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Deal or no Deal?

4K views 52 replies 6 participants last post by  Greenhead Grappler 
#1 ·
So I just put a ad on craigslist stating I wanted a quality parallel limb bow from someone looking to upgrade. I got replies from several guys desperate to sell. One guy had a matthews that was 3 years old loaded for $500. Another had a jennings buckmaster loaded with two BLOCK targets for $225. The third guy had a Archery Research AR-31 that's last years model loaded for $300. The guy with the matthews backed out, so I ended up buying the AR-31.

BTW I've only shot/hunted with my longbow. I'm green to compounds.

Did I make a good choice?

Any personal experiences with this bow?

Is that a good price for this bow, sights, quiver, stablizer,drop away rest and a new uncut easton carbon arrows?

I know that it will need fitted up to me and the draw length adjusted. can I expect any other costs ?

Thanks.
 
#4 ·
well your arrows and accesories alone are worth $300. id say that matthews would have been the sweetest deal. but you got a good one.
it looks good, its a good size. and i saw where it got very good reveiws.
my only mention is the speed. IBO 300 fps. there's nothing wrong with that, thats more than enough but im a speed freak. i prefer a little faster.

im curious to know your draw length, draw weight, and arrow weight?
with a little tweaking you can maximize the bows potential.
 
#5 ·
28" draw and I shoot and hold a 60# yellowjacket longbow so I think that I could shoot it at 70# comfortably. Is there that much difference between 300 and 310 IBO? I thought the difference was going to be minimal. I don't know the arrow weight but they are Easton Axis arrows and 125 gr. f.p's and broadheads.

I wanted that matthews pretty bad. I can't blame him for changing his mind. I should have gone straight to his house when he offered. I've always been a minimalist when it comes to bow hunting, now I'm waist deep in it.
 
#6 ·
Remember that IBO is just a basis for all bows to be judged off of. Under normal conditions you will never get to this speed. The general idea that we sell arrows under is that th "Arrow" should weigh 5 grains per Lb od draw weight then add roughly another 85-125 for the field point/broadhead plust the weight of the nock and insert and then you havew true arrow weight. IBO is set at 29" with a 350 grain arrow.
 
#7 ·
most shooter never achieve ibo speed anyways unless there 7 feet tall. the mathews was way to high priced anywyas, better off that he backed out. therer a pain in the butt anyways. the jenning buckmasters arent as paralell limb that your looking for either and there as finacky tuners as the mathews are these days. ibo is not 29" its 30" and you can figure 10 fps for ever inch of draw. if you think you need speed pm me and ill give you all kinds of tricks to gain w/ out compromising noise and shootability. 5 Gr per pound is should be the minmum. thats when you get into blowin up limbs and strings. ive shot 3d all over new england and build strings arrow and work on bows for ppl and trust me it get expensive ESPECIALLY w/ a junk mathews. as far as you new purchase ar31, great bow!, my father is shooting on for hunting and i have an ar34 that i have set up for mbr shoots. i have a short draw and i have mine shooting 282fps thropugh my chrono w. a/c navigators. very smooth bow and quiet. they balance good and dont tend to get the lean and out of tune like the mathews that everyone says cant come out of tune cuz there one cam and dont need to be timed. BS! if they didnt need to be timed why on earth would matt mcphearson put timing marks on the bottom cam??? anyways, i think you made ma good purchase and you should be very happy.
 
#8 ·
don taylor said:
28" draw and I shoot and hold a 60# yellowjacket longbow so I think that I could shoot it at 70# comfortably. Is there that much difference between 300 and 310 IBO? I thought the difference was going to be minimal. I don't know the arrow weight but they are Easton Axis arrows and 125 gr. f.p's and broadheads.

I wanted that matthews pretty bad. I can't blame him for changing his mind. I should have gone straight to his house when he offered. I've always been a minimalist when it comes to bow hunting, now I'm waist deep in it.
no no man, your good. you will not see any difference in 300 and 310, and like others have said. you will not be able to acheive it. think of it like the gas milege on the sticker at the dealer ship. however, there is a difference between 300 and 335. and my bow only gets about 276 fps. but im fixin to buy one that i can break 300 fps. (theres a big difference in 270 and 300 for some reason.) it doesnt sound like that much difference, but if you see the two bows shoot side by side the 270 bow looks like its lobbing arrows compared the 300. plus, you have a flatter shot.

as far as the arrows, the axis are very good arrows. you could go a little lighter but your ok where your at. you could bump broadheads down to 100 gr. and apply the blazers. that would help your weight a little. also, if theyre not precut. cut them as short as you can. the shaft doesnt need to stick out past the rest anymore than an inch. but again, its ok if theyre not.
i like to do all this stuff with compound bows. little things here and there will gain you a little speed here and a little speed there. after youve done enough youve drastically increase your bows speed - increases accuracy - increases flatness of shot - increasing KE - increases fun!
my goal is to always maximize the bows potential. but again im anal about this crap. i take it too seriously. :rofl: kind of like my duck hunting :huh:
 
