Well I have to do it now.

My buddies in Idaho have told me to "Get a Bow" and they will take me elk hunting.

I have seen their pictures and thney have taken several nice bull elk.

I have been wanting to get a bow for a long while, but I have been just too busy.

Now I have an incentive to be up and ready by Sept. Here are some of my thoughts, ya'll tell me if I am on the right track, or need to rethink some stuff.

As to brand of bow I was planning on shooting several different ones, picking the one I like the best, however I just learned that Bow Tec, and their Diamond brand can be fