First (and Last) Bow Suggestions

[Garycrow]

There are a lot of right answers, a lot of good bows available out there today. The advice on a good pro shop that'll sell you what you need and want instead of what they want to push is good advice. I went to several pro-shops in a 75 mile radius when I bought my bow, it's pretty easy to spot the good ones. The good ones will be well equipped and have the latest gear on the shelves, not 5 year old broadhead designs they're trying to push and they'll have a rack full of this year's model bows. My bow is four years old, a mathews Z7 which was a very popular bow for mathews. You'll rarely go wrong by choosing the more popular "flagship" models from Mathews, Hoyt, or Bowtech. Stay away from the super speed bows, they're for the kids that have to have the fastest but they're usually hard to tune and shoot well.

The no-cam is gaining a great reputation as easy to shoot, quiet, and super accurate. Mathews builds bows for the long haul so they're quality and they have a great support network, you'll always be able to get parts for it. It would be a good choice if you like the way it feels. One thing I'd recommend if you go that way is that if you don't have to have it right now then wait a couple of more months until Mathews comes out with the 2016 models. The no-cam will still be in there I'm sure, but they usually tweak them just a bit to fix any little imperfections from the first year's model. The Z7 I have was made in 2010 and 2011, externally they look the same but the 2011 I have has a few improvements from the 2010 model. The limbs are different and the cam is also a bit different. I'm sure the 2016 no-cam will have a few minor improvements from what they've learned over the last year it's been out.

 

[jrock]

First and last bow, eh? I went with that in my mind to a shop to buy my 3rd bow. Walked in wanting a Mathews, walked out with a bowtech.

To be the last bow you own, it has to be "future proof." With bows, technology seems to make a jump every 10 years or so. Speed, shootability, and weight being the two big areas I see. If you buy a bow that shoots 300 fps will you be happy with it when new bows shoot 380? If you buy a 8" brace height bow, will you want to try a 6"? If you buy a bow that weights 4.5 lbs will you want one that weighs 3.2?

My answer to this is get one that shoots as fast as you want putting feel as the #1 priority. If you don't like every aspect of the draw curve, how it balances, and how it feels on release, they you will be looking for another. Shoot every bow you can get your hands on. So much of what people like about a bow is how it feels.

About the only hard facts I can give a beginner archer is to steer clear of the 360 fps rated bows as they are expert shooter bows. Look for one around 330 IBO. Look for one with a brace height around 7"+ which helps with shootabiliyt. Go to a pro shop not a box store and I would never order a bow without shooting it first.

Some other tips when trying bows at the shop:
Torque the bow left and right about the vertical plane and see how easily the sight picture moves. Torqueing is bad so you want to minimized this tendency.
Imagine yourself pulling the bow in cold weather with gloves and a heavy jacket on. Do you think it will be easy or difficult?
At short range, shoot the bow with your eyes closed and concentrate on the feel of the draw, the release, and vibration of the bow.

Sorry for the long post

 

[jrock]

One other thing I remembered is that you should get a bow you can let down without too much movement or having it tear your arm off.

 

[veriest1]

I recently went bow shopping to replace my 10+ year old PSE that was to short for me now that I want to start bow hunting again.

I shot about 20 arrows through a friends Matthews No Cam and was really impressed with the bow over all. I destroyed a knock at 20 yards on my second shot with this bow. I'll probably buy one in the future when they hit the used market.

I shot an Elite Synergy was fantastic. Very "dead in the hand" with no stabilizer and almost as smooth as the Matthews draw wise. I just couldn't stand the grip on this bow and had to readjust my hand each time I drew it back.

I shot a Hoyt Nitrum with the risers bottomed out at 72.5 pounds and loved the grip. The cams weren't as smooth as Elite Synergy but they weren't bad. Without a stabilizer it had a touch of a vibration to it but it was a shop bow so it could have been a tuning issue. It felt the best at full draw IMO and it seemed to be the easiest for me to settle in with.

I shot a Hoyt Carbon Spyder Turbo and hated the Turbo cams at 73 pounds. It was more dead in the hand than the Nitrum but I know how many knicks and dings my rifle stocks get (from somewhere!) and don't want to carry a carbon bow afield.

Ultimately I ordered a Hoyt Nitrum with 80 pound limbs. I felt it was the best compromise of smoothness and comfort for me since each bow had some things I didn't like. My only complaint with the No Cam was the arrow speed (I like heavy bullets and heavy arrows).

For your situation I think you'd be really happy with the Matthews No Cam. I know I would be.