Heya folks sorry for the OT, but winter's here and all the big stuff has been done on the teener, so I'm not really working on it EVERY WAKING MOMENT - I have a jillion other hobbies, but my fancy has recently been tickled by archery. Since I was a wee lad, I've wanted to do target archery, and over the summer I picked up a used old ProLine that I've shot a few times. So, of course, I found something newer and better to possibly spend what little money I have on (a Martin Phantom ) - is there anyone with experience in archery/compound target bows?
I'd like to get something after taxes come in, but as I'm looking around, there are soooo many different bows, it's hard to narrow it all down.
Opinions are welcome!

Cheerio and all that

Jeff

I used to be really into Archery. I have a Browning compound 65# draw that is just beautiful. It's in excellent condition as I took very good care of it. My first wife bought it for me for Christmas in 1987. So its almost 20 years old and still looks new. I keep it in a solid hard case and its up in the rafters of the garage. I have not had it out shooting in about 6 years. Fun hobby but it can get expensive.

I also have a Browning compound. I screwed around bowfishing a couple of times in college. I got it mostly for target practice. Fun toy. Buy a nice one and it will last years. Mine is about 10 years old now and still in great shape.

I have a Bear 150 cross bow...

Oh yeah....bigtime archery fan! I'll have to post some pics of my bows when my new camera arrives. All but one are recurves....absolutely works of art. My only compound is a chrome and orange custom made Jensen that belonged to my late uncle, $1500 back in the late 70's.

I live in KY. What do you think?

I'm probably not into archery in the sense you meant it. I've got a compound bow, not a competition recurve or anything like that.

Seriously, I used to be into archery a bit. Neighbor across the street had been state champ at one point IIRC. I still have my bow. Entry level Pearson. Hits targets at 50 yards so I cannot justify upgrading for what little use it gets these days.

Rick

Never hunted (but did do some fishing....that's a blast!) with the bows. Strickly target. All of the bows were handed down from my grandfather, dad and uncle. I used to be pretty good but it's been 10 yrs since I've drawn one back.

When I was a kid I had a bear mini-mag, then a hoyt whatever, Caroll intruder 3D, and a Caroll SRL-1000 ultralight. Yeah, gets spendy quick when you wanna get all the goodies and gadgets. At one poing I got a set of carbon ACC arrow, thinner than a pencil and really lightweight, good for 300FPS on a 50lb draw on the target only bow (over $100 a dozen). It had a 2x scope on it and I used a carter rope release.

My favorite of my bunch was the Caroll Intruder 3d, which is a brand made by PSE (they are great bows). Learned how to tune my bow, reserve strings, paper tune it and fletch my own arrows. Lots of fun and I spent about 3 years shooting everyday for about 2 hours. Me and my buddy would shoot eggs at 30 yards for fun.

Last time I really shot was about 10 years ago, shot at the largest indoor tournament in the world (vegas), didn't score last so I was happy I guess. Then one day I stopped shooting and the rest is history.

I would start by spending the least amount of money to get you started, stuff your cash aside when you become a better shooter (sounds just like upgrading your 914 before you learn to drive), find an archery club or a buddy to shoot with. It helps to have someone critique you to improve, things happen too quickly to figure out what you are doing wrong.

If you have money burning a hole in your pocket, go visit as many archery stores as possible, the guys behind the counter all have their favorites. A good way to judge a decent dealer is to take your existing bow in for a tune up, or what do you think I oughta do with this. Stick with the guy that is interested in really helping you, not just a sale. You can't beat a name brand, PSE, browning, Martin and such. My personal favorites are the PSE's. I shot better with my hunting bow any day of the week than my lighter target bow, it's what you get used to. For shaft's I'd do the Easton xx78's good value for the money and the uni-nocks are nice vs. the glue in kind.

OK, if you are shooting with fingers (not a release) don't get a bow with an overdraw, same story if you are just beginning, your torque the bow when you hold it (takes patience and practice not to twist the thing around), having the overdraw makes it that much worse. Most bows shoot close to or above 300fps, which is smokin'. As for shooting with fingers, mechanical (jaw) or mechanical (rope) releases, I favored the mechanical ones, the ropes are the best but are a pain to load onto the string - if you do a mechanical release get 3 feet from a target sight up then close your eyes, squeeze the trigger - it should happen without you anticipating it, do this for a few weeks for the first and last 10 minutes of shooting - this will help train yourself to not jump the trigger. also use the same anchor point every time, just like a rifle in your shoulder, I used my thumb alongside my chin bone and draw back to the same spot everytime. get something that you can pull back without killing yourself, then crank up the weight as your back and shoulders get stronger).

things I would consider:

Peep sight, it ties into your bowstring. (multi peeps are neat with larger and smaller aperatures, get to used to it enough to use the smalled aperature that you can see with, again that will tighten up your anchor/draw points.

cross hair sight, or the fiber optic dots (fits on the riser of the bow) I like the cross hairs, it lets you know if you are canting you bow from side to side, the level helps too, but the dots are real easy to see in most any light.

