Help on purchasing??

[Friar Tuck]

I am just getting back into the sport and am wondering if there are any brands to stay away from and reasons for such, or alternatively if there are any I should stick to.

I am currently considering a Merlin but know very little about them and some assistance would be appreciated.

[Flehrad]

I guess it means you are shooting compound?
Since I don't know of any merlin recurves.....

Well, you'll get a nice mix of opinions here, ranging from Hoyt, Matthews, Bowtech, PSE, Martin, and goodness knows what else.

Predominately people shoot Hoyt because they are good bows, but perhaps a little pricey, but other brands shoot just as well.

Brands to stick to would be probably for reasons of customer service, availability of parts etc, but I'm not really one to say since I'm a brand loyal shooter :wink:... but as from my statement above, you can take it that I don't shoot a Hoyt. :P

[Foxy]

Hi I am also just returning to the sport after a five year break.

I have purchased a Merlin MAX 3000 and I am very happy with it so far.

It is a quality made bow, very easy to shoot and tune.

[Marcus]

If you shoot target my picks right now would be

Hoyt ProElite
Hoyt UltraElite
Hoyt Protec
Hoyt Ultratec
Hoyt Xtec
Mathews Ovation
Mathews Legacy
Bowtech Pro40 Freedom
Bowtech Patriot Dually
Bowtech Pro40 Dually
PSE Primos STL
PSE Scorpion

There are of course others, but these are my personal pick of the bunch (in no order). As you can see there is a great variety out there.
Check out www.urbanarchery.com for more details on these and other bows

[Eberbachl]

Friar Tuck,

What type of archery are you getting into? Target, Indoor, 3D?

[Friar Tuck]

3-D at this stage - The club is right around the corner from me so is rather convenient.

[Eberbachl]

For a sweet 3D shooter, check out the Bowtech Patriot VFT dually :wink:

I got may hands on one a few weeks ago, and I'm still blown away by it :D

Fast, but still has a nice long brace height, so it's forgiving as well :D

Also, I'd check out the Hoyt UltraTec or UltraElite with Spiral cams - they make a lovely 3D bow also :wink: