3 PIN or 5 PIN?

[tomfromblaine]

I'm a newbie about to purchase a bow and it's narrowed down to a Marquis or a Iceman but I'm have a serious mental block on which sight to go with and yardage settings, I have to wear reading glasses to read but distance vision is great so I don't know what size peep to get either. For now the bow will only be used for deer hunting/target practice, I think I'm worried that there may be to many pins in my sight picture, my thoughts have also included ethical shot distances and practice distances Please help with any suggestions and insight.

Tom in Blaine

[stretch]

Well both the bows you picked are pretty flat shooting and good choices. So i wouldn't see a problem with you using 3 pins. You could set your pins at 15,35,45 if you want. Both bows have enough power to fling a arrow out to a 50 or 60 yard shot and wouldn't have a problem shooting that far as long as your comfortable with that shot. As for when your practicing i would shoot the farthest distant possible. The reason why is you will concentrate better when you take that shot and when something comes closer it's a chip shot. So far i have been practicing at 60 yard and can put a dozen arrows in a paper plate all day long and when i take my 30 yard shot i can be right on the money! So people say those shots are too long but if you are comfortable with your equipment anything is possible with alot of practice. Good luck with your new bow.

[tomfromblaine]

So then I would use my 45 pin at the top of a paper plate at 60yds for practice? just a ball park reference. Just out of curiosity why would the 1st pin be set at 15 yds and not say 20-25?

Tom in Blaine

[woody1975]

Each bow is going to be different. If you feel comfortable shooting out to 60 yards (that is to far IMO - you lose to much k-energy for an efficiant kill) you would need a pin and you will need to keep the wind in mind too. Any cross wind can have some serious affect on arrow flight.

With a bow like the one you are describing, and if you have it set-up right, like stretch said, it should be shooting pretty flat. If it is like mine, I have a 15 yard pin and it is basically dead on at 10 yards out to 20+ yards without changing a thing. Once you get out past the 30 yard mark, your arrow will start to drop off dramatically. I agree with Stretch, 15, 35, and 45 and I would call it good.

My .02

DL

[Bear55]

Call me crazy but I use a 4 pin sight, works perfect for me.

[Jim Uran]

Well you crazy.... J/K... I use a 5pin on the ol' LX. I could get away with using a 3 pin though.

[harvey lee]

I have only used 1 pin for whitetail hunting for years. I don't care for the extra pins setting in my sight.

For whitetails, I have never found a need for my bow for more than 1 pin set at 20 yards. If I need to shoot a 30 yard shot, I just raise it a small amount. My bow is very fast and flat shooting so 1 pin works fine.

I typically never shoot over 25 yards.

[tomfromblaine]

I agree Woody in regards to loss of K.E. at 60yds and wouldn't attempt a kill at that range, however I would practice at that range for the reasons previously stated. I wasn't sure on the reason to set the pin at 15 though, even though I knew the answer it just wasn't registering, LOL, the main reason for my post is what you guys/gals have experienced in reference to sight picture clutter and peep sight size for a guy that wears cheaters but overall good vision.

Thanks again for all the input.

Tom in Blaine

[tomfromblaine]

Hi Harvey how ya been? I still have your bait puck from upper red lake slab fest with P.W. and crew, Is your sight a fixed pin? what brand?

Tommy T in Blaine

[Brownie77]

I have a five pin cuz I got it cheap. I would not shoot and animal at 50+ yards, but sure is fun on 3-D shoots.

[Powerstroke]

I recommend a 3-pin. If you're a newbie you've got plenty of time to practice and learn your bow. I'm sure you'll find 40yd shots are hard enough with a new bow no matter how far or flat it shoots.

I would have a 20,30,40 pins and go from there. I had 3-pin sights until last year when I switched to a single pin slider. Less clutter in the window and I've needed more than one pin. Even though I'm capable of hitting a softball at 40yds I've never shot a deer over 20yds.

[stretch]

sorry i should have mention when you are actually hunting have your pins set at those yards. but have one pin set at 60 to practice and then adjust it back to 45 yards when you want to start hunting and practice some more at that yardage.

also if you have enough draw weight and the right arrows, i wouldn't have a problem shooting out to 50-60 yards. AS long as you know your fps (feet per second) is at that range and the weight of your arrow to figure out your kenitic(sp) energy is.

[tomfromblaine]

So far so good, any thoughts on what size peep sight? also read some good reviews on a "no-peep" device, anybody using that?

Tom

[camdu7]

Get a 5 pin practice out till 60 yards then on Sept 18th drop the bottom three pins down out of you sight line. As a new hunter the simpler the better. More than on deer made it through a season cause of a bowhunter using the wrong pin when they got a little excited. As far as peep sight I like the bigger ones 3/8" I think. They work better in low light.

[KLoopBinaction]

I have only used 1 pin for whitetail hunting for years. I don't care for the extra pins setting in my sight.

For whitetails, I have never found a need for my bow for more than 1 pin set at 20 yards. If I need to shoot a 30 yard shot, I just raise it a small amount. My bow is very fast and flat shooting so 1 pin works fine.

