buying used bow

[northspear]

hi everyone i am usally on spearing forum. Im coming on this one to get help buying a used bow.

What is a good used bow, what to look for, good price to pay, and where to look for used bows and that about does it. so any help would be great thanks.

[buckhunter21]

A good bow is really any bow that fits you and you feel comfortable shooting. Dont get caught up in the brand name hype its more important to have a bow you like than to have a certain name stamped on it. As for price it really depends, a year old high end bow can still run you over the $500 mark and you can probably find a few older ones under the $200 range.

I would suggest buying a bow from a proshop or somewhere you can at least shoot it before buying the bow if you havent planned on that already. I know they have some great deals online but I dont think its worth the chance to end up with a bow that isnt the right size or you just dont like to shoot. I dont know whats around your area but there should be a dealer around where you can test out a few and at least get a feel for what your looking at.

What to look for in a bow really depends, some people like me are speed freaks where you can shoot flat out to 40 yards and others would much rather have a smoother more forgiving bow. If you plan on only shooting out to 20 or 30 yards then I would suggest going with a smoother shooting bow with a longer brace height and not worry about the whole speed thing because any bow out there is going to kill a deer from that range no matter how fast if you place your shot true. If you maybe plan on going out west to do some antelope or muley hunting then you maybe want to consider something a little more flat shooting, I would not go to the extremes and look for the fastest one out there but settle somewhere in the middle where you get pretty good speed and a pretty smooth shooting bow.

The most important thing about buying a used bow is to get one that is going to fit you. By that I mean one that will adjust to the right draw length, some its just a matter of putting them in a bow press and moving the string but others you have to change parts of the cam and that can cost you even more money. Also you want one that adjusts to the correct draw weight usually a bow with 60-70 pound limbs works for most people but if you dont ever plan on pulling back more than 60 pounds 50-60 pound limbs will work just fine.

Sorry this is getting a little log but you never said if you are new to archery or if you are just looking for an upgrade. If you havent shot much archery I would suggest getting the one that feels the most comfortable to shoot for you and ignore all the IBO speed numbers and kinetic energy or whatever. Take into consideration how smooth it draws back, some bows are hard to pull back the whole way and some have one hard spot and then get easier and it all really depends if your comfortable with an aggressive cam or if you need to have something that pulls back really easy. You want to consider the recoil of the bow, some bows have alot of hand shock while other you can barely tell you just let go of the arrow. Noise is another thing to consider, while it really doesnt matter really how loud a bow is because a deer is going to hear you let go of the string more than likely with any bow but I cant stand a bow that is loud or that makes a "twang" sound when you let go. A comfortable grip is important but most bows the grip will be good enough for most people. I would just get in somewhere and start flinging arrows with as many bows as you can until you find a winner.

[jay83196]

I would agree completely, if you dont have a lot of shooting experience then go for something with a higher let off, longer brace height, control cams and avoid the higher speed bows they are a lot less forgiving and usually less acurate on average distances...and then the next bow you get get the fast one

[jay83196]

a couple of good archery shops to try.... Bwana Archery (little canada) and Shaffer archery (Burnsville) they both carry a good variety and are extremely knowledgeable..

[Sorgy]

Buying a bow that fits you or one that can be adjusted to fit your draw length is really important. Spread the word to all of your friends / online friends here stating what you are looking for (what poundage you are looking for, Left/right hand - before you buy make sure you know what your dominant eye is) someone here may have an older bow. Find a lead and go to a proshop- have it looked over and get it adjusted to fit and shoot some arrows. Buy Arrows, release ect from the pro shop for their time and effort. Later go back to them and get more goods/ accessories. Treat them well and they will take care of you.

Other things to look at are string and cables. Do they have excessive wear/fraying or separated serving. I think a new set runs around $80.00 on up to $130 depending on who's strings you use. Vaportrails are a good string for the lower end cost. They are built in Ham Lake.

Look over the cams for scratches/nicks that will cause premature wear on the above strings and cables.

Lastly look very closely at the limbs. Are there any knicks, cracks or splits. Run some cotton balls up and down the limbs look for fibers getting caught in the limb material.

You can find some good deals on last years left over bows- sometimes even 2 year old bows. A leftover top name bow will be a good buy and easier to sell if you decide to get out of archery in the future.

Don't rush in and buy the first bow you run across. Shoot several and get an idea what you like.

Good Luck

Steve

[InTheNorthwoods]

Northspear - What draw length are you looking for? If you don't know, one way to get an accurate estimate (and is a great starting point) is to measure your wing span from tip to tip and divide by 2.5.

As far as a used bow, if you are in the 29" draw range, I have one for sale right now that should still be up in the classifieds (a 3 season old Parker Phoenix 34). It is set up ready to shoot and would be a great starter bow.

One thing to keep in mind when buying your first bow is that accessories may not be included with bows. A new sight, rest, peep, which would be about the bare minimum can easily cost over $200. Then add in arrows and a release, etc. and you are looking at more expenses. So be sure of what you are getting when you buy a bow.

[96trigger]

All great advice. The nice part about bows is that most of them are still in really good shape even if they are used. Its one of those things that doesn't get too abused. I would look for a late model bow. There has been a lot of improvements in the last 5 years. I wouldn't go older than that.

[northspear]

northwoods do you have any pictures of your bow?

[InTheNorthwoods]

northwoods do you have any pictures of your bow?

If you gave me an email address I could sure take some pics and send them to you if you were interested. I can also answer questions via email, probably better than to get off track in these threads.

Its a nice bow and I'd be keeping it if my wife didn't see the pricetag of the new bow I bought.