New guy getting back into archery

[Motoman918]

Hey everybody, new guy here! I've been really getting back into shooting and bowhunting again and looking to upgrade my 15 year old bow.

I'm currently shooting a Hoyt Rampage XT from way back. It still does the trick fine but I'd just like to upgrade to something that will keep me in the game for another 10+ years. I'm going to be going to an archery shop soon to shoot some different bows and get information, but figured I'd grab everybody's opinions here. I'm not one of those guys that money is no obstacle, but I have a pretty good budget.

Right now I'm leaning heavily toward a Hoyt RX9U as you can get them for a pretty good deal even new and then spending the money on good accessories as well. I'm just looking for opinions on whether RX9U is my best option or maybe saving even more money and finding an 8U all set up online? Hoping to find a 9U and some second hand accessories between here and ArcheryTalk (when I'm able to utilize the classifieds. Thanks for helping a fella out!

 

[WBT]

I have an RX-9 and RX-7U and between the two, I prefer the draw cycle on the older bow by a mile. So if I were in your shoes, I’d opt for the older bow unless you’re chasing speed.

 

[NedBear]

Unless you only want a Hoyt, go to a shop that carries as many brands as possible and shoot as many as possible. I've been surprised in the past at what I walked away with vs. what I thought I would like, it's all about what feels right. Just my thoughts.....

 

[YellowIH]

I shot my first nice bow yesterday. A Mission by Mathews. I think I am hooked. Starting to bowhunt at 50 is ok right? I hunt gun, ML and bow with a crossbow. Had several crossbow takes. Whitetail and turkeys. Looking to saddle hunt and really bow hunt this year.

 

[K9kodi]

Which bow to buy is like what rifle do I buy. But what you like and fits your parameters (draw weight, length, brace height, price point) and shoot as many as they have.

 

[Todd10]

Unless you only want a Hoyt, go to a shop that carries as many brands as possible and shoot as many as possible. I've been surprised in the past at what I walked away with vs. what I thought I would like, it's all about what feels right. Just my thoughts.....

This would be my approach. You can’t go wrong with any of the flagship brands out there. Pick the one that suits you best.

 

[fatlander]

Everyone makes great bows these days. Go to a shop, shoot them all, and take home the one you like most. A Mathews with smooth mods will probably wow you the most at 10 ft with no sight. It’ll feel beyond dead in the hand, which doesn’t translate at all to how well you’ll shoot it. I say that and I hunt whitetails with a Mathews.

It’s really hard to actually figure out what cams, grips, and ATA length you shoot best without taking it home and stretching its legs for a month or so.


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[270-300]

Your going to be disappointed.
Quality went down across the industry. Many of the small private companies are now big corporate conglomerates.

15 years ago you could set up a hunting bow for $1k and have one of the nicest bows in any brands lineup with top tier accessories. 1k is barely better than a beginner bow bare bow now.

Wait till you see the price of broadheads.

My last hunting rifle set up with a scope was as much as the last bow sight I bought. One single broadhead was as much as the one box of hornady american white tail 270 win that killed an elk and a deer last fall.

There are a LOT of us who are dedicated lifelong hunters who were hunting decades before all of the microsoft type people took up hunting and blow money to cover for the fact they cant shoot or hunt. 20 years ago when I got into bow hunting bows were pretty affordable, and many states did not allow rifle hunting in some parts of the country. Tides have turned. Now most of those states allow rifles. Anyone can go and buy a $450 glenfield model A and slap on a $100 vortex scope and have everything they need to kill deer once they practice. Now that the big bow companies have alienated those of us who made them, once the fad people take their money and move on the corporates will be under water. And I wont look back.

 

[fatlander]

Your going to be disappointed.
Quality went down across the industry. Many of the small private companies are now big corporate conglomerates.

15 years ago you could set up a hunting bow for $1k and have one of the nicest bows in any brands lineup with top tier accessories. 1k is barely better than a beginner bow bare bow now.

Wait till you see the price of broadheads.

