Anybody use pendulum sights?

[Powerstroke]

I was thinking about this since I have 1 bad eye which equals little to no depth perception. This means I can't judge distance worth a darn. I do my best to pace off distances when I can, but I would like the ability to just use my sights and not have to guess distance and adjust accordingly.

I plan on getting a rangefinder but a sight is cheaper in the meantime.

[Cooter]

Great question, I share the same interest. I can't judge distance worth a durn either - and I have the dirty broadheads to prove it!

[bigbucks]

I put a Vital Gear pendulum sight on when I got my new bow before the 04 season. I love it. Really tough, I'm a clutz & bang my stuff more around more than I should & no problems. It's fiber optic of course & really holds the light well.

I shot over or under a number of deer with my old sight, although part of that was due to my old lollipop shooting bow. The only deer I've missed in the two years since getting this sight were due to hitting branches. I've taken 8 with it in those two years.

[Gus]

I could be wrong guys, but I was always told that a Pendilum sight is used to compensate for elevation in a tree not how far you are from the animal. So you would still need to know how far the animal is away from you. I'm heading to the pro shop tonight so I'll see if I can ask the question and find out for sure.

[Cooter]

Bigbucks - Do you have the Camelback from Vital Bow Gear? That would be the pendulum I'd get. How far out is it accurate? I believe its correlated to arrow speed? Also, when you lock it down for ground use, is it easy to lock it at, say, 20 yrds? Later.

Gus - Did you get the scoop on em yet?

[Powerstroke]

I hunt mostly from a treestand and don't always have time or daylight enough to pace off all my distances. This would be more of a fail safe for me for spontaneous hunting. I realize it won't do anything for me when I'm shooting from the ground.

So, back to the question, does anyone use one and/or can you recommend any. I think the Vital Bow Gear were the ones I was looking at.

[Gus]

I never made it to the shop that night. Wednesday I shoot league so I will do it then. Sorry for the delay.

BTW, I'm also horrible at judging distances. I have a nice dirty broadhead also. I ended up buying a rangefinder and the first thing I do when I get in my tree is range some trees so I know about how far things will be. This is not fool proof though because you can't really range very well in the dark. So I usually have to make some movment as soon as it gets light out so I can do my ranging then. But it helped me quite a bit later in the season.

[BryanL]

I agree with the range finder idea. I am pretty bad at judging distance when I am up in my stand also. What I usually do is pick spots and guess the distance before I range them, then I use my rangefinder and see how close I really am. As with everything practice makes perfect. I am much better at guessing the distance by the end of the season. One thing I do try to do is if I am ranging from up in my stand I will get the distance to a certain tree by aiming at the tree even with my stand level, in other words I am aiming my rangefinder straight out from where I am sitting instead of 15-20 feet down to the base of the tree truck I am ranging. If I am right about physics this will give you the true distance to the spot on how your arrow will relate to gravity. If I am wrong someone please correct me.

[Gus]

I talked to the shop last night. A pendulum sight is meant to compensate for your height in a tree not for distance. So say you set your pin at 20 yards on level ground. This pin should be dead on at 20 yards even 10,15,30 feet up in the tree at a 20 yard target. But you still have to know your target distance and adjust for that with where you hold since there is not a multiple pin pendulum sight.

They said there is no substitute for knowing distance.

[Powerstroke]

SO maybe I don't quite understand. I understand it compensates for the height angle adjustment. But are you saying that it will only be dead on at that 20 yds you sighted in at form the ground?

I've got a pretty fast bow and I only need one pin for about the first 25 yds, but the different heights from which I hunt always has me worried about the angle, especially when hunting treestands while on hills. Its even more confounding to try and estimate from a treestand downhill and get that right.

[Gus]

If you use 1 pin out to 25 yards the pendulum will compensate your height for you so you are still on out to 25 yards no matter how high you sit. It should impact just like you were shooting on the ground. If you need a second pin for 30 yards or whatever, you will still need that pin with a pendulum. The problem is a pendulum only has one pin. So instead of using a second pin, you will have to know how high to hold. I hope I made sense. Let me know if I'm still muddy.

[Powerstroke]

ok, thanks Gus. Now I do understand. I usually hunt woody areas so 30 yds would be very unlikely, but I'm starting to move around the state and I had chances this year.

I usually hunt 2 pins, but who knows. I'll have to practice with some different sights this year.

[bigbucks]

I thought Gus explain it well. My bow shoots pretty flat to about 30 yards. At 35 yards I'd hold my one pin about the top of the back, it put it right in there on the first deer this year. I'm not sure if it's the best site if you want to shoot over 40 yards, but if you don't & you have a flat shooting bow, it's the real deal in my book.

Gus, I'm assuming that isn't a nick name for your last name, but it often is for mine...

As to whoever asked if my site was a Camelback by Vital Gear, I don't know. I know it's a Vital Gear, but I stashed it for the winter. If you posted a picture I could tell you if it was the same one. I don't do anything to lock it's position ground or stand, it just adjusts for whatever the angle is on it's own. Sorry it took me so long to answer, was too busy to check the site much last week.

[Gus]

BigBucks,

Gus does come from my last name. Gustafson

[Cooter]

You putz

[bigbucks]

Hey Gus maybe we're long lost cousins, mine too.

You're name isn't John isn't? Oh that's right you don't live in Wabasha...

[Gus]

Quote:

---

You putz

---

Love that movie!

DROP THAT FISH!

No relations I know of to Wabashaw or L.P.