Darton is what I chose after shooting 6 different brands.

Bisch

 

The funny thing is Mathews would probably be the closest thing to a small business as they're still owned by Matt McPherson the original owner.

Almost everyone else is owned by some larger company.

Xpedition maybe, I'm not sure who owns them.

Truth Archery, but they may be in some legal trouble soon and also Kevin Strother doesn't have the best track record for staying with companies.

Darton is probably the next closes it was recently bought buy Randy Kitts but he owns multiple companies.

 

Funny you you guys say darton, the guy that used to sell obsession close to us apparently had a disagreement with them and now added darton. It's about an hour and a half drive but maybe we will ride over and check them out. Thanks a bunch

 

Btw, I really like my Mathews 29.5. it's the first Mathews I've personally owned. Tried to get bothy brother in laws to by them because I knew I'd be the one setting them up and tuning them. One bit and the other just wants to be different

 

Bear flagship bows are another great option. Most won't even give them a chance. I own 6 different brands and prefer Bear flagships over most other 70# bows. Quiet, quick, aims well, and a breeze to be accurate with and tune broadheads. Very durable bows to boot.

 

Which one are you shooting? The Persist? Or something else? I have an old bear RTH package and am looking to upgrade and just can't stomach the prices of Mathews (used), but the bear stuff never seems to pop up on the classified section here.

Not looking to buy yours or anything, just looking to see how long you've shot it and how it's holding up?

As for OP's question, I think the best advice is just go and shoot and pick what feels good.

 

Can you guys suggest another bow company other than hoyt or Matthews. He really don't want to be like the other 90 percent of guys in the are.

That's not too smart IMO. Bows aren't like clothes and your pick them to be in style or make a point. You should tell him to drop the names completely.............then pick what he shoots best. I'd hate to pass on a bow I shoot better because of what "others" think. Heck as a matter of fact I am doing that right now............I'm shooting the bow I liked best even though I might appear as a fanboy to others.

 

For a broad answer, if both Mathews & Hoyt are not an option, I personally would lean towards Elite and Darton.

 

No brand loyalty…but not Mathews Hoyt. 🤪

Every bow manufacture has great bows or they wouldn’t be around.

You don’t need the internet to tell you what you like. Beautiful thing about archery is that you can actually test drive just about everything before you buy it.

 

Have been shooting Elite since 2014. Started out with the E35, and now shoot the Enkore for hunting and Remedy as a primary 3D bow.

 

If he wants to get into archery, why does he care about brand and not feel of the bow? When I bought my bow, I knew I wanted a Mathews, but I still tried Hoyt and PSE. I gave them a real chance as feel and comfort is more important than brand. It needs to feel right in my hands, the happiness over brand comes later. What's he going to shoot better, the bow that feels good in the hands or the one that feels good in the head? Both have compelling arguments that could sway you one way or another, but for me function over form/brand any day.

 

APA Archery is the best! Can't go wrong with their bows

 

Tell him not to be a hipster, and get what shoots/feels the best. He can do some funky colors if being different is important. On a more serious note, if there’s good shops locally/within a reasonable distance, strongly consider supporting those small businesses and in turn he’ll have better support if he needs help/parts for the bow.

 

This is a great point ^^^ - If you are talking small businesses in the archery world then those are the small mom/pop shops and not the bow manufactures themselves. If your brother-in-law wants to get into archery and enjoy it while supporting small businesses, then he should get the bow that he connects with him (regardless of brand) and he then can have the local mom/pop shops do the string changes and buy products through them, etc. Or if he wants to work on his own bow and build his own arrows he could buy his tools and supplies from small mom/pop companies. That would help those small businesses more over a long period of time versus the impact of a one-time bow sale from a particular bow manufacturer.

 

 

Right now in some circles you can't get more non mainstream than Bowtech
Love my revolt, wish it had time lock but it's great.

 

It’s interesting how different parts of the state you live in are brand loyal to certain brands. In my neck of the woods if you don’t shoot Mathews are you even a serious hunter? I shoot Mathews so I know I’m a real one. Hehe

 

In case you haven't caught on, asking for brand opinion is going to get you as many different answers as people who post. I would say make a list of must-haves vs don't-wants as far as features and then just use that to narrow it down to 2-3 choices and go shoot them. One thing to remember is that the big brands (Hoyt, Mathews) will always hold value better and sell faster on the used market.

 

If I weren't looking at Mathews or Hoyt, my next stop without hesitation would be Elite, then maybe a PSE. If I could find one, a Truth bow.

 

Sanlida

 

The 3 brands I wont own and giggle like a little School girl when I see or hear a Mathews, Bowtech or PSE explode . It tickles me to death, like watching an antifa member get hit in the nards with a rubber bullet during a riot. i dont know why? I guess its a flawed arrested developed sense of humor or something?

 

I honestly dont care what brand bow i pick, I do however have requirements for said bow. Some companies meet them, some dont. So I base my decision on the way the bow shoots and feels.

 

I’ve owned bows from many different brands. There are bows from each one that I like and ones I don’t. They’re all generally good bows these days. It’s all about how it “feels” to shoot for me.

 

I shoot a Darton. It’s great.