Yes I have asked quite a few questions about new bows lately. This is another one Having never shot a compound bow before, is it still worth getting fitted for a high end bow, especially considering the variety of upgrades/accessories on the market? I'm wondering if given my lack of experience if I would really be able to come to solid conclusions on which mods/accessories would be best for me since I don't have any prior experience or knowledge on which to found opinions. I'm also a little hesitant to buy brand new when I could buy a preowned current or previous year high end bow and potentially save a considerable amount of money. My thoughts are to shoot some flagship bows to see what feels best, draw length and weight... then wait for a preowned one with mods to go up for sale...then get it tuned/fitted specifically for me. Does that sound like a reasonable plan? I don't really have any desire to buy a lower end bow knowing that I will quickly upgrade.
In the last five or so years, there hasn't really been a huge change in the "high end" bow market. There have been some nice little twists but nothing really huge that would change my desire to have this years newest and brightest. Go and get fitted and talk with them about options. Find out what fits you and what you enjoy shooting. If you're like many of us you will probably end up with more than one bow, (If one is good....... two is better!) so get a good first bow that fits you and in the next year or two you can get your next bow and this bow can become your back-up bow. And once you've got that figured out then you can begin the fun of trying out all of the accessories that you "NEED" to dress up your bow.
Have no idea why one would only consider a flagship model other than to say I bought expensive. Get fitted for size and have them blind test you. Draw and shoot every bow they have in your size without knowing make or model. Why buy more expensive if you would enjoy something a little cheaper and have more money for accessories. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I really wanted a Matthews a few years ago until I bought new strings for my PSE Brute X from Bow String Depot (I sound like an ad...). I love my $400 Brute but still feel tempted to buy a high priced bow. With that said, shoot a bunch of brands and see what feels best for you. Take your time and weigh the opportunity cost (economics term). Boring stuff: Opportunity cost is the gain/loss of choosing one thing over another. Say your budget is $800. If you buy an $800 bow, you have no budget left for rests, arrows, etc. On the other hand, a $400 Bow gives you $400 left for extras, but you lose the "high-end" brand name/product. Utility: This is your perceived satisfaction from your purchase no matter what it is (from hamburgers to cars, etc.). Using the opportunity cost, do you think you will receive more or less satisfaction from a high-end bow? Overall, this forum can tell you what works for them, but it all comes down to personal perception and budget constraints.
I sent this to someone a while back (3-4 years). Posted it a few times too but here it is. Maybe it will help. My Advise: If you can find someone to let you shoot their bow some to get the hang of it, it would be a good thing. Think of it as never driving a car (or riding in one) and then trying to test drive them for handling, comfort, sound, etc. Once you have shot a few hundred arrows go shoot every bow within 60 miles of your house. Don't look at the brand. Almost all bows today are a huge step up than 10-15 years ago. Some, you will know the first shot, some before you shoot it if it's not for you. Narrow it down to a few bows and go shoot them again. O yea, if a dealer doesn’t let you shoot some bows or gives you a "bad feeling about it" go somewhere else. Don't shoot to much in one day. You will not judge the bow the same if you are shooting the 5th arrow or 65th arrow of the day. The bow WILL PICK YOU. Things to consider: IBO Rating (speed): Don't worry about the speed of the bow. All bows are fast enough today. My first bow was fast for its day (1976). It shot a blazing 180 fps and I killed lots of stuff with it. You will notice most bows with a high IBO (330 fps+) will have a harder draw and more of a hump than 290-330 IBO. They gain speed by having you pull the max draw weight for longer length and then the drop off is shorter. Draw length: Find your comfortable DL. Start by wing span divided by 2.5. This is a starting point. Remember the DL the bow says may not be actual. Lots of reasons for this but its a conversation for another time. Some bows have easy to change DL (Mission you mentioned is one). Then you can fine tune your DL as your skill/comfort increases. Some require cam changes to change DL which you could have your dealer do. Draw weight: You don't have to be a gorilla. Today's 60# bow has more power than a 70# did 15 years ago and more than an 80# did 20 years ago. You can kill any animal in North America with 60#. Bow length: Referred to as axle to axle (ATA). If you hunt a lot from a blind, 28"-32" ATA is good. Otherwise 28"-40" is good. Most hunting bows now are 28"-34". Cost: Figure your budget them be prepare to add $100-200 because the bow you really want will be more than your budget. Get quality accessories including arrows. Figure close to the cost of the bow again for rest, sight, quiver, stabilizer, arrows, broadheads and release. Warranty: Once you get it narrowed down to 2-3 bows think of warranty. Some companies have lifetime warranty to the original owner. Some companies have transferable warranty. Some companies have real lifetime warranty. Mathews has parts still available for every bow they ever made since 1990. Mission does too. Some company's lifetime warranty is until they discontinue that model and run out of parts. I know a guy that could not get a cam from the company for a 4 year old bow. Dealer: Check out each dealer. Is the place a pig pen (dirty)? Are they willing to help? Do they try to force you to a brand/model? Are you comfortable with them? Tell them you are just beginning. You are looking for guidance and are not there to buy that day and see how they react. My current dealer is 45 miles from my house. I drive past a dealer only 5 miles from me.
The cost of a new bow isn't as big of a deal if you don't upgrade every few years like a lot of people seem to do. My current hunting bow is a Mathews. I bought it 13 years ago. The one before that was also a Mathews. I shot that one for 10 years before upgrading.
I would certainly wait till after the ATA show. After that a few people will start dumping last years models.