Mechanical release, your shots will be more consistent

Have fun, I oughta start up again..

I love bow-hunting. I have a 10 year old Hoyt compound bow and I just bought a new Horton crossbow this fall. Deer, bear and birds and one day Moose too. Monday nights in winter I am either at the range or under my 914. Archery is a great sport, especially when you get the practical reward of hunting success, but splitting a buddy's arrow on the target is fun too.

Back in the late 80's (when I was in High School) I used to do some indoor target shooting with Peoria archers (at an old bowling alley converted for our purposes), and I did some recreational shooting through college with a pretty no-nonsense Bear 50# draw recurve bow.

The thing that sticks out in my memory the most about shooting with this group, was that there was an elderly Asian guy that always shot a traditional Japanese "yumi" recurve (usually 6-7ft from top tip to bottom tip). He was deadly accurate without pulleys, sights, or counterbalances on his setup - very cool to watch.

I have wanted to try target shooting for years but have yet to do it. I need to look into archery shops localy. There may be some in the Bay Area but I doubt I will find one in Santa Cruz. Your post has got me thinking about this again.

a bow to look at that gives a alot for the money is the buckmaster series. a lot of shops will tell you to look at other bows, but at leats check it out. from my recent experance with the buckmaster you need to spend 150 to 200 more for the same stuff. i shoot a 6 year old buckmaster and when in practice can hit a 5 inch circle at 50 yards with hunting arrows, i even did 5 inches at 75 yards once just to do it. my hunting buddy shoots a buck master too ( 3 years old ) but has his 600 dollar bow siting that he bought this year because he does not like it.

I shoot. I have 3 bows and a crossbow (150lbs pull) all Darton. Darton owns Proline. I have a foam deer in my back yard to practice on.

When shopping for a bow go to your local archery store and shoot the bows they have. This way you will see if the riser fits your hand and if the ballance suits you. Unless it's a big shop, they will only stock a few types of bows so don't be pushed into buying the house brand. They are like car dealerships and have to buy so many $$ worth of product to qualify for brand discounts. Check out a few shops if there are more than one in your area. That way you can try different brands and releases (fingers, tab or trigger). A smooth trigger release works best for me because the string dosen't roll off your fingers.

Used bows are usually 1/3 of what a new one will cost you and unless they have been abused work just fine

Wow Travis, that was a very lengthy but very good summarization for him to follow assuming he is a newbie. Good advice indeed. Again, the club goes above and beyond.

Yeah, this club is fantastic, thanks everyone for the replies so far - there is just so-much-information here and so many different people that are helpful - again, thanks!


I've been online scouring, and been to a local archery shop, as well as a large retail sporting goods joint - so far I've found:

A Martin Panther in camo for $299 - chain store, guy was helpful, says he can get me my size and pull weight

A 'Tomcat' for $249 - Martin bow made for the chain store, identical to Panther just a little cheaper

A Fred Bear 'Tracker' for $179 - comes with sight (is this a cheapie? It looks pretty nice, and has 2 cams, but I dunno)

Now here's what I really lilke -

A Martin Phantom II for 360 - used, at a local archery shop. Anodized riser, 2 cams, carbon fiber limbs, wood grips, bling bling. It's really light, and the grips are small and fit me really well. (I think I've found that the Martin brands have smaller handles, that's why I might be 'drawn' to them - haha little joke there). The shop owner set it up for me and let me shoot a few with it - it felt really good. I like shooting 'finger' style, and it was a breeze with this one. Are there any other brands that are similar?


Should I drop so much more coin for a target-specific, just for the bling, or can I buy a camo version, have it taken apart, and go 914 on it (polish it, add new grips, etc)? IS there a physical diffrence between the 2? One archery sales dood told me that if I could get the Phantom for 360, it was a steal. Seems like a lot just for a fancy finish, but what do I know.

