Thinking about first bow

[StGeorge]

Hi all.

I've been using the club equipment for a couple of months now and am starting to think about getting my own bow. I'll speak to the coach about it tomorrow but thought I may get some ideas from you guys first.

I've had a good look at Merlin's website and have come up with a (very approximate) budget of £350-400 for riser, limbs and sight. If this is way off please don't hesitate to ridicule me!

The specific items I was looking at were: Hoyt Eclipse riser (£130), Hoyt Stratix limbs (£140) and Shibuya Dual Click Standard sight (£100).

I suppose my main questions are: is this equipment is OK for a beginner archer, and is Merlin's a reasonable place to get it all from?

All comments welcome.

[fazer]

Originally Posted by StGeorge

Hi all.

I've been using the club equipment for a couple of months now and am starting to think about getting my own bow. I'll speak to the coach about it tomorrow but thought I may get some ideas from you guys first.

I've had a good look at Merlin's website and have come up with a (very approximate) budget of £350-400 for riser, limbs and sight. If this is way off please don't hesitate to ridicule me!

The specific items I was looking at were: Hoyt Eclipse riser (£130), Hoyt Stratix limbs (£140) and Shibuya Dual Click Standard sight (£100).

I suppose my main questions are: is this equipment is OK for a beginner archer, and is Merlin's a reasonable place to get it all from?

All comments welcome.

yes but get cheap limbs for now as you may up in poundage also you could try bowsports or archeryworld

[pHz]

first of all - make sure you DO speak to a coach / experienced archer at your club before listening to any of us

as far as i can see your choice of gear seems pretty good as a first setup (although i dont know much about the limbs to be honest) - the eclipse is as good a riser as any in its price range (my wife shoots one so i have tried it) and the shibuya sight is a proven piece of kit - both riser and sight will last you a few sets of upgraded limbs i reckon

going to merlin is a good move IMHO - youll get TOP advice and attention but try to go 'off-peak' so you get more time with the guys there than if they were busy

a couple of other things spring to mind -

1 - dont go with too fixed an idea of what you want - ask the experts and try out as much as you can within your budget - you might find something like the winstar2 or SF riser feels better to you than the eclipse (personally i find the eclipse a little harsh feeling for me)

2 - make sure you think about arrows in your budget too - XX75s or X7s are cheap enough and will be OK for a first kit but still need to be paid for

hope that helps (only 18 months or so since i went through the whole process myself)

slainte rob

[Barrythebow]

I can vouch for Merlin, too. Very helpful staff. Like previous poster says, dont spend a fortune to start off, upgrades are inevitable.

[Little Miss Purple]

You might also want to look at a package deal if you want everything (finger tab, case, finger sling, bow, arrows, sight). I can't remember the actual price at aard's!!

Your coach will have a good idea of what you need and may recommend a dealer

[Yorker]

Custom Built do packages.

As for your setup: go for KAP challenger limbs, not fancy Hoyt ones yet, most likely a year down the line you will be wanting to draw heavier. Once you are at the weight you want to stick at that is when you buy serious limbs.

Sight, can't go wrong with it.

[Rishathra]

Having recently returned to Archery after 14 years, I headed for Perris with a fixed budget (I was lucky as I had more)
I e mailed them first with six risers that I'd like to try out. The basis of the six were budget and looks. I then spent ALL DAY with a patient Derek who helped me by setting up all six with the same limbs for the correct poundage etc. In truth my heart was set on the Inno but when shooting at their shop the Hoyt Nexus felt much better for me, so have a few bows in mind and leave plenty of time to try them out if you can. I really regret the day I sold my Yamaha and took up golf
I then went back and bought a compound for field shooting

Good luck with your choices and make a day of it

[StGeorge]

Point taken about the limbs, I'm sure my draw weight will increase over the next few months.

Is it imperative to try the kit before I buy it? The reason I ask is that I am in the depths of the Westcountry and I think the nearest archery shop is Quicks in Honiton, about 50 miles away.

I can make the trip easily enough but am happy enough to rely on good advice unless it really is a no-no to buy kit without holding it first.

Thanks for all the advice, much appreciated.

[madbirdwomen]

It always best if you can to try the the riser and limbs first , they may look great and everyone has one but is not suitable for you just doesn't feel right.

I had my heart on getting a nexus basically because it looked good and had good write ups - till i tried my cousin's and i,m glad i did just didnt feel right in my hand so i saved £255. Now got the Inno which i love. So trying before you buy definately pays off.

As previously mentioned Aardvark and custom built do some go package deals from the winstar 2, eclipse up to the nexus and inno. Suggest you take a look at these + you get a basic sight , case , tab ,stabilsers etc. Things that you can upgrade later as your archery progresses.

Good luck on your hunt for your 1st bow.

[cornish george]

Originally Posted by StGeorge

Point taken about the limbs, I'm sure my draw weight will increase over the next few months.

Is it imperative to try the kit before I buy it? The reason I ask is that I am in the depths of the Westcountry and I think the nearest archery shop is Quicks in Honiton, about 50 miles away.

I can make the trip easily enough but am happy enough to rely on good advice unless it really is a no-no to buy kit without holding it first.

Thanks for all the advice, much appreciated.

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