Help with getting setup with a Bow

[Sparkey]

Any suggestions for a shop in Worcester central mass area that can get me setup with a bow ?
I am looking to get in to archery hunting. I am a seasoned deer hunter shotgun, rifle, muzzleloader but want to get into archery game.
I know of Archery plus in Spencer any good ?
I am a total newbie also a lefty 6’3”
Any help is appreciate on what I need don’t need pitfalls to avoid.
Hoping to get setup soon so I can practice all year to get ready.
Thanks

 

[Matt_SERE]

This may help:
Similar thread: Archery Shop near 495 and 90
Web page: Jerry's Bait & Tackle | Fishing | Archery | Indoor Range

Good luck.
Matt

 

[SW40C]

I'll put my vote in for Jerry's, he's done work to my bow the last two seasons and does top notch work for reasonable prices.

 

[Mark from MA]

May be a little out of the way but you'll save sales tax. Pelletiers in Jaffery,NH has all big three brands of bows. (Bowtech, Mathews, Hoyt, and PSE) They also have a very patient staff that will work with you and let you shoot them all. Being lefty you'll be somewhat limited, but they are great guys. I've been around archery for 25 years and these guys do the best job setting and tuning that I know of. I used to set up my own, now I just bring it to them and its perfect.

Archery Plus is not where I'd go if I were a beginner......not the most patience and customer service is limited, and he only carries a brand or two of bows.

 

[HorizontalHunter]

Lot s of good advice. You will be best off with a good local shop that will spend some time with you to set you up properly AND get a few lessons to get you started out right. No sense learning bad habits out of the gate.

As a general rule you would be wise to stay away from the big box stores.

Bob

 

[Sparkey]

Definitely going to take a few lessons.

 

[ccm75]

Bob's in Webster.
He can set you up. Shooting lane in shop, tuning and all the kit.

 

[Sparkey]

Thanks I forgot all about Bob’s

 

[EMTDAD]

I'm lefty, about 6', and a beginner.. I didn't have much $$$ to spend, so I was patient enough to find something used on CL... got an older compound Browning Rage in very good shape, with case, sight, trigger & arrows for under $150. Got it inspected for safety, and fitted for my length and draw weight and I was good to go..

Then looked for my 13yo 5'6" son.. also lefty.. found a Bowtech Tomcat... again.. with case, sight, trigger & arrows & broadheads... again under $150 for all.. a bit too much weight for him at this time, but in short time he'll be able to draw it back..

what I found is that hunters age out, and move to crossbows to ease shoulder worries.. or don't have the time anymore.. sell their stuff..

If you got the $$$ sure. go new, get the latest tech.. I didn't have $500 for even a new cheap setup so I went used. Good luck.

 

[Mark from MA]

I'm lefty, about 6', and a beginner.. I didn't have much $$$ to spend, so I was patient enough to find something used on CL... got an older compound Browning Rage in very good shape, with case, sight, trigger & arrows for under $150. Got it inspected for safety, and fitted for my length and draw weight and I was good to go..


what I found is that hunters age out, and move to crossbows to ease shoulder worries.. or don't have the time anymore.. sell their stuff..

If you got the $$$ sure. go new, get the latest tech.. I didn't have $500 for even a new cheap setup so I went used. Good luck.

Some guys get a new bow every year or every few years. There are always goood used bows on the rack. However. Anything over 10 years, your really losing out on new technology advancements. Older bows more than 6-7 years old are really worth crap unless you find a sucker to buy them.
Much like skiis.

There is a huge markup on archery bows at the top end level. Its not like guns where the mark up is like 100 bucks or less. Top end bows mark up is 400 or more.

What I do is look for last years model and buy the closeout. Bows that are 1k brand new the prices drop 25-40 percent if any closeouts are left. For instance I bought my Bowtech Reign for $600 this January when the new model came out. I traded my bowtech btx that I bought the same way the year before. But the shop didnt know that and gave me 500 for it. Thats A new bow for less than a string change.

Also for the seasoned archer who know what they need archerytalk has a lot of good deals on used.