#9 ·
as far as your arrows go, are they 340's 400's??? either way its better to be over spined then under spined. you can change it or "break" your spine by going a little lighter or heavier w/ you field tips/broad heads or by givin you bow a turn of gas or backin a turn out. over spined will shoot broad heads better for you however. in competition i do tend to be a little under to achieve speed in the open class. i have a 28" draw and my bowtech aligance @ 28" and 71lb's w/ easton lightspeed 500's is a 320-324 bow all day. of course on a cold string you'll get fast speeds but those are on a hot bow consistantly. that same bow w/out touching anything at all w/ an easton axis 400 fmj is a 278-282. there that much differecne just in an arrow change
 
#13 ·
they dont decrease stability. we have shot them through the hooter shooter to 60 yds w/ the biggest fixed blade broad head a man can find and there was no differance. just a speed increase of only a few feet. it helps w/ your f.o.c. if you needed an alterantive
 
#17 ·
front of center, it will be kinda hard to explain on here but basically its the balance of your arrow. you want your arrow to weigh more towards the tip to center. the closer your f.o.c. is to the tip the better stability but you suffer a faster drop. the closer to cent the balance the better trajectory you'll get but you could suffer poor stability.usually 7-10 or 11% is targeted. its not anyhting you need to be concerned w/ at this point in the game anyways. anchor and release is what you should work on for a while. arrow building is a whole other can of worms
 
#18 ·
So I pass the Pro shop on the way to the archery range to shoot the bow. I stopped because I needed a cable slide. I told him I wanted prices on some items and I had him write it down. This guy wants $15 for a cable slide. I don't know much but that seemed high. $110 for a QAD LD rest (i think that's what he wrote- illegible) and $25 to make a string $10 for a kiss /peep. But the thing that got me was when I asked him if the draw was right for me, he drew back then handed it to me and said "its fine". Is that normal? How in the hell does he know? Every question was replied with a short answer with little or no reason or clarification on why I wanted this procedure or accessory. I think I might have slept with his sister or something. This guy can't be in business because of his people skills if this is his sales approach.

I will never ever go back there.

Anyways I shot my bow. I absolutely love it. And wow what a difference in speed. When everyone is shooting recurves or older, slower bows it really is pronounced. My arrows are 400-9gpi. It took me about 15 minutes to get it lined up but when I settled in I started nailing tight groups at 20 and 30 yards. I still do not have a peep or kisser button on this bow. Is this going to give me better group placement? It seems like I repeat my shots 3 times but when I come back from retrieving my arrows I'm changing my anchor point or not lining everything up exactly like I did. All of my shots are in groups no larger than the center ring of the target but sometimes their off center. Can I attribute this to my new-ness
 
#19 ·
your off center grouping is most likley one or two things. (a) your anchoring a little in/out of center which your peep sight will take care of. youll lose about 4-8 fps depending on what peep. or it could be (b) your torquing your bow. this is the most common reson for groups left and right. install your peep and if the problems still exists then your def. torquing the grip. if the problem goes away then it was your anchor.

you mentiond some prices. some places are just way to high. they figure you need it they have it so youll either pay it or you wont. depending on peep sights you could spend 5 to 20 dollar. my peep sight was 55$....it has interchangible apitures for hunting and 3-d purposes. was the cable slide a roller or a ceramic? thgat will amke a differance in price too. i highly recomend a nap qucktune smart rest w/ a lizard toungue.
 
#20 ·
Don be careful,I know how much you love your guns.I picked up a bow 12 yrs ago and have not hunted with a rifle since.
The best advice I can give you is pick up a couple of books,Chuck Adams has a good one.Pick up a couple of Petersens Bowhunting magazines,if you can get some back issues even better,they have some very imformative articles.The easton arrow website has a great article on bow tuning,paper tuning ,ect.
If you give a bow to 5 different so called pros youll get it back set up 5 different ways gauranteed.You will geta different responce from allmost everyone you ask.
So ill give you my 2cnts
Take a look a some of the pros when they shoot,most anchor with their release in the same spot.Close your eyes,draw your bow anchor your bow prepair to shoot,open your eyes,thats where your peep should be.For me it was comfy to have the arrow vane next to my mouth.A low anchor point is better for tree stand hunters anyway.A kisser button will take away allmost 10fps off your arrow speed as will anything else you put on your string.String loops suck,most serious hunters clamp rite on to the string.This eliminates having to look down when a deer is comming in.
Why do you need a new cable slide...?
A dropaway rest is the only way to go,a nice little arrow clip on your rest will keep your arrow in place.Ive tride alot of different set ups and this by far is the best,whisker biskets suck.
I prefer feathers,blazers cant stabalize a 1 1/8 in broadhead I dont care what anyone says.feathers are faster up to about 40yrds when a plastic vane will catch it and 40yrds is the furthest shot I take.The draw back is ya gotta water proof them.Feathers are stiffer horisontilly and softer vertically witch meens they are more forgiving if your vane hits a branch.Feel free to pm me gotta go
 
#21 ·
you left out the part where feathers are 10x louder in flight then vanes and that they are a pain if its raining. and they also can mask problems you dont realize you have w/ your tuned set up. i like feathers but those are some things you should know. your opinion is string loops suck but there more accurate then clipping on the serving. also this man will be thankin you when his serving comes apart on a hunting trip because "string loops suck". you cant stabelize an 1 1/8" broad head huh??? ide go back to those paper tuning articles you were tlaking to him about reading. i shoot 1 1/16" fixed blades and have no issues. takes a little work but it IS achievable.
 
