Question for hunters....

Lisa1971
Lisa1971 Posts: 3,069 Member
in Chit-Chat
I want to get my husband a new bow for Christmas and I have NO idea what to get. My brother just got a new Mathews zxt and my husband loves it. How much do they cost? My brother said I should get it "naked" and have it sized to my husband. How much do bows cost and is there a reputable store or site that sells them? What about everything that comes with them?

Like I said I no nothing about bows or hunting! Any help would be greatly appreciated! Also, any other hunting things or equipment you can suggest and/or recommend? My husband is a big time hunter!

Thanks so much!
Lisa

Replies

  • Tiernan1212
    Tiernan1212 Posts: 797 Member
    I'm in the same boat, sort of. My boyfriend is a bow and a gun hunter, and I know nothing haha. I'll see if he can give me any info when I see him tonight and I'll let you know!
  • ansonrinesmith
    ansonrinesmith Posts: 741 Member
    Probably about $400. I would get a gift certificate to a local Pro shop, and let him go pick it out and get the right size and pull.
  • patrickblo13
    patrickblo13 Posts: 831 Member
    Probably about $400. I would get a gift certificate to a local Pro shop, and let him go pick it out and get the right size and pull.

    This, not knowing enough about them or what he likes let him pick it himself
  • FerretBuellerr
    FerretBuellerr Posts: 468 Member
    Probably about $400. I would get a gift certificate to a local Pro shop, and let him go pick it out and get the right size and pull.

    Good call. There are so many options, depending on your style (compound versus recurve, and then the quality/brand of each will make the price differ). I've seen some really really nice bows that are over $1000 but absolutely gorgeous, and the price seems to range between $300 - $1000 + depending on what you're looking at (PS. that Mathews zxt will most likely be on the pricy side :ohwell: ). It's really personal on what may fit him, so only he can truly be the one to choose what will work best for him. My boyfriend bought me my first bow last Christmas and we just went together to purchase it so we could try and find what worked best for me being a newb and a lefty - mine cost about $300 undressed, but I've probably spent another $300 at LEAST in the past year for arrows, arrowheads, sights, peepsights and a new bowstring.

    Also, oh boy, that Mathews zxt is dead sexy :love: I just have a traditional recurve but am using it more for fun at the moment that for serious hunting. Compounds like the Mathews zxt from my understanding are better to hunt with due to having a greater pull, but you can run into issues with the gears down the line. But like I've mentioned, I'm not a hunter....yet :wink: so I don't know much!
  • FitWarrior7
    FitWarrior7 Posts: 332 Member
    Hoyt makes some great compound bows. Check out Cabela's online store, great selection.
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,950 Member
    I want to get my husband a new bow for Christmas and I have NO idea what to get. My brother just got a new Mathews zxt and my husband loves it. How much do they cost? My brother said I should get it "naked" and have it sized to my husband. How much do bows cost and is there a reputable store or site that sells them? What about everything that comes with them?

    Like I said I no nothing about bows or hunting! Any help would be greatly appreciated! Also, any other hunting things or equipment you can suggest and/or recommend? My husband is a big time hunter!

    Thanks so much!
    Lisa

    So it appears as if the Matthews ZXT is an old model, only place I can find carrying it online is ebay, and it's about $800 there. What I would do is take your husband to an archery shop, or barring that a decent place like Cabela's or Bass Pro. (For all the kitsch, it is quite sufficient for your needs.) Take him there and get a fitted bow. Bows have a specific draw length unique to the person, and yes, buy it naked, or buy a kit you like. You can get into a basic hunting bow that will last a long time for about $350 at my local Cabela's. It will get him out there and killing food. I've also held some bows that were in the $2k range when the bow and accessories were figured.

    Just like with anything, there is a broad spectrum between sufficient, and luxe. Long story short, take him to buy it, make it an "experience."
  • shutyourpieholeandsquat
    shutyourpieholeandsquat Posts: 1,394 Member
    IN.. to find a guy that hunts :smooched:
  • a_lynn_white
    a_lynn_white Posts: 33 Member
    I agree.....get a gift card for him then take him into a pro shop. A good bow will be pricey ( I have a Hoyt and love it!) but it needs to be custom fitted to him. It's just easier to do all that at one time. Good luck!
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,950 Member
    IN.. to find a guy that hunts :smooched:

    What's funny was that my wife wasn't all that into it. Until I brought home some fresh ducks. :D
  • GorillaNJ
    GorillaNJ Posts: 4,024 Member
    Send him to the bow shop either with a Credit Card or a gift card and let him find what he likes best.

