Used Bow recommendation

[Dled]

I'm getting back into bow hunting and looking for advice on where to look for a used bow set up. I live in a rural area so I have limited bow shops around. Also once I find a used bow I'd like to have any resources on how to research the quality or value of that bow. I'd really appreciate any guidance you could give.

 

[oake]

I'll add my .02 on the subject. If you have long arms and have a long draw length, my suggestion would be a bow with a longer axle to axle measurement. I'm 6'6" and got back into archery a few years back and picked up a used Mathews Z7. It's a nice bow, but with the short axle to axle, when I decide to let down rather than fire, it wants to launch me like an arrow...

Lots of bow makers out there, my opinion is you can break it down to different tiers: top, mid, low. But as far as value, used bows drop pretty quickly.

 

[Dled]

Oake- appreciate the input. I didn't consider the let down issue

 

[Valkyrie]

There’s like new used bows all over the big auction site. You can usually find last years flagship model from any manufacturer being sold off to fund this years flagship model for roughly half of the original new price.

 

[MallardSX2]

I got a Matthews Heli-M bare bow. PM me for details.

 

[Billy Goat]

If you don't have access to a good bow shop then you need to research bow tuning. Different manufacturers use different cam systems and this changes how you will tune your bow. Some are easier, some more difficult. Many you will need a bow press to tune. If it's a parallel limb or past parallel you will need a special kind of press.

I live in a rural area but have a good shop 1/2 hour away. I still decided to get my own press and pretty much everything else a good shop would have so I can mess with things whenever I want.

Point is if you go with a more traditional limbed compound you can use some very basic bow presses that are common and cheap. Makes things easier in my opinion.

In my experience most all of the bows made now are good. Different features on each that the manufacturer make into a selling point. Make sure you know your proper draw length as you are looking, many bows now you need to buy mods to change the draw length. These can be a bit of added cost to what seems like a good deal.

I would also stay away from the older bowtechs that had the aluminum in the laminate of the limbs. Unless it's a great deal. Then just order a set of barnesdale limbs for it.

 

[AceRifles]

I live 4 hours from a bow shop. I go with bowtech so i can make little tweaks easily by my self. I have 2 I'm looking to get rid of. 2016 Reign 6 and a 2019 Realm SS that is still in the box from bowtech.

 

[camelcluch]

Go to a shop and shoot as many bows as you can. That will give you an idea of what you like. You can then find what you like used and know your dl/dw. Bows here, Archery Talk, Craigslist and eBay can be found easy. I like AT for current pricing as eBay and CL get a little crazy.

 

[Dled]

There’s like new used bows all over the big auction site. You can usually find last years flagship model from any manufacturer being sold off to fund this years flagship model for roughly half of the original new price.

Thanks- That gives me a good reference point when I look at used bows

 

[Dled]

If you don't have access to a good bow shop then you need to research bow tuning. Different manufacturers use different cam systems and this changes how you will tune your bow. Some are easier, some more difficult. Many you will need a bow press to tune. If it's a parallel limb or past parallel you will need a special kind of press.

I live in a rural area but have a good shop 1/2 hour away. I still decided to get my own press and pretty much everything else a good shop would have so I can mess with things whenever I want.

Point is if you go with a more traditional limbed compound you can use some very basic bow presses that are common and cheap. Makes things easier in my opinion.

In my experience most all of the bows made now are good. Different features on each that the manufacturer make into a selling point. Make sure you know your proper draw length as you are looking, many bows now you need to buy mods to change the draw length. These can be a bit of added cost to what seems like a good deal.

I would also stay away from the older bowtechs that had the aluminum in the laminate of the limbs. Unless it's a great deal. Then just order a set of barnesdale limbs for it.

Billy-
You bring up a great point. It may be worthwhile to take the trip to a good bow shop to get properly measured as well as see if they have inventory. Thanks for the bowtech tip, I have seen some of them advertised.

 

[Dled]

I live 4 hours from a bow shop. I go with bowtech so i can make little tweaks easily by my self. I have 2 I'm looking to get rid of. 2016 Reign 6 and a 2019 Realm SS that is still in the box from bowtech.

Ace- I'm just starting to look into it so I'm not ready yet but I will contact you when I am. Thank you!

 

[Dled]

Go to a shop and shoot as many bows as you can. That will give you an idea of what you like. You can then find what you like used and know your dl/dw. Bows here, Archery Talk, Craigslist and eBay can be found easy. I like AT for current pricing as eBay and CL get a little crazy.

Great tip join Archery Talk! I haven't seen that forum before . I'll join that to search the classifieds there also. I am cautious with CL and EB also . I am definitely now going to take a weekend and go to a bigger shop to shoot. Thanks!

 

[Dled]

I got a Matthews Heli-M bare bow. PM me for details.

Mallard- I'm not ready just this minute but I will be . I'll reach out to you to see if you still have it then. Thanks for letting me know.

 

[Dled]

Thanks to everyone who's given guidance. As you know there is so much misinformation out there that it's hard to wade through it especially in used equipment. I'm definitely going to make the trip to a good archery shop , get measured and shoot a variety of bows to see what I like now. If anyone else has input I'd appreciate it.

 

[aion2come]

I have both a Hoyt Carbon Element as my main bow and a Diamond Black Ice as my backup. Both are excellent bows and a pleasure to shoot. You should be able to find either for $400 or less. I like the Hoyt for the carbon riser, shoots about 5% faster, and slightly less hand shock. The Black Ice has a way better back wall.

 

[Elkhntr08]

You need to make the trip and handle and shoot as many bows as you can. If a bow doesn’t feel good in your hand, you’ll struggle to shoot it well.
Started selling Browning years ago, so thought I needed to shoot one. String bit me every time. Was used to throating a grip and figured out that I needed to heel a Browning.
Every bow’s grip and draw cycle is different, you have to figure out what feels to best for you. I or anybody on here can make recommendations, but it’s ultimately what feels natural to you.
I will say that after selling and shooting Hoyt for 16 years, I switched to Elite 6 years ago and couldn’t be happier.

 

[Scoot]

If you want used archerytalk and Ebay are your 2 best options.

 

[Jimss]

You can likely find great deals on your local Craigslist. It's nice being able to look it over prior to buying. Mathews has always worked super well for me. If you have the chance possible visit an archery shop with a range to narrow down choices. The Bowsite.com website is also a good spot to check out. When I was looking I had it narrowed down to Mathews and Bowtech.

 

[camelcluch]

When you are at the shop shooting, make sure to try the let down on each bow. Also pay attention to the back wall of the bow. We all like something a little different but there is something for everyone.

 

[CApighunter]

I’ve bought a couple off archery talk. Look for the one year old bows that people are selling so they can get the current model. I bought a NIB 2015 PSE Decree in 2016 for half of what the 16s were selling for. Be patient and you’ll find the right bow!