#22 ·
10x louder :huh: I dont think so,those new quick spins are the loudest.Masked problems :huh: ok.
Never had a serving come apart on me,How long does a string last anyway????Mine seem to stretch out before the serving starts to wear and thats a quality winners choice custom string.Have you ever missed an opportunity at a nice buck cuz your trying to set your release on that string loop.
How many different hunting camps have you been in..?Did ya ever see a grown man cry, Ive been in plenty and seen this happen not a good situation when you just shelled out 5k on a hunt.Same goes for moveable pin sights.Their both great for 3d but have no place in a treestand and thats a fact
1 1/16 inch fixed blade going how fast,what difference does it make any way water proofed feathers are still lighter than blazers.
Stick with your 3d young man,I put the meat in the freezer.
And BTW mathews makes some of the best bows on the market.Ive been shooting an mq32 for 7yrs now.No need to upgrade its perfect for me.
 
#23 ·
hahaha 5k for a deer hunt hhahaha no thanks. yes, feathers are louder by a long shot. prove it to yourself by standin down range near a target in safe conditions and have a buddy fire one of each. ive seen several several servings come appart. a string will outlast a serving by a long shot. i also shoot winners choice strings and i dont care. servings COME APPART. if you had a clue when your string stretches out, trhrow it in the bow press and giver her a couple twists. golly gee :huh: theres a brain buster. yes feathers will mask errors w/ the set up such as a contact issue or timing issues. i think you need to learn a little more about archery sir. and for the record an inch and a 1/16 broadhead at 280ish depending. no issues w/ broad head flight after a little work that obviously you dont have the skills know how or equipment to do. mathews DID make a good bow if you read my posts. i shot mathews for 10 years untill they started goin down the ****ter. then i switched to bowtech. i also said bowtech made ****ty bows back when i was shooting a hoyt, cuz they did but now they are the tip of the sword by far. that new drenalin from marthews isnt a horrible bow but untill they go away from the roller gaurd and a "timless" one cam" and figure out how to control there cam lean issue i aint shooting one again. besides, 7 years isnt that long my little sister who is 20 has shot longer then that hahahaand probabaly won more trophies too.

one more thing.........why would a grown man cry?? its hunting, **** happens. i think your hunting buddies from thatc amp need to grow up and not act like a 12yr old cuz he missed a deer. sounds like a rookie anyways if a string loop cost him a deer. did he pout too?
 
#24 ·
Wow you are an abrasive little fellow arent you. He gives his opinion and you flip come on man ease up. He said Quickspins not vanes and quickspins sound like riding in a jeep with the top down. Blazers are awesome but feathers are more forgiving. Yes they can mask flaws but they also can save don some time and hid some of the usual new guy form problems.

You shoot 3-d and thats the typical attitude those guys have. If you are going to shoot 3-d listen to them if not listen to the guys that are hunters not foam and trophy lovers.

Talk about him going back and reading old articles, who paper tunes anymore? You can get a very well almost perfectly tuned bow with a level and a bow vise. Also laser centershots can tune your bow in less than 2 mins.

Don I like the Trophy Taker rest but i would recommend most drop aways. Also Gold Tips, or Easton Axis arrows are nice. If your bow is tuned you should shoot most broadheads decent but just like rifles your bow will like one over the other. I like 2 blades but some people dont, I get much better penetration.

I am hoping that you just have a hard time explaining inflection in your voice over the net. If I came of harsh I apologize.
 
#25 ·
all im sayiun is this cat doesnt have enough experiance to be that jusgmental and i dont want the new bow owner to get the wrong ideas of a product because some yoyo doesnt really know just thinks they know. yes quickspins are loud but now thats a whole other can of worms. those DEF. stabilize big nasty fixed blades which is what he was sayin cant be done. yea i shoot 3d......i guess that means i dont hunt. whatever. sorry fella, hope you have good luck w. your new bow and dont believe everything your told. especially from a novice
 
#26 ·
just got my income tax/stimulus check and celebrated with a trophy ridge drop zone. Are all fall away rests like that connected to the bow in the same way? If I have to take it to a bowsmith(is that a word?) to install big deal. if its the only one and I can save the trip I will return it and get something else.

Sights. 3 pin? 5 pin? I don't like the verticle ones. They seem to be more work than I want hunting.
What do you like around $50?

Peep sight. What one?

Luminock. Cool accessory or waste of money? I may have to do a little night shooting in my garden.

How about a release? What ever fits or something else? I have one now but its old.
 
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