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How often do you get a new bow?

4K views 36 replies 34 participants last post by  PAtradarcher 
#1 ·
Are you a "I hunt with it till it stops working" kinda guy?

Or, a "I buy a new bow every year" kinda guy?

My Hoyt Defiant is a 2016. It's far from ancient, although it's not worth much anymore with how bows depreciate.

My 2009 Bowtech Captain is darn near a fossil in the archery world, but it's a good bow. I just don't enjoy shooting it like I did before I got the Hoyt. Things just get a little smoother and quieter as gear evolves, and it's noticeable.

Anywho....

I've been contemplating things with my bows. I am starting to think of doing a 5 year cycle.

Hunt a bow 5 seasons. Get a new one. Prior primary bow becomes the back up bow. Prior secondary bow gets sold/traded/donated (as it'll be 10-ish years old and not worth much of anything). Repeat.

I'm probably also trying to rationalize a carbon riser bow, because I almost went that route on the Defiant, and each bow season when the temps start to drop, I curse myself for not doing it, because dang does that riser get COLD.

Just some idle thoughts as I relax and wait for the evening sit tonight with the rifle.
 
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#5 ·
My 2008 Hoyt Katera XL still works. I went to the bow shop and shot some new bows. Shrugged my shoulders and walked out. Nothing really wowed so much that I would be willing to part with $1200+. Maybe next year I'll get something new.
Im not seeming much progression from 2008 until today. Maybe a little quieter and minimal speed increases where brace height was been sacrificed for speed.
 
#7 ·
Oh agreed completely. I got my Defiant as new and current model because I was a bonehead and dinged up my Captain's limbs on a stand. I needed a bow and needed it now to get back in the fight, so to speak.

But....

That bow that hangs there for 1200 bucks suddenly becomes an $800 bow when the next year's version hits the market.

Then it starts to get a bit more palatable.
 
#8 ·
I have a 2013 Elite I was planning to hold onto indefinitely but I bent a cam on it and I am going to try to get it replaced as soon as I can drive 3 hours to the nearest Elite dealer.

Picked up a Triax for emergency use this year, and I've been wavering if I like it enough to keep it. I am really interested in the new Bowtechs but I don't think I wanna drop the coin. May look into something else used. Feel like I'd have to buy from someone I trusted, I am a little gun shy of the innernet market on used bows, feel like it is too easy to get ripped off.
 
#10 ·
My 1st couple bows where wooden Martin compounds. I have an old Ben Pearson compound that I think I bought in the early 90's. I bent the cam in 2010 and was going to replace it in 2011. My son turned 10 that year and decided he wanted to archery hunt so I put off buying a new bow. I bought him a crossbow and didn't archery hunt alone again until 4 years ago. I used the crossbow the last 4 years. I am definitely getting a new/used compound next year. I can't put it off any longer. We bought my son his 1st compound as well. All of my largest buck were shot with a compound.

If you look at the age of my bows I am a "keep it till it stops working guy"
 
#11 ·
I don't get out with the bow much the last 7 or so years due to work & kids, but still stay in practice.
My compound is a PSE I picked up at walmart for a song back in 98. It's last kill was in 2012.
I wouldn't hesitate a second to take it out right now if given a chance.
I've shot out and replaced about half a dozen targets in that time, and about a gross of arrows..
Replaced cables twice, strings I make and replace myself... That's about it.
Still using the same release...
Did replace the whisker biscuit about 10 years back... probably due for another one soon.

Proper maintenance and routine practice will stretch the "service life" of any reasonable quality gear a lot longer than most hunting careers...
 
#13 ·
I started bow hunting with an old browning compound and moved to a new Parker buck hunter for about 8 years and then got a bow tech experience in 2014, I just wasn’t crazy about it so this year I purchased a bow tech realm SS, I am keeping this one for as long as it will last. I love it
 
#14 ·
I've been using my Mathews Switchback XT since 2006. I consider it the deadliest weapon in my arsenal of firearms and archery equipment. I have the string swapped out about every three years or so. I also use the same Tru Ball glove release that i purchased with it too, but the glove is starting to get pretty frayed. After its 14th season its my favorite weapon to use and still just a deadly as the day I bought it. I harvested some great animals with that bow, and i feel a special bond with it every time its in my hand. It's a keeper...
 
