Hey all.  I've been putting it off long enough and I finally want to pull the trigger on getting a bow and start hunting (after plenty of practice of course).  Stopped at a local shop last week and put a few down range with a mission, then for the hell of it they grabbed the new Mathews Triax and after a few shots I was smitten.  Just starting out, I wasn't sure how much I should invest- but I usually follow the buy once cry once motto, so I'm thinking of passing on the mission and getting a flagship bow since I won't worry about outgrowing it.

Several of my coworker's have bow hunted/target shot/league shot for years and they think that the Triax's 28" A2A and 6" Brace height would be less forgiving to a new shooter and think I should go with something longer.  I'm going to try and get back to the store soon and possibly look at the Halon (30" A2A) or Halon 32 (32" A2A) with the 7" Brace Height.  I do value their opinion, however they both admit that they haven't been up to date with most of the new stuff.

So for picking out my first bow I'm looking to you all for some insight or opinions.

Choose which ever bow feels right. Focus on perfect form and follow through and brace hight will not be an issue, unless you go with a whisker biscuit, which would stay in contact longer. No need in the latest and greatest equipment. You can also pick up a lot of gear on archery talk.

I'd also suggest reading Core Archery by Larry Wise.

I have had Hoyt and Matthews. The Hoyt bows are often adjustable for length of pull allowing someone to pick up a used bow several years old as a bargain price.  I like the by once cry once idea but options are also useful.

Matthews Drenalin  28 in draw

Matthews Drenalin 30 in draw

My current bow is a Matthews Drenalin it shoots very well very consistently and I would highly recommend it.

If it works for you go for it.

Don't worry about the a2a, get what you like, I prefer shorter for hunting. The brace height is more critical. The 6" brace is more difficult to shoot requiring better form and follow through. This may not be an issue for you but often is when

hunting situations force out of the ordinary positions and shot timing. I've never thought the minor speed increase was worth it.

Just make sure that you can be comfortable when you draw. You dont want to have that "It's in your head" when you can't draw it at some point. It has happened to me before.

by the way, congrats on your "new hobby"

Thanks for the replies.  Going to start saving up (possibly offload an AR) and try to shoot as many as I can until I settle on what feels best.

Wait until it is the offseason.  My first bow was a brand new Hoyt bought for about half of retail.  It was last years model still on the shelf and they wanted it gone before the new bows started coming in.  Bows, just like rifles, have a lot of expensive accessories.

If you are tall and or have a longer draw you will want a longer ata bow because of string angle. Triax is a great bow. I went with a bow with a longer ata cause I'm 6'2".

[The US bow manufacturers typically release their new ranges around
October, so we expect to see the 2020 bows from Bear, BowTech,
Elite, Hoyt, Mathews, Mission and Win & Win, from late September on.

so shopping time will be around August...

A little late to this party but for anyone looking to try archery I strongly recommend buying used to start.  You can get a decent package deal for a couple hundred bucks that you can learn to shoot/tune/sight in with.

If you start off with a flagship bow and end up not taking to archery then you'll be out several hundred dollars on resale.  If you buy used and find you are really into archery then you can sell it for damn near what you paid for it an upgrade.

That and until you get several hundred shots under your belt you aren't going to really know what you like/dislike.