New to bow hunting help.

[Fire_Medic890]

I haven’t seriously bow hunted for 16+ years. I retired last July so now I finally have time to get back into it. Been a few times with a crossbow but just not my thing.
So much has changed since the last time I shot a bow so needing help from you experts.

I would rather buy once & cry once so my budget is open.

What bow should I look into? Mathew’s, Hoyt, Prime so many out there.

What sights? I like the idea of the slider, back when I hunted I used a Copper John 5 pin.
Now they have so much out, don’t know where to begin.

Any help & insight would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Acorn]

Do you have a reputable bow shop nearby? If so, go there and shoot everything they offer. Get whatever feels best that you can shoot repeatedly and consistently.

Regarding the sight—What is your intended use for the bow? Hunting? What type of animals? What type of terrain? How thick is the timber?

 

[JMundy84]

+1 for shooting as many as you can

 

[Unknown]

Agree with above, shoot as many as you can get your hands on. Even if you need to go to several shops. Have an idea of what kind of poundage you are very comfortable pulling and ask the shop to turn the poundage to close to that, otherwise you may not get a true feel for the bow if your straining to draw.
There are a lot of bows out there that are a dream to shoot compared to 18 years ago when you last used a bow.
Good luck!

 

[Mighty Mouse]

Find a reputable shop and have them determine what draw weight and draw length is appropriate for you. Don’t let them just measure your wingspan and call
it good; you need to actually draw with someone knowledgeable watching. Then shoot whatever bows they have on hand adjusted to your DW/DL to see what feels good. The differences between various makes/models are pretty minor/superficial; anything made within the last ≈10 years will be pretty similar performance-wise. Stick with a brand your preferred shop carries and is familiar with working on.

 

[dtrkyman]

If you plan on keeping the same bow a while Mathews is the only company who will keep producing parts and covering warranty, others will offer a discount on a new bow.

Otherwise buy what you like when you shoot a few, I believe Podium archery has a new shop in Nashville?

 

[hiker270]

I've shot Mathew's, Hoyt, PSE and some others over the years, recently have found an affection for Elite. As mentioned above find a reputable shop close by and try some different bows out. I personally prefer a bit longer ATA 32-34 inches and a brace height close to 7 inches for a more forgiving bow.

 

[Skyjacked97ZJ]

I’d second the comment of go shoot everything you can. Bow technology has came a long way over the years. All of the top manufacturers make a good product, that’s going to be personal preference.

I bow hunt for everything that doesn’t fly basically and I like the versatility of a sliding one pin sight. That handles pretty much everything, but the sliders that can swap a cartridge from a single to a multi pin sight also have me intrigued.

In the last 15 years or so I’ve also continually upped my stabilizer game. I used to be a advocate for a shorter limb saver type stabilizer but now I hunt with a 12” stabilizer the arrow is gonna stick out farther than the stabilizer does anyway so why not.