My last hunting rifle set up with a scope was as much as the last bow sight I bought. One single broadhead was as much as the one box of hornady american white tail 270 win that killed an elk and a deer last fall.

15 years ago I could have bought land that for 1/5th what it’s going around here now. That land hasn’t changed.

Bows and accessories are better than they were 15 years ago. Grim reapers are about the only thing that’s remained unchanged in that amount of time. They’re still awesome, made in America, and cheap.


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[270-300]

Bows

15 years ago I could have bought land that for 1/5th what it’s going around here now. That land hasn’t changed.

Bows and accessories are better than they were 15 years ago. Grim reapers are about the only thing that’s remained unchanged in that amount of time. They’re still awesome, made in America, and cheap.


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Bows are slower and more sensitive to tuning. More parts are outsourced to china. Tell me whats better.

 

[fatlander]

Bows
Bows are slower and more sensitive to tuning. More parts are outsourced to china. Tell me whats better.

They’re much easier to tune.

They’re quieter, and don’t feel like tuning forks.

String materials, as a whole are better.

The bows that were actually as fast today’s bows were bears to shoot. 310 FPS switchbacks don’t count.

Bowtech can keep limbs together now.

Rests, sights, and quivers are all better than they were 15 years ago. Quieter, lighter, brighter, tighter, tougher, etc.


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[Jibjab]

I currently shoot a Hoyt Ventum Pro and a Hoyt Redworx Carbon RX4 both great bows. I wanted a RX9U and shot one but couldn't justify? buying one because my RX4 was just as good as the RX9 imo. Maybe the RX9 felt a little smoother.

 

[270-300]

They’re much easier to tune.

They’re quieter, and don’t feel like tuning forks.

String materials, as a whole are better.

The bows that were actually as fast today’s bows were bears to shoot. 310 FPS switchbacks don’t count.

Bowtech can keep limbs together now.

Rests, sights, and quivers are all better than they were 15 years ago. Quieter, lighter, brighter, tighter, tougher, etc.


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And most of all that is made with less expensive materials, most companies have stopped their lifetime warranties.

Saying something is slightly better when its 4x the price, no longer has a lifetime warranty, and is made of disposable materials is wild.

A lot of bows have added dampening systems that are akin to what after market dampening systems were 20 years ago. The baseline string materials bow makers use may be better than it was 20 years ago. Since manufacturer strings have always lacked quality it was always standard practice to pitch the strings and order a good set from a custom builder with the bow. Using strings as an example is pike saying the f250 is better now than in 1995 because bf goodrich k03s were not the stock tire in 1995.

 

[fatlander]

And most of all that is made with less expensive materials, most companies have stopped their lifetime warranties.

Saying something is slightly better when its 4x the price, no longer has a lifetime warranty, and is made of disposable materials is wild.

A lot of bows have added dampening systems that are akin to what after market dampening systems were 20 years ago. The baseline string materials bow makers use may be better than it was 20 years ago. Since manufacturer strings have always lacked quality it was always standard practice to pitch the strings and order a good set from a custom builder with the bow. Using strings as an example is pike saying the f250 is better now than in 1995 because bf goodrich k03s were not the stock tire in 1995.

It’s pretty clear that you’re not entirely informed on this.

1.) If you’ve ever dealt with strings that constantly stretch, you’d know the importance of good strings.

2.) Geometry of bows (parallel and past parallel limbs) as well as riser design has much more to do with dampening than bow jacks or limb savers and string leeches.

3.) Nothing mechanical is meant to last forever, but if you want “forever”. Buy a Mathews brand new, put a hamskea and a spot Hogg on it, and that’ll be close enough.


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[KyFried]

Go to an archery shop that has a huge selection of flagships and start from there. The bows that are out there today They won’t even be a comparison to that Bow you’re used to shooting.

 

[270-300]

It’s pretty clear that you’re not entirely informed on this.

1.) If you’ve ever dealt with strings that constantly stretch, you’d know the importance of good strings.