    Especially a bow is something he will spend a lot of time mastering, and using it all the time. Only he can pick what is just right for him
  • mulsas
    mulsas Posts: 26 Member
    Alot of the good Mathews bows are going to be north of $500. Where did your brother get his? If you go on the websites of the major bow makers (mathews, hoyt, pse), you can look up who carries them. Then take him to a real bow shop, not Gander or ****s. They will have a huge selection, all the extras, and people who really know their stuff.
  • MaeRenee94
    MaeRenee94 Posts: 175
    If you want to go all out I'd get him a Sitka pull over and thin cloves along with a gift card so he can pick it out him self. People are very particular about their bows.
    For the Sitka gear buy him either a thick one or a thin one just depending on if he hunts early or late season.
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,950 Member
    Plus, it's the ultimate in Alice Waters-esque locavore, organics.
  • alywei37
    alywei37 Posts: 45
    I hunt for nearly all the meat i eat (well, 3/4). I know that i am killing an animal for a purpose after it having led a natural life. I have worked on farms and butcher shops and the like. If you think the grocery store meat you eat is something other than a carcass stuffed throughout a lifetime with enough crap, chemicals, and the same **** that we are eating from other grocery store products (coughgmochough) to make it look tasty...youre wrongo bongo.

    It is a whole lifetime of torture and a vicious cycle. Not to mention large farming is extremely unnatural.

    Side note, since when are hunters who kill their own meat considered tree huggers??? I get redneck often , but hippie is a new one.
  • mheebner
    mheebner Posts: 285 Member
    Agree with suggestions for a gift card to a bow shop. Most also carry a lot of the latest and greatest weather-proof scent-lok clothing as well so make sure the gift card or certificate is enough for him to get a new bow, and maybe some new cameo clothes, or new arrows with nice broadheads for them. I would be pretty damn happy with a gift like that for sure !!
  • Lisa1971
    Lisa1971 Posts: 3,069 Member
    Thanks so much everyone! I think he'll be taking a trip to Cabela's in the near future!:laugh:
  • ScottyNoHotty
    ScottyNoHotty Posts: 1,957 Member
    BTW, I bet you didn't know that most states allow hunting to thin out the wild animals, especially deer, be cause they cause car wrecks.
  • djeffreys10
    djeffreys10 Posts: 2,312 Member
    A new flagship model from one of the big 3 (Matthews, Hoyt, Bowtech) is going to run you about a grand. And his draw length will have to be measured to make sure he gets the correct fit. Than all the accessories that go with it add a lot. I got my Matthews Switchback XT when that was the premier model back in 2007. Back then, the bow alone was $700. But by the time I purchased everything, it was around $1200 total.

    Of course, it didn't go cheap on anything. If I was going to get a top of the line bow, I figured I might as well get top of the line accessories.
  • shutyourpieholeandsquat
    shutyourpieholeandsquat Posts: 1,394 Member
    IN.. to find a guy that hunts :smooched:

    What's funny was that my wife wasn't all that into it. Until I brought home some fresh ducks. :D

    Well I have a degree in Wildlife Biology and I'm from Arkansas so it's pretty much standard issue for me to like country boys :laugh:
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,950 Member
    Side note, since when are hunters who kill their own meat considered tree huggers??? I get redneck often , but hippie is a new one.

    One of the reasons I hunt is due to my love of nature and my tree hugginess. My dad before me was a hunter, and his tree hugginess was what made him a smoke jumper.

    Hunters are THE environmentalists in our nation, with just about every purchase we make we put money to keeping wild lands safe, secure and open for all, even those that hate what we do.
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,950 Member
    IN.. to find a guy that hunts :smooched:

    What's funny was that my wife wasn't all that into it. Until I brought home some fresh ducks. :D

    Well I have a degree in Wildlife Biology and I'm from Arkansas so it's pretty much standard issue for me to like country boys :laugh:

    Heh, sounds like it. My wife is in cell bio from San Francisco. You figure out the rest. ;) hahaha.
  • alywei37
    alywei37 Posts: 45
    Side note, since when are hunters who kill their own meat considered tree huggers??? I get redneck often , but hippie is a new one.

    One of the reasons I hunt is due to my love of nature and my tree hugginess. My dad before me was a hunter, and his tree hugginess was what made him a smoke jumper.

    Hunters are THE environmentalists in our nation, with just about every purchase we make we put money to keeping wild lands safe, secure and open for all, even those that hate what we do.

    I agree i love animals and nature and being able to enjoy both, but i am a predator lol.
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,950 Member
    We're all predators, some of us embrace it like we should, and others utilize proxies. However, we're all killers.


    Life, man.
  • Mitzki5
    Mitzki5 Posts: 482 Member
    It has to be fitted to him. Improper size or draw strength is a bad thing.

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