Anytime your arrow is pointing uphill or downhill. If in a tree stand, it matters. If on level ground, and shooting a long enough distance, that the arrow is pointing uphill to reach distance, 3rd axis matters. If you have a downhill shot, then, it matters. Shooting in hilly country, it matters. If your riser has ANY twist at full draw, even if shooting a level shot, 3rd axis adjustability matters.

 

What he said and the farther away the target the more it matters.

 

To answer your question, no you don't even NEED sights at all to hunt or kill elk anywhere.

My question is why would you limit your sight choice to one without 3rd axis? It's not required but is one more thing to help you make that shot as accurate as possible.

 

There's a big price jump between basic sights (be it five pin, single pin movers, etc.) and sights with 3rd axis. I feel like if I'm gonna pay 200+ for a third axis adjustable sight I may end up just getting a really nice Spot Hogg or something since I'd already be in that price range. But if a basic five pin is sufficient, I'd be fine with that.

I just don't imagine every hunter or even most hunters are walking around with $200+ sight so I just wonder how important it is for situations I'm likely to actually encounter.

 

Yes, it can make a difference.

But I have a basic trusty truglo 5 pin on my old bow, and a new adjustable 5 pin black gold ascent on my new bow. And as far as shooting out to 60 I personally can’t tell the difference. I got an adjustable so I could mess around and shoot longer distance if I so choose, but 60 is my limit on animals. So I like having the five pin so I don’t have to mess around with my sight or guess in the heat of the moment.

To answer your question I trust and like my standard five pin and sometimes question my own personal need of my adjustable sight with the 3rd axis.

 

To be honest if you don't set it up correctly you are going to be worse off with a third axis adjustment. We hunted for years and did just fine without it. On animals that move you probably wont be able to tell a difference but on a stationary target when fractions matter it would certainly help when making downward or upward angle shots.

 

Maybe my head had been in the sand for the last 43 years. I’ve killed a lot of big game with archery equipment, and never heard of third axis sights until the last couple years. I’m open to new things, if they legitimately make a significant difference.

 

I agree. I've killed deer from tree stands, shooting up onto ridges and all sorts of varied angles for 30 years and never heard about 3rd axis until several years ago. I have no doubt that tinkerers and super tuners find some benefit to it, but for a lowly 30-and-in bowhunter like me, I'm not worrying about it.

 

3rd axis or not, I wouldn’t skimp on a piece of equipment like a BOW SIGHT to save less than couple hundred dollars when your traveling who knows how far to go on a hunt your planning about a year in advance of. This would not be my pick of places to save money. There are other places to save.

Just my .02

 

Hunting area is pretty near where I live. Just a little drive. It's more about the fact that I'll probably buy a nice sight within the next couple years once I have more experience and a better idea what I actually want out of a top of the line sight. I don't want to buy some fancy monster sight right now and then realize "oh **** I really would have preferred three pins" or something like that.

 

Buy a cheap truglo sight and see if it works for you. You might be totally satisfied. If you want to do competition shooting you will eventually get a sight that can be adjusted in all axis to help you shoot more accurately.

 

You can put on a cheap sight and check it.......the third axis might be fine. You can also shim your sight to make it work as well.

 

Go cheap, I bet you won’t be disappointed. Just make sure it’s quality and has a sturdy housing and pins.

 

Someone please correct me if I am wrong, but I thought 3rd axis only mattered if you looked at the level on your sight?
I have never looked at the level on my sight and have never had a problem with up-hill/down-hill shots.

 

40= years of bow hunting and I never heard of 3rd axis until I got on this site.

my current sight as a bubble, I may look at it when I have not shoot in a while if I am shooting to the left an inch or 2 at 60 yards

 

Good info. Thanks.