I typically never shoot over 25 yards.

gotta nick ya harvey (fast and flat)????? don't you shoot a mathews? kidding

[vister]

typically, all you should see through your peep sight is the sight cage on your sights. thats why a lot of sight cages have a white or orange ring around the outside edge of them. this ring is the outermost part of what you should see when looking through the peep. like mentioned, 5 pins are good for beginners, because u can set up to shoot farther away to increase your shooting habits, then come sept 19th, drop those bottom three pins down as far down as they go.

personally, i wouldn't shoot at a deer beyond 40 yards, as you do run a much higher risk of missing your shot, or worse, crippling a deer. trust me, there isn't a worse feeling than crippling a deer with your bow because you weren't patient for a better, or closer shot opportunity.

my pins are set at 20/30/40. when i shoot at 50, i aim at the target with my 40 yard pin, locate the 30 yard pin, and raise the 40 yard pin to where the 30 was located. same with 60 yards. find the 20 while aiming at target with 40. raise 40 to 20's locations, and let er buck. works fairly well, but may be different with your setup. i wouldn't try this on game though, just for target shooting.

[lichen fox]

I'm with Harvey on the one pin...I've used one pin for the past 10 years or so...My sight system is quick-attach so I can change sights in a jiffy, if I wish...I still have a five pin sight that I can pop on if I'm heading out to an area that "might" offer some longer range shots...but I haven't popped it on for anything but target practice in quite awhile.

As for peep size...the larger the better for low-light conditions...put one on you feel comfortable with and once you're sighted in, give it a try about 15 to 20 minutes after sunset...if you can't see you're target well, it needs to be larger...if the design allows you can drill it out yourself...

As mentioned, get comfortable with you're equipment...start at 20 yards and when you're group is 2 inches or less "consistantly", move out to 30...master a 4" group at that distance then move out to 40...keep shooting until you find "your" maximum distance...the distance where "you know" you can make a killing shot on whatever your shooting at...then get rid of all pins that excede that range...good luck and have fun!

[fish]

Tom,

I believe that a 3 pin or a 1 pin would probably serve most hunters needs. You have enough to think about in the moment of truth than to have to think is this a 4 pin or a 5 pin shot. Although with modern bows it probably wont make a huge amount of difference. My guess is that most bowhunters set up in situations that would afford a high percentage close shot anyway. Just me. I have never felt super comfortable in long rang shots. I know me and buck fever can really screw up my judging yardage no matter how much I practice. Go with Harvey. Learn to shoot with one pin. Welcome to the wonderful world of Archery.

[tomfromblaine]

I want to thank everybody for their insight, my new iceman was just ordered, no more 50# recurve my dad gave me. I decided to go with a 5 pin for practice purposes and if it seems to cluttered of a sight picture I can slide a couple of pins out of the picture. I also went with the QAD ultra rest and a large peep(old guy). I should have it early next week and then I can start my therapy I just hope I can get some sleep until then.

Thanks again to every body and the best web site.

Tom in Blaine

[stretch]

Hey no problem that's what all of us on here are for, giving advice.

[DoubleLunger]

I prefer the adjustable single pin.

[Rippinlip]

I run a 6 pin Atomic sight, do a ton of practice and 3D shoots.

Hunting application i have removed the bottom 4, but last year I left them on to continue practicing throught deer hunting.

I know my "dead red" pins are my 15 and 25 yard pins. I left the other 4 on and was still able to not be confused on what pin to use and harvest my deer (Avatar picture)

[Code-Man]

I have a 5 pin but only use 4 of them (20, 30, 40, 50) I might put the 5th pin at 60 but WOW that's a long shot. I would look at what kind of shooting your going to do. Are you in thick woods where 40/50 yds is going to be threading a needle or are you on the edge of a field where you can get 60+ yds? I'd look at what kind of hunting you will be doing then picking. Also a Micro Adjust sight will save you headaches when trying to sight in your bow! I had a Tru Glo that took me forever adjusting and now got a different one and wow it was worth it.

Peep sights. Take a look at your sight you finally want and get a peep that works for it. I had a tru glo 5 pin and it was HUGE compared to my new one and I couldn't shoot groups to save my life. I switched to a smaller peep and wow now I got to be careful not to bust up arrows. I do like the G5 peep where it splits your strings and is tied in compaired to have the plastic piece pulling it straight but it's a matter of preference

[tmvikings]

I want to thank you (Harvey Lee), I am new to bow hunting and I just got a new rest the QAD and some arrows cut the other day. The bow came with a one pin and I was so close to buying a 3 pin, and now I am very happy I went shooting to try it out instead of buying a 3 pin. The bow is dead on at 20, and at 30, just a little rise and it’s dead on, one little adjustment and 40 and 50 dead on. I had it in my mind that I needed a 3 pin but when the deer comes in I know I would of used the wrong pin. Thanks

Man shooting is fun….

[splakeshaker]

I have only used 1 pin for whitetail hunting for years. I don't care for the extra pins setting in my sight.

For whitetails, I have never found a need for my bow for more than 1 pin set at 20 yards. If I need to shoot a 30 yard shot, I just raise it a small amount. My bow is very fast and flat shooting so 1 pin works fine.

I typically never shoot over 25 yards.

Couldn't have said it better mayself!