My long fight with Archery...

[Gamikatsu]

Well, this is long winded... i apologize ahead of time...


the last month, has been kind of a kicker for me. Around July 15th, as many of you probably read, i purchased brand new from basspro, a Redhead Kronik XT (Read Diamond by bowtech). the bow, initially shot pretty good. it was set up at 70 lbs, 29 inch draw. However, as i started to shoot it more and more, i started to have small issues. the Peep sight started creeping up on me, causing grouping issues. re served it myself, using Power Pro fishing line, and some instructions i found online, which all in all... seemed to work fine. THEN i noticed i was watching strange arrow flight. from corkscrewing arrows, to fishtailing left and right, up and down, etc. i could not for the life of me figure it out. I took it back to basspro for the first time, and had the guy there, go through it. he said he didn't know how i was hitting a target at 20 yards with it. Well, he made a lot of adjustments, MAINLY to the rest. he said it was "visibly" adjusted off 1/4 an inch or so to one direction. ok cool. take it home, shooting perfect. on my way home, i stopped at acadamy sports and picked up a box of arrows, Beeman ICS hunter 340 spine as i had understood and read, that i was incorrectly spined @ 400 spine. shooting great! 2 days later, go to shoot... Miss target by 3 feet. Completely flubbed. Once i found my arrow (which took a minute BTW), i moved into 5 foot or so, and was shooting almost a full 10 inches left... look at rest, its adjusted out again. Following the instructions of the basspro guy, i line it back up. start shooting again, and can't get it to group to save my life. Take it BACK up there... another guy, sets it back up... gets it shooting "Decent" Pie plate at 20 yds... not happy at all. Take it home, and I am still getting erratic arrow flight. well i have tried and tried and tried. Can't get it to do anything. was contimplating taking it back completly and returning it. Finally on a Whim, i figure, why not PAY someone to set it up. Take it over to Chucks Gun and Pawn in Warner Robins. He diagnosed it over the phone... Said the rest was Somehow messed up. Claimed he has seen the Hostage rest give more problems than anything. so i go in. we put on a QAD Ultrarest Drop away. he cuts the original D loop off, puts a Leveling arrow on, re sets it up, adjusts everything. First arrow through it, Dead center of bullseye. second arrow, hits first arrow. shoots it through paper, just to prove a point. Absolutely PERFECT bullet hole with three tears. He did sell me on a half dozen Gold Tip Expedition Hunter 5575 Carbon arrows, (400 spine cut to 27 inches length) so i was out all in all, about 140 dollars, oh yeah i bought a pack of broadheads so.... I get it home, shooting it, quite amazing. thread on a muzzy 100 grain 3 blade with practice blades. dead center of bullzeye. Rage Hypodermic (new shiny toys) practice head, is nestled right in the middle of field points. I am extremely pleased, and i hope it keeps shooting well!

I know this post is really long winded, i just wanted to make sure i got all the information accross. Sometimes, a "pro-shop" isn't very pro... Just my experiences i guess.

 

[bigblocktransam]

There is nothing pro about bass pro.. It's a big box retailer.

 

[mattech]

Same thing happened to me, I bought a diamond bow at bass pro about 5 years ago. It came with a hostage rest, I think I made about 4-5 trips to bass pro, never could get good arrow flight, although I kept getting told it was fine. I eventually took it to 12point and Steve spent a couple hours making adjustments, and talked me into upgrading to a QAD. Ever since then I decided to not use Bass pro any more.

 

[Tank1202]

Cool, I hope it stays true for you.

 

[the_great_white]

yea, i don't shop at Cash Pro Shop anymore either.....they used to be better before they moved into the mall in my opinion........

 

[the_great_white]

glad you were able to get it working right for you though!

 

[M80]

Ain't nothing like having confidence in your equipment. I'm glad you got it going before you kill ol nanny goat or booner

 

[BowanaLee]

It wouldn't hurt to learn to do a few things for yourself. It'll pay off big time in the future. Adjusting rests, tying peeps, servings, and D loops ain't that hard. Even timing adjustments and turning the string to align the peep is relatively easy. If an brain dead old geezer like me can do it ..well, you get the idea.

 

[sothunfried]

don't let bp set up your bow take it to someone who knows what their doing.
thats why i go to Dale at foxhole

 

[Grey Man]

don't let bp set up your bow take it to someone who knows what their doing.
thats why i go to Dale at foxhole

Me too.

 

[watermedic]

I think that you are confused.

Bass Pro has an archery department. Not a Pro Shop. Major difference between the two.