#15 ·
2007 I believe was my last one, and maybe my last. 5 Hoyt's lifetime and never looked back. Nah, I do not dig getting a new bow, I much rather become really good with the one I have.
 
#16 ·
I have my 45-lb recurve from 43 years ago and on occasion I take it out. I have my compound that I first bought 12 years ago. Works fine but I can't use it anymore. I bot my crossbow (Horton) 5 or 6 years ago and it still kills em like it should.
 
#17 ·
I use to buy a new bow almost every year, but not so much anymore. I did buy the Realm when it came out and I love it. I still buy a couple used bows a year and mess with them. If I like them, I will keep them for a while, if not I will sell them. Some I make money on, others I lose money. I do my own work, so thats part of fun and makes up for any $ loss.
 
#18 ·
During the last several decades the compound bow industries were making major improvements. However, I believe the average compound bow off the assembly line today is way over the design needed for the vast majority of the game and shots taken as we hunt today. Several years ago I was a member of the of the bow every year a two and I still have some of them which are in very good shape but next to worthless on todays market. Gave several of them away and sold others for the fraction of the original cost not counting the accessories and new strings and cables I added. In fact I sold some of the bows fully loaded for less than the sights, rests, quivers and stabilizers cost.

In the years I was shooting a lot of 3D tournaments I was reading the bow test on the new models and Mfg. as soon as they came out and I was following what the winner of the major tournaments shot to win. It appears I believed there was some speedy magic wand out there the would make me an expert shot. Found what made me a better shot was practice.

My last bow was a 2005 Mathews Switchback which has shot a few hundred arrows a year in the back yard and 3D shoots. I have taken some nice, PA, OH and IN bucks and a bear with it. It is the last bow I intend to purchase for myself. I have always done all of my bow maintenance, tuning etc. Therefore I have what I believe is a great bow without spend big $$ for a new bow every few years. One thing I know for sure it shoots better than I do.
 
#21 ·
My last bow was a 2005 Mathews Switchback which has shot a few hundred arrows a year in the back yard and 3D shoots. I have taken some nice, PA, OH and IN bucks and a bear with it. It is the last bow I intend to purchase for myself. I have always done all of my bow maintenance, tuning etc. Therefore I have what I believe is a great bow without spend big $$ for a new bow every few years. One thing I know for sure it shoots better than I do.
I bought my 2005 Switchback when it was two years old. I maintain it as new condition and couldn't be happier with it to this day. I do have a desire to shoot their new VXR but I don't have the desire to pay for one. The old Switchback has earned her keep with many kills and is still a pleasure to shoot. It is definitely one of the all time great bows IMHO.
 
#20 ·
I used to work in a mathews shop and could get a new bow every year if I wanted pretty cheap. If I didn't see leaps and bounds of improvement I stuck with what I had. I now own an LX and one of the 1st year Z7s. Bows are a personal choice. When my brother went to get his new bow he shot the latest greatest but opted for a switchback xt, one of the best they made in my opinion.
 
#22 ·
Ive purchased 2 brand new bows since i started archery hunting over the last 27years. My first bow was a gift from my parents for Christmas, then there were a few used bows with 2 new bows dropped in there. i find it time to change when i get bored of the setup. I went from TM style rest to the over draw, once that was out of fashion i bought new with WB rest and rode that out for quite a few years. Got bored with the slow speeds and tired sights and went for a new used bow 2 years old. Put a new sight and quiver on and was very happy with the upgrade including the dropaway rest it came with. Probably would have used that bow for the next 5-6years before i dropped it out of a tree this season and blew up the limb. Ended up buy a new '19 Prime CT5 to replace my 2015 Prime impact. So far so good, just need a new rest now. Due to circumstance i decided to buy new, otherwise i would have probably bought a year old used bow since archery equipment is a terrible investment. JMO
 
#23 ·
I am like PaBone, I buy a lot of bows, but never new. I've probably bought and sold 30 bows in the past 10 years. The net result is I probably have less money out of pocket than if I bought a brand new rig outright and I've tried several bows/manufacturers. Right now I have 3 Darton Spectre Es and a Moxie Antigen.
 
