Any bowhunters out there??

[thatguy]

OK.. im an impluse buyer at times.. Now thats in the open...

I bought a compound bow from walmart on clearance yesterday (Jackie Bushman Buckmasters, single cam, 50 -70# draw wt, 28 to 30" draw length, whisker biscuit, optic sight, nice package of stuff), it was originally selling for $250 on clearance for $150.. After adding arrows ($1.50 for easton stalker), release (tru fire), muzzy broadhead blades ($11/pkg) , etc i was at about $210..

I am a green novice on bow hunting, and I thought this was a great price to get me started in the sport. I realize this is just that, a beginners bow.

Now i realize why ppl recommend buying from a dealer instead of walmart on items like this.. This things need to have A LOT of adjustments/tuning done before I can even fling my first arrow..

Who will tune a bow that you didnt buy from them, and what do you think it will cost me? I saw Dicks had similar setups for $200 and up, and im sure that includes instructions, fitting, and setup..

Would i be better off returning this bow and getting one from some place else or going forward with what I have in hand?

thanks

Brian

 

[Robert_in_NY]

Around here most small archery shops will help you set up your bow. They will charge you for this though but it usually isn't much. Archery shops look to sell products like arrows, broadheads, strings and everything else associated with archery so they don't (usually) care if you bought a bow from some other shop. All in all these bows are not that complicated to set up but if you have no experience at all then an archery shop is the place to go.

 

[HGM]

I agree with Robert, you should be able to find a small/independant archery shop in your area that would be glad to help(for a fee of course)... The only time I have ever seen any anomocity(?) at one of these places is if a guy walked in with a $1000 Mathews or Hoyt that they bought somewhere else.. With a high end bow, you pay for the service as well as the product(kind of like Snap-On tools)..

Its addicting, but I have to say I typicaly dont pick mine up after gun season opens... Not knowing where you live, this could be something you'll really get into, and for the price you really cant beat it, to see if you like it or not..

 

[Phils]

I'm a member of an archery club and any/all of the members would be eager to help someone new in the sport. In our area of No Ca there are a half-dozen clubs within a two hour drive, and two that are local.

See if there are clubs in your area. Besides learning how to adjust and use your equipment, you'll meet some great people and open up a new avenue for fun at club shoots and events.

IF you reside in Northern California then PM me and I'll hook up up with a club close to you.

Phil

 

[swiftboot]

Geesh, makes you kinda wonder how the Native Americans could bring down buffalo and other game without all those gizmos. I guess if you get hungry enough......... chuck

 

[Sigarms]

I'll vote archery shop as well.

Take the bow back and get your money back. If you get into the sport (and it can be addicting), you most likely find that you will want to upgrade to a better bow anyway (on average, you do get what you pay for).

Ask around on local archery shops in your area. Just because they have a shop, does not mean that they will treat you right or farily. Like anything else in selling, you have some people who want to make a quick sale and make some "fast" money, and you have those who are sincere and love what they do, one reason why they try to make a living doing it, and they realize that to survive in their business, they have to BUILD relationships with their potential customers. Repeat business is one variable that helps in any "retail" business.

Don't be afraid to ask dumb questions, alot of dumb questions mind you. You can usually seperate the "good" shops from the "bad" shops on the way they handle and respond to your questions. If they make you feel like an idiot for whatever reason, look elsewhere.

Honestly, love shooting the bow more now than I do my guns. If you have any land, buy some 3d targets, set them up out back, and you will be amazed at how addicting it can be.

 

[wushaw]

I would recommend you read everything you can get your hands on pertaining to bow tuning, shooting and hunting learn to do it yourself....there will be a day when you need to reserve your peep sight, put a new string on (due to accident)...etc... and your four hrs from a archery shop.

If your going to use a release then buy two, I don't use one just because I will never leave it at home, truck, loose it what ever.

Shoot regularly but not too much...always remember that first shot is the only one you get...not after your warmed up.
Don't try to pull too much weight, it can be a deciding factor when your frozen to a tree and your target shows up just to find out you can't pull your bow back.
There are a million things that can go wrong in the field while bow hunting just to make one thing go right.
If you gun hunt deer now you may never go back after you finally take your first deer.
It can be a very satisfying sport.

 

[scesnick]

I agree with everyone else here about the archery shop.

One thing I would like to add though. If you are going to get into bowhunting you should understand the ethics of it. For example, I will only shoot a deer the is within 30 yards. PERIOD. I know that 30 yards is my effective range and I will not shoot beyond that. I don't care if it is a Pope & Young bruiser. I am not going to cripple it up and never see it again. or worse, have it die in 2-3 days after I hit it. Find a range you are comfortable with and don't go beyond that until you feel you can do it successfully.

I will give you 2 really good tips. 1.---Cover Scent!!! scent is way, way more important in bow hunting than rifle hunting.. 2.--- Cover. You will be in close quarters with one of the most observant and skiddish animals in our woods. be sure and have sufficient cover. I have been bow hunting for a long time and I get "busted" quite a bit still.

Also, don't get discouraged and lose interest if you don't get a shot right away. This is a game of patience for sure.