 

[metalcowboy]

+1 for Pelletier's in Jaffrey

I bought my first bow there a few years ago. The customer service was really great. I had never shot a "real" bow prior to stopping in. They spent a good couple hours with me, letting me try a number of different bows and helping me get set up. It was honestly, one of the best purchasing experiences I've ever had for anything. The shop is well over an hour from where I live, and although there are plenty of other shops closer, I still go back to Pelletier's at the end of every summer to get my bow tuned before the season (which is actually 2 trips... 1 to drop off, 1 to pick up a few days later), because I know they'll do things right.

Good luck!

 

[EMTDAD]

Some guys get a new bow every year or every few years. There are always goood used bows on the rack. However. Anything over 10 years, your really losing out on new technology advancements. Older bows more than 6-7 years old are really worth crap unless you find a sucker to buy them.
Much like skiis.

There is a huge markup on archery bows at the top end level. Its not like guns where the mark up is like 100 bucks or less. Top end bows mark up is 400 or more.

What I do is look for last years model and buy the closeout. Bows that are 1k brand new the prices drop 25-40 percent if any closeouts are left. For instance I bought my Bowtech Reign for $600 this January when the new model came out. I traded my bowtech btx that I bought the same way the year before. But the shop didnt know that and gave me 500 for it. Thats A new bow for less than a string change.

Also for the seasoned archer who know what they need archerytalk has a lot of good deals on used.

I actually got 1 setup for $100 and 1 for $125. I said $150 to be conservative. The way I look at it, was that a case, arrows, & trigger alone were worth more than what I paid. I couldn't afford spending $550 for a completely new entry-level package. If I had the $$ sure.. I would've dropped the $550 in a heartbeat.

 

[Fixxah]

Some guys get a new bow every year or every few years. There are always goood used bows on the rack. However. Anything over 10 years, your really losing out on new technology advancements. Older bows more than 6-7 years old are really worth crap unless you find a sucker to buy them.
Much like skiis.

There is a huge markup on archery bows at the top end level. Its not like guns where the mark up is like 100 bucks or less. Top end bows mark up is 400 or more.

What I do is look for last years model and buy the closeout. Bows that are 1k brand new the prices drop 25-40 percent if any closeouts are left. For instance I bought my Bowtech Reign for $600 this January when the new model came out. I traded my bowtech btx that I bought the same way the year before. But the shop didnt know that and gave me 500 for it. Thats A new bow for less than a string change.

Also for the seasoned archer who know what they need archerytalk has a lot of good deals on used.

I would bet I can take my old bow and break arrows like I did 20 years ago. My old club and archery shop had many of my Robin Hooded arrows hanging but I took them back because I got tired of buying more arrows.

New tech doesn't make up for technique and practice.

 

[Rockrivr1]

Is there a place that does beginner classes? I bought a used bow last year and following some youtube videos I set her up and headed to the range with 12 arrows. What I realized quick is I suck at it, my zero was way off and I came home with only 3 arrows. As as kid we had small recurves and shot decent with them all the time. Went with a compound for this bow and I couldn't hit a barn if it was 5 ft in front me.

 

[Mark from MA]

Is there a place that does beginner classes? I bought a used bow last year and following some youtube videos I set her up and headed to the range with 12 arrows. What I realized quick is I suck at it, my zero was way off and I came home with only 3 arrows. As as kid we had small recurves and shot decent with them all the time. Went with a compound for this bow and I couldn't hit a barn if it was 5 ft in front me.

You really shouldn't buy a used bow if your a beginner...as you probably don't even know if it fits you right, if you have the right arrows, etc. But it only begins from there.....

Archery plus does have a range where you won't lose your arrows. If your interested i could help you out. You should be able to stack arrows at 20 yards with a compound and a little help.

 

[Mark from MA]

I would bet I can take my old bow and break arrows like I did 20 years ago. My old club and archery shop had many of my Robin Hooded arrows hanging but I took them back because I got tired of buying more arrows.

New tech doesn't make up for technique and practice.

No...it doesn't But the new bows have lots of tech to make them quieter, lighter, more adjustable for draw, faster, less handshock, and flatter shooting than they did 20 years ago. Shooting an oldie and shooting these new bows is like night and day. But I know guys that can stack arrows with the old round wheel, 50% letoff, bow.....there's nothing wrong with it. I shot recurves for years before I even picked up a compound bow, and that was when recurves were unwanted on the outs, and selling for 10 dollars at the yard sales like a used DVD.

 

[xcrracer6]

Archery plus is good, has a nice indoor range i shoot spot league there