Beginner's bow recommendations?

Paul in Idaho · Jul 6, 2018

About 25 years ago I got my first hunting bow. I got fairly good with it. Then life got more complicated and I didn't get to archery hunt for several years. About 3 years ago I decided to get back into it and picked up a used 2009 Hoyt in excellent condition. At first I thought things were going well, but no longer.

Every practice session it feels like I'm fighting against the bow. Through practice I have found things about my form that seem to help, but still not consistently. It seems I'm spending too much energy and focus on getting everything just right -- nothing about it seems natural. Often I'll shoot a good group, then one or more arrows will be a foot or more off at 30 yards. I have taken slow-motion video of myself, had a friend watch me, and other steps to try to figure out what changes, without success. I'm losing confidence and I know that will just make the problems worse.

I'm thinking seriously of starting fresh with a different bow that is better suited to a beginner. Are there certain features that make a bow more natural and fluid to shoot? All recommendations from specific make and model to different cam types would be appreciated.

Thanks.
Paul

MN_Bowhunter4 · Jul 7, 2018

Longer ATA will help as will heavier bows; they’re generally more forgiving and easier to hold steady on target. Not sure the specs on your current bow so can’t comment on that. I’d maybe take it to a shop to make sure it’s in tune before shopping.

GAoutdoors · Jul 7, 2018

MN_Bowhunter4 said:
Longer ATA will help as will heavier bows; they’re generally more forgiving and easier to hold steady on target. Not sure the specs on your current bow so can’t comment on that. I’d maybe take it to a shop to make sure it’s in tune before shopping.

I agree with this! If you find that you still want to get a new bow, the best advice is just to shoot each one to see the one that "feels" the best to you. I really focus on the adjustability of a bow. When you are able to mess with the draw length and draw weight, you can really shoot better. There are a lot of single cam bows out there that are pretty adjustable these days.

AggieOutlaw · Jul 7, 2018

Diamond makes a beginner bow that is super adjustable from like 20-70# and pretty much any draw length. It also has the Bowtech binary cams that are pretty forgiving and stay synchronized well. It’s pretty affordable and will have good resale value. I’ve recommended it to a few new shooters and it’s been well received by them.

GAbearclaw · Jul 9, 2018

Paul in Idaho said:
About 25 years ago I got my first hunting bow. I got fairly good with it. Then life got more complicated and I didn't get to archery hunt for several years. About 3 years ago I decided to get back into it and picked up a used 2009 Hoyt in excellent condition. At first I thought things were going well, but no longer.

Every practice session it feels like I'm fighting against the bow. Through practice I have found things about my form that seem to help, but still not consistently. It seems I'm spending too much energy and focus on getting everything just right -- nothing about it seems natural. Often I'll shoot a good group, then one or more arrows will be a foot or more off at 30 yards. I have taken slow-motion video of myself, had a friend watch me, and other steps to try to figure out what changes, without success. I'm losing confidence and I know that will just make the problems worse.

I'm thinking seriously of starting fresh with a different bow that is better suited to a beginner. Are there certain features that make a bow more natural and fluid to shoot? All recommendations from specific make and model to different cam types would be appreciated.

Thanks.
Paul

Go to a good proshop and get them to look at it, there are 1,000's of variables and it could be badly spined arrows, center shot, cam timing, torque, all the above. You could drop $2,000 and have the above as well.

JohnCushman · Jul 9, 2018

GAbearclaw said:
Go to a good proshop and get them to look at it, there are 1,000's of variables and it could be badly spined arrows, center shot, cam timing, torque, all the above. You could drop $2,000 and have the above as well.

^^ This. Bows are so fickle and the littlest thing can have a major impact on everything. Go to a good shop, not a big box store archery department.

Paul in Idaho · Jul 15, 2018

Thanks everyone. My bow was set up and arrows selected by the local pro shop, and has been in for tuning a couple times since. The shop owner shot it and he gets great results. The core problem is likely between my ears ... needing to learn how to work with it instead of feeling like I have to fight it.

I have been looking for more info on training and shooting form. I watched a podcast with Joel Turner and also have been reading about 'blind bale' practice. I'm going to work through these ideas before I seriously consider spending a lot of money on a new bow.

GAbearclaw · Jul 16, 2018

Paul in Idaho said:
Thanks everyone. My bow was set up and arrows selected by the local pro shop, and has been in for tuning a couple times since. The shop owner shot it and he gets great results. The core problem is likely between my ears ... needing to learn how to work with it instead of feeling like I have to fight it.

I have been looking for more info on training and shooting form. I watched a podcast with Joel Turner and also have been reading about 'blind bale' practice. I'm going to work through these ideas before I seriously consider spending a lot of money on a new bow.

Do yourself a favor and build a simple paper tuning rack and spend time shooting through that. I bet you are torquing like crazy and that will be very visible from shot to shot with how the arrows go through paper.

Good luck! It is like golf in some ways, super slight tweaks or changes can have huge impacts... Luckily unlike golf when you get it figured out, you get to eat.

Buffalo1 · Jul 16, 2018

Go to a real bow shop- not a box store- and get properly fitted. Fitted is draw poundage and draw length; proper tuned and set up; proper length and proper spined arrows. Then start from there. Best of luck.

Ajax2744 · Aug 3, 2018

Get your bow properly fitted and adjusted. Then pay for some professional lessons. The little bit of money spent on lessons will be worth more than any abow or accessory you will put on the bow.

Beginner's bow recommendations?

Paul in Idaho

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