It is also a game of "Tall Tales" Don't believe ANYTHING any other bow hunter tells you when it comes to where the big deer are located. there is NO WAY he will ever tell someone else where his honey hole is at. You just have to find one yourself and then lie to the next guy about it. It is a vicious cycle.

BTW, what is your location? You should put that in your profile. Maybe someone here lives close to you and can recommend a good bow shop..

I sure hope you have fun and a deep wallet because this can get addicting in a real big hurry !!!

 

[RonMar]

I agree with Sigarms, take the box set back. If you are going to start out with a beginner bow, it is probably better to buy a used higher quality bow to get your feet wet. Although most likley quite capable of doing the job, in the hands of a beginner that boxed set from wallmart will most likley be heavier, noisier and harder to tune and get setup properly. This of course is not always the case, but I have seen it quite often. I have seen one such bow that was impossible to tune properly. We finally determined that it was the actual configuration of the frame itself that didn't leave enough room on the shelf for the arrow rest that came with the bow. The guidance of someone with experience such as a dealer or an achery fanatic trying to draw you into their cult... I mean club will get you onto a successfull path much quicker. The good thing about a club is the wealth of knowledge that is willingly shared.

A compound bow is very dynamic and inconsistencies in the casting and machining of the frame, pullies and cams, the layup of the limbs and the quality of the bushings, bearings and hardware used as well as the applied design will all have an impact on the trueness and consistency of the draw and release. The setup of the bow will hav a bearing on the arrow stiffness and tip weight used IE: You don't shoot the same arrow at 50# that you would shoot at 70#.

The dynamics of the release are also different with the type of release. For instance, a hand loosed arrow "swims" off the bow, bending from side to side. An arrow loosed with a mechanical release typically "porpoises" off the bow, bending from top to bottom. The arrow rest has to be designed to accomidate the movement and severity of a particular release. I have seen boxed sets that come with a mechanical release yet the bow is fitted with an arrow rest designed for a hand release. This configuration would not be apparent to someone new to the sport and without experienced guidance would perhaps spend a lot of time being frustrated at their lack of improvement and accuracy.

As mentioned, when hunting you will only get one shot. Many of the variables of that shot, despite the best laid plans, are outside your control and must be compensated for on the spot. I once loosed an arrow at a deer at 20 yards that never made it to the target. I was so focused on this perfect shot, that I didn't even see the 1 1/2" branch just above my line of sight, half way down the lane to the target. My arrow planted itself in this branch. Consistency only lies partly with the bow. In order to be an ethical hunter, you MUST PRACTICE, and practice the way you will hunt. If it is from a tree stand, you must practice from a tree stand. When I was stationed in Upstate NY, I had several co-workers and the boss who were also interested in archery. We shot nearly every day on breaks and lunch and after work. We built our own equipment for tuneing(press, paper tuneing rack). We set up our own archery courses on the grounds. One individual could put a dozzen arrows into a coffee cup at 30+ yards. We had to reconfigure our bale targets for him with a series of aimpoints as his skill got a little hard on arrows. That was where I really developed my personal range standard. My personal range limit is the range at which I can put 6 arrows into a 3" circle(coffee cup) consistently. I will not shoot at an animal beyond that point. In my opinion, a bowhunter must practice throughout the year, not just before bow season, to maintain the muscles involved and their accuracy standard.

Look for a local shop that has a range, even better if they have two, an indoor range for comfortable accuracy practice and tuneing, and an outdoor range with varying ranges, lighting and perhaps even a silloutte course. A good dealer will allow you to shoot various bows in their inventory, even the used bows they are trying to sell on consignment. I have seen many instances of a store/dealer associated with a club as they enjoy the group patronage and in return offer club range discounts and sponsor events.

I have gone thru many hobbies over the years, but I started flinging arrows at age 6 with a bow with suction cup arrows that turned up under the Christmas tree that year. That was 35 years ago and I am still flinging arrows.

 

[Captinjack]

To all of you that think you can cover your scent or use scent covering camo..........My hunting dogs can smell a rabbit fart a week old!

If you have ever trapped or hunted with dogs, you have no clue to what animals can smell as you have no clue. Most of you may even think that your owh sh### doesn't stink. Wrongo.

Animal sniffers are so much better than ours that we can't comprehend. My beages can tell the difference from one rabbit to the next. They will hit one rabbit and pursue it to the exclusion of others. Seen them do it so many times that you wouldn't believe.

Archery hunters sometimes go to unbelievable lengths to conceal their scent when in actual practice, it is fruitless. Reducing human scent 99.9 % is not enough. Yeah. It's enough to us, but the game animals still can smell you just the same. They can pick out that 0.1% just fine.

I can't tell you how many times my dogs have chased me on a dead run after using rubber boots and walked in cow dung.

Wear all the carbon scent stuff. Spray all the good stuff all over you, but use the same bow, pull up cord, arrows that you have touched with your hands and you are still toast if you are upwind. Your breath is not much you can do with.

Just a little bit of smell is all it takes and we cannot eliminate it! Sure you can reduce it.........it just doesn't result in a reduction that matters.
The critters will still smell you. Who ya kiddin? Are you susceptible to the marketing ads?

PS You really don't have a clue and you don't believe this.