That is why they do not sell the Pro series bows. They sell mainline sister lines. ex. Diamond but not Bowtech, Mainline PSE but not the DNA or Omen.

 

[660griz]

It wouldn't hurt to learn to do a few things for yourself.

Totally agree. You don't have to work on it but, being able to take it to someone that has a press, even Bass Pro, and tell them what you want done, will save you time and money. Knowing the symptoms of a bad rest adjustment, sights, nock, etc., is not that hard.

Kind of like taking a car to a mechanic and tell them something aint right...fix it. You could get reamed. Less chance if you know what is wrong and just need someone with the time and tools to do it. Change the head gasket please.

 

[Gamikatsu]

Thanks everyone. well this is my third year into archery. i was a crossbow guy for two years, and sold that. I like the vertical bow much better. I "thought" i was making the adjustments, but aparently i just didn't know what i was doing. i am learning, just slowly. What i'm reading and doing, etc seemed like it was helping, but just not enough. when he changed out the Rest, it was night and day... Instantly solved all my problems. i'm a very happy guy.

 

[GADawg08]

like yourself Gamikatsu, I'm kind of a do-it-yourself guy too...Ive been bow huntin for about 10 years now and Im comfortable tying d- loops, serving in peeps and putting on sights, rests and other accessories...but as far as fine tuning, I'd rather leave it to the "pros," and not bass pro....will save a lot of time and headache

 

[alligood729]

I think that you are confused.

Bass Pro has an archery department. Not a Pro Shop. Major difference between the two.

That is why they do not sell the Pro series bows. They sell mainline sister lines. ex. Diamond but not Bowtech, Mainline PSE but not the DNA or Omen.

I agree with Chuck. I know BPro gets hit a lot about setups and stuff, but until you have spent a day there, dealing with the sheer number of folks that come through, you have no idea what they go through. I realize there is bad advice given sometimes, but just think about it for a second...The weekends are rough, especially the weekends during the Fall Classic thing. In addition to selling bows, they are also dealing with folks wanting arrows, targets, cases, releases, asking questions about strings, broadheads.......it's like kicking over a fire ant hill.....I worked the BPro in Atlanta a couple of weeks ago for PSE, with Chris and Delila. The same weekend that the Blast and Buckarama were going on. Wall to wall people....Unless you catch them on a slow day, there is absolutely no way to spend the time necessary to set up a bow correctly. All they can do is get it close, and suggest that you take it to a shop for some tweaking, unless you know how to do it yourself. There are some good techs at the Lawrenceville store, I'm sure there are at others. I know that I suggested that very thing to several guys that I set up that day. The number of beginners that go there to buy their first bow is unreal. If the techs do what they can, and then suggest a visit to a pro shop, just my opinion, but they have done about all they can do. Unless of course, like I said, you catch them on a slow day, and they have the time to work with you. Good luck with that! Like Chuck said....huge difference between an archery shop, and a pro shop......
Gamikatsu, glad you got your problem figured out! Good luck this year!

 

[Jake Allen]

Welcome to the addiction, and I am glad your rig is shooting like you want.

There is some good advice on here about learning your equipment, and how to adjust, tweak, check and tune things yourself.
Even back in the day when I was shooting a compound, I could repair, set up and tune everything on my Bowtech that could be done without a press.
To me, it is part of the journey, and enjoyment. Plus, you never know when you may be headed in the woods on a Saturday evening, or Sunday morning, and something has to be repaired.

BTW, Those 5575's, even cut to 27", might be on the weak side for your set up. I have shot the same arrow many times through a 50# Longbow, that was not cut to center.
They are a relatively light arrow: about a .430 spine, when checked on a 28" span using a 2# weight.

 

[Guerin]

Gamikatsu,

Technical Bowhunting by Joe Bell is a great reference. Has extensive info on bow setup, correct arrow spine, form, etc...you get the idea.

Also, a good purchase I made was one of those portable bow presses. Very handy. $30-40.

 

[Gamikatsu]

well, i know the arrows are RIGHT on the border. (i'm set at 64/65 lbs. the bow has a very gentle cam, so the guy at the shop thought it would be fine as long as i didn't intend on going UP in weight. according to gold tips website i'm right on the top end of hte range, 28 inch arrow should be a 340 spine. i figure this is just that extra insurance i need to "keep" me at 65 lbs or so, to not tear up my shoulder. they shoot great, group great and i have no complaints (until one splinters on me upon shooting of course). I hope i have no problems.