2.) Geometry of bows (parallel and past parallel limbs) as well as riser design has much more to do with dampening than bow jacks or limb savers and string leeches.

3.) Nothing mechanical is meant to last forever, but if you want “forever”. Buy a Mathews brand new, put a hamskea and a spot Hogg on it, and that’ll be close enough.


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We had those limb designs in the mentioned period. Past parallel was already perfected then. I was the first one to say manufacturer strings are all junk. Mathews was lifetime until they told me the limbs that split are out of production and offered me a 30% discount on a bow 4x the price of the one that failed.

 

[fatlander]

We had those limb designs in the mentioned period. Past parallel was already perfected then. I was the first one to say manufacturer strings are all junk. Mathews was lifetime until they told me the limbs that split are out of production and offered me a 30% discount on a bow 4x the price of the one that failed.

I’d love to know what bow you bought new from Mathews for 250-275 dollars that had specifications and a shooting experience comparable to an ARC.


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[270-300]

I’d love to know what bow you bought new from Mathews for 250-275 dollars that had specifications and a shooting experience comparable to an ARC.


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$392 would be a quarter of the msrp of the bow they offered me a discount on.

I dont know how long you have been in archery so im not going to be a dick to you on this.

In 2005 mathews launched the switch back. It was parallel limb single cam smooth shooting and easy tuning for $700 before sale prices. Which they did a lot more of back then. 318 fps ibo wasnt the speed bow pse had back then but we need to keep this in context. For someone (me) who just wanted to shoot 2 or 3 white tails a year at 7 yards out of a tree stand we didnt need space age materials and specifications to make a professional target shooter drool. All we needed was a bow that could put any old arrows in the pie plate at 20 yards.

One of my favorite was my 2009 pse brute. It was 4.1 lbs, magnesium riser and split past parallel fiberglass limbs. It msrpes at $400, i nailed it on a sale for $340. Killed a lot of deer with it, without ever worrying about the specs the target shooters used.

I still have people who constantly tell me im lying when i tell them about a 2015 model year bow I shoot that is less than 4 lbs with past parallel split limbs, 36" ata and 340 ibo. It also perfectly balances without a stabilizer. But i always hear that cant be because it only msrped at $700.

 

[fatlander]

$392 would be a quarter of the msrp of the bow they offered me a discount on.

I dont know how long you have been in archery so im not going to be a dick to you on this.

In 2005 mathews launched the switch back. It was parallel limb single cam smooth shooting and easy tuning for $700 before sale prices. Which they did a lot more of back then. 318 fps ibo wasnt the speed bow pse had back then but we need to keep this in context. For someone (me) who just wanted to shoot 2 or 3 white tails a year at 7 yards out of a tree stand we didnt need space age materials and specifications to make a professional target shooter drool. All we needed was a bow that could put any old arrows in the pie plate at 20 yards.

One of my favorite was my 2009 pse brute. It was 4.1 lbs, magnesium riser and split past parallel fiberglass limbs. It msrpes at $400, i nailed it on a sale for $340. Killed a lot of deer with it, without ever worrying about the specs the target shooters used.

I still have people who constantly tell me im lying when i tell them about a 2015 model year bow I shoot that is less than 4 lbs with past parallel split limbs, 36" ata and 340 ibo. It also perfectly balances without a stabilizer. But i always hear that cant be because it only msrped at $700.

1568 x .7 = 1,097.60

1,097.60 x .25 = 274.4 (that’s how I did my math)

Either way, 700 isn’t 1/4 of 1568

And a switchback doesn’t = an ARC


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[270-300]

1568 x .7 = 1,097.60

1,097.60 x .25 = 274.4 (that’s how I did my math)

Either way, 700 isn’t 1/4 of 1568

And a switchback doesn’t = an ARC


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Your both really sad about this and really concerned about how an arc compares to everything. Did you pay the $1,500 msrp on an arc before finding out thousands of us are still hunting with bows that were $250-500 20 years ago?

If were going to go that route, I made an archery kill last year with a recurve from 1984.