Maybe if i'm driving by there your review will have me drop in and give them another look.
If Schaffer is the closest to you it wouldn't hurt to just go in there and shoot what bows they have in stock. The poor reviews you've read not withstanding my personal relationship and the service that I've received has always been exemplary. Now this could be because I ended up buying bows from them, or who knows. Any good salesman will always try to give their best opinion on what they think will work for you, which can put somebody off. All I can say is that after I took the time to put together my bow with the accessories that gave me the most confidence, at the end of the day I was very satisfied.
A1 archery in Hudson are great guys. Go in ask for Brian. Tell him Andy from st Paul Harley told ya to come see him. I bought my no cam from them and Brian had it set up and shooting bullet holes in 1 hr. Great service. Or try Schaffer, I have bought rests from John and he is very knowledgeable.
No kidding? I'm just west of Princeton and have been looking for a local shop to help me out as I'm somewhat new to archery (3rd year). May have to check him out.
The guys from A-1 are good. The guys at Archery Country in Rogers are good too and they carry everything.
Im headed up to MOA tomorrow for spring break, is schaffers worth going to? Guessing there won't be too much I'm interested in a the mall
The customer service at schafers isnt that bad. I had pretty good service there. Jason and john know their stuff and thell tune your bow right. In a1 i remember an old guy thats pretty good at tuning their bows. I think hes retired.
