new bow!!! soon

[BULLBLASTER]

another thing i can say is buy the best you can afford (or cant afford). if you think you dont need teh best, you will be back in a month lookoing for the best. better to start with the best you can then keep having to upgrade after a month... i know from experience. let us know where you are and there are plenty of good guys in this site that can point you in the right direction to a good shop!!!

[blindpig]

Just get a bow that fits and feels right.  I think your Martin will work just fine.      

[Bullistics]

Support your local bow shop man! Go to Lucky Shot and see what they have. 

 
  Ted is the man!

[colockumelk]

I would shoot them all and see which one fits you the best, because that is the one that you'll shoot the best. 

When I chose my bow I shot the Matthews Reezen, the Bowtech Admiral, Captain, Sniper, Allegiance and SWAT.  I shot the PSE X-Force, Dream Season, The Fred Bear Truth II, and the Hoyt Katera and Alpha Max 32 and 35.

This may sound super spiritual and all hippy like but I narrowed it down to two boys out of the 12 I tried out and debated back and forth.  Finally I realized there wasn't a debate I was just hung up on the brand name.  The one I chose was one of the first ones I shot and it felt amazing, magical if you will.  Basically I knew all along that was the right one. 

Don't listen to all the hype or of brand name this or brand name that.  Choose what feels best for you because in the end it's not going to be me or Fred, or Tom or Bill that is behind that bow it's you. 

[halflife65]

Clockum, which one did you choose?  I shoot a Mathews now but most of my buddies shoot Hoyts.  One of them has the same draw length and I shot it - it felt great (except he's got it wound up to 76#s, which makes shooting it more than one or two times really unpleasant - at least for me.)

I don't know anybody who shoots the PSE but would like to find out what you thought about it.  I do want a little more brace height than what some of the new bows offer - it's all well and good when you are at the 3D shoot but I wan't some forgiveness when my heart's thumping, at a weird angle, leaning around a tree, tired, cold, etc.

[h2ofowlr]

I picked up the Mathews Rezon last week.  A nice bow.  I now how to sell my newer Bowtech Alligence.  Just upgrading.

[colockumelk]

halflife I chose the Hoyt Alpha Max 32.  With every bow I shot I had a list of criteria that I critiqued.  Out of them all the Hoyt AM32 got the most "points."  It also felt by far the best in my hands which I think is the most important.  Who cares what others think or say becaus they're not the ones shooting it, you are.  I chose the AM32 over Hoyts AM35 because I'm a shorter guy and while they shot the same the AM32 was a little bit lighter but was also 3" shorter and I felt I could manuever it around better.  Again it just felt better when I shot it.  As for the others here's a list of the top  bows I shot.  The AM32 and AM35 are lumped together just like the Bowtech Admiral and Captain are lumped together because they are the same bow.  Just one is shorter than the other.

#1 Hoyt AM32/35:  It had the smoothest draw, had no noticable shock at the shot and no hand torque.  It was also the lightest with good speed 321fps IBO.  The 7" brace height made it very forgiving and accurate.  The only negative thing about this bow is it's quiet but not as quiet as the Bowtech Admiral/Captain or as forgiving as the Admiral/Captain (7.5" BH)  But the AM32/35 I felt beet the Bowtech in the other categories. 

#2 Bowtech Admiral/Captain: Had the 2nd smoothest draw but only slightly less smooth than the Hoyt.  Had no noticable shock at the shot and no hand torque.  It had good speed with 320fps IBO.  The 7.5" brace height made it the most forgiving bow I shot.  It was also the quietest bow I shot.  The only negatives were the weight and it also felt a little top heavy in the hands and at full draw. 

#3 Mathews Reezen 6.5: Had a very smooth draw, little hand shock and little torque.  It was very fast at I think 335-340fps IBO.  I think for people who want a speed bow but also want the forgivness and smoothness etc of a normal bow this bow is perfect.  Because while it is very fast it is also very smooth for how fast it shoots.  I wanted to shoot the 7.0 but they didn't have one.  It's not as smooth or shock or torque free as the Hoyt or the Bowtech but it's faster.  I liked this one alot but I like the smooth over the fast.

#4: Bowtech SWAT: This bow is very very smooth.  Has a forgiving brace height of 7.25 inches and shoots an IBO of 322 fps.  This bow is also about $100 less than the other bows on the list.  It's pretty quiet and has a really smooth draw.  It has some shock and hand torque but overall was a pretty nice bow.  Not as nice as the top end bows but since it was $100 less it jumped up in the list of bows.

#5PSE Dream Season:  This bow is like the Mathews Reezen.  It's a sort of compromise between a speed bow and a smooth bow.  It's IBO is around 335. I shot this one just after I shot the PSE X-Force and was surprised at how much smoother the Dream Season was than the X-Force.  It was actually pretty smooth, had less shock and was quieter than I expected.  But IMHO if you're going to buy a "compromise bow" get the Mathews Reezen 7.0

#5Bowtech 82nd Airborne:  If you are into speed bows I would buy this one.  It's shoots at 350fps IBO but is smoother, quieter, and has less hand shock than the PSE X-Force line.  While it's still not as smooth as the other bows I shot it was definately the smoothest and quietest speed bow I shot.  If you like 6 inch brace heights this is the bow for you.

#6PSE X-Force:  Like all speed bows including the 82nd Airborne it has a short brace height which makes it not very forgiving.  But it is very fast shooting over 350fps IBO.  However the X-Force is not a smooth bow.  It was quieter than I thought it would be but when you shoot it, it has alot of hand shock.  If you draw back and then draw down it feels like your arm is tied to a mack truck.

#7: Bear Truth II:  This bow may not be as quiet, smooth, shock free or torque free like the Hoyt or Bowtech or Mathews but it is almost as good.  It also shoots fairly fast at 318FPS IBO.  It may not be as good as the top end bows but it's almost as good.  It's also almost $200 cheaper. 

Again this info is taken from my notes that I wrote down as I shot each bow.  Some may disagree with me on some of the stuff I said.  We are all a little biased with bows.  There's nothing wrong with that because being biased is human nature we can't help it.  Also to some the Reezen may have felt smoother than the Hoyt or maybe to some the PSE was the quietest one they shot.  In any case it goes back to shooting them all and seeing what fits you best.  I hope this helps.  Let us know what you buy. 

 

[halflife65]

REALLY well thought out and well written response, Colockum.  Thanks a lot for detailed info - I appreciate the information.

[heavy hauler]

thanks for all the help . i am going tomorrow to do some shopping after work.i am finally  looking forward to shopping

[blindpig]

Well, let us know what you got.  I feel like bows are like computers, you have it for a couple of years and its already out of date. 

[coachcw]

 I started out with martins and thought they where to bomb in the day the fury was it, then switched to hoyt assume bows fast and for giving . I recently went to cabelas because I had allot of points built up to use. I shot the new limbsaver bow and was really impressed with how it felt . try as many as possible you might be surprised. Don't let that ibo speed foul you some bows really drop off when you use a heavier arrow. look for a brace height in the sevens you'll be happy. I still support my proshop they are our life support system when it comes to equipment . mine understands the point thing  ,how can he fault you for that . we never buy all our goods in one place . I'm sure you work hard for your money , spend it wisely. Coach