Oh well, sorry for all the questions - -

Jeff

in my neck of the woods most 3d compitions require you to use a hunting bow. there are some archery groups who use target bows but what fun is it to shoot at little dots. i entered one 3d shoot one time and scored 5 out of 30 or so, we all used hunting bows and shoot at foam deer. by shooting at foam deer it made the whole group more even because the target shooters did not know were to hit the deer for better scores

the most important thing is the bow balance in your hand, and draw length. if it does not do either look at another bow

Target bows are higher priced because of the fancy paint and chrome (bling bling). The camo is applyed as a water soluble film. A sheet of the camo is cut to the size of the object being done and then the sheet is placed in a tank of water. The plastic and film seperate and the film then floats to the top. The object (limbs or riser) is then placed into the tank and the film adheres to it. It is then smoothed down and the object is placed to dry. You can finish several dozen camo bows in the same time it takes to paint one bow, hence the higher price.

If it feels good, buy it.

Ooo, I see - maybe a camo would be a better choice then, 3D sounds like fun. I don't have the patience for real hunting (plus I'm ADD, and can't sit still or shut up for very long ).

So what would be the best way to strip the camo from the riser? Heat gun, media blast? I prolly should never take it apart, but hey, we all like to tinker with stuff anyway or we wouldn't be here!

The only basic difference between a camo bow and a target bow is the paint (or film). Target bows usually have longer risers and limbs, this allows you to have a softer draw (less lbs. holding). You don't want to hold a drawstring with 80 lbs draw weight when your shooting paper. Some manufactures overcome the draw weight with their cam design (but that's a whole another subject). If you strip the film off your left with a very ugly piece of metal which will oxidize (rust) over time and you might not be allowed to shoot in 3d comps with it as it is no longer a "hunting" bow. Hunting bows are designed to produce and deliver speed which translates to hitting and penatration of the target. A properly sharpened broadhead on a aluminum shaft with go right thru a deer. Because it has the mass (weight of shaft and broadhead) and is shot at speeds near or exceeding 300 fps.

You have to figure out what you are going to do with your bow before you decide what to buy. Buying one is like buying a hammer. You can get tiny little ones with magnetic heads all the way up to 20lbs sledges. They will all drive nails, but are designed to be used in different ways.

Several years ago various manufactures were bragging that their bows were faster than the other manufactures. So someone decided to have a competition at one of the industry shows. All the manufactures were invited and showed up with their speed candidate. Darton shot first, all the other manufactures put their bows away and left. Next year there was the same contest at the same trade show. Only one manufacture showed up. Guess which one?

Thanks for the kind words Skline, it was a hoot while I did it and learned a lot, was fun learning the technical aspects of it and rewarding doing a lot of that myself.

Hunting bows generally have a more agressive cam than a target bow. Target bows don't need to be super fast, but accurate. Also if you go to a pro line you will get (supposedly) higher end limbs and such. You can also get bows intended for targed (and hunting I suppose) with a higher percentage let off than what you can legally hunt with. Meaning if your draw weight is 70lbs, which is kind of on a curve and what you hold at full draw can be 65% or more of the total weight. Of course a single model bow that comes in bling bling and also camo, are essentially the same. Get yourself a 914 club sticker for the limbs and you'll be alright.

Had to dig this up but I just wanted to show you what I just bought
So how do I go about getting some 914club stickers ??

Cool Scooter!!

Now you've forced me to whip mine out.......

From the top down:

Custom Jennings - Uncles
Page- Dad's long target (55lb. )
Bear- My baby (35lb.)
Hoyt- Dad's (40lb.)
Hoyt- Grandfather's (37lb.)

Pretty sure that all of the recurves are from the 40's - 50's

(Disclaimer - No animals were harmed (okay, some fish bought the farm) in the use of these weapons)

close up

Bear, Hoyt, Hoyt

Whoa hey there, I'm not forcin' nobody to whip nuthin' out, at least while I'm standin' here

Very nice, from the 40s-50's you say? I can appreciate the work in them, some of those hardwoods are fantastic to look at. Sure beats neon-colored fiberglass.
You gonna start shooting again?

Mine is a Hoyt, a 1997 I believe, from what I was told and what I've looked up about it. $ 240.00 including the case, stabilizer, and sight - I thought that was a decent deal. I'll have it after taxes come in, then it'll get set up, and I'll get some decent arrows 'n stuff.

QUOTE (scooter311 @ Jan 28 2005, 01:06 PM)

You gonna start shooting again?

I'd like to, just a matter of finding the time. Plenty of areas to shoot out in the "boonies" where I live.