#24 · (Edited)
I would typically wait to upgrade until such a time where I thought that the technology advancements in the latest equipment justified an upgrade. My first bow was Bear Epic Extreme that I purchased in 2000. Nice little bow, IMHO ahead of its time. My next bow was a Matthews Z7 bought before the 2010 season. I shot that until my bow arm shoulder, then elbow started giving me problems. I bought my first crossbow in 2015 and have been shooting it ever since. I'm getting the itch to upgrade again, but probably won't anytime soon. Every now and then I get the urge to get another vertical bow, but I'm pushing 60 and not knowing how my shoulder will hold up, I'll probably sit tight with my current equipment.

Unfortunately for me, being a lefty and having a short draw length (27 1/2 inches), finding (or selling) used archery equipment was problematic. I'm glad crossbows are ambidextrous.
 
#25 ·
I'm still shooting a 2014 Hoyt carbon spyder and never thought I'd upgrade until I bought my son a Mathews VRX28 for Christmas.We were shooting side by side over the weekend and I couldn't believe how much quieter that VRX was than my bow.At first I wasn't nuts about it because it's a little on the heavy side.I had him shoot several different bows and I was surprised that he kept going back to that one because of the weight.The draw length is a little short for me but I played around with it yesterday and couldn't get over how dead in my hand it was.It makes my spyder feel like a piece of junk.I think I'll be buying one before spring.
'
 
#26 ·
I bought a pse vendetta xl in 2011 and it was a quantum leap forward from my previous bow. Used it for 5 years til I dry fired it and blew it up. Went bow shopping and ended up with a bowtech bt mag which is a very smooth shooting bow, but otherwise not a big upgrade over the pse. I'd probably still be shooting that pse if I hadn't wrecked it cus I don't really see much advantage to anything newer. If I saw something that did offer what I conciderd a big improvement or advantage I'd get one.

Seems to me like bow technology has kind of hit the wall performance wise. Now the changes are just details or new gimmicks. Crossbows have crippled the hunting bow market, I think you'll see less investment by bow company's and some going out. Local archery shops are also suffering, I think many will close in the next few years. Crossbows seem to be like guns, guys buy one sight it in and hunt with it. Not much shooting or practice by most, which in turn means less trips to the shop for more stuff.
 
#27 ·
I got a Bear Hunter in 1983, shot it until 2000 when I bought my Mathews FX, and in 2009 I bought the Mathews Drenalin I am using now. All still function, the Bear is getting fitted with recurve limbs for fun and because I want to have a recurve I like to shoot. I'm probably due a new one, but I'm on the fence yet. All of mine have taken multiple animals every year I have owned them, they owe me nothing and will probably be around as long as I am. Much like the broadhead debate, I feel it is more important to be a good shot with what you carry, doesn't matter how fancy it is.


My next bow may have a stock and a hand crank on it, I dunno.
 
#28 ·
Haha !! Hardly ever.

Last NEW bow I bought was a Browning Afterburner in 1997.

In 2004 I bought a new-ish, used Browning Eclipse SLX. This past fall, I bought a 9 or 10 year old (hey ......new to ME !!) Browning Grand Illusion. Can't see as I'll ever buy another brand new bow for the rest of my bowhunting career. Both my "old" Brownings are somewhere between smooth and VERY smooth, fast and SMOKING fast, accurate and CRAZY accurate, and they are reliable and durable as the day is long. So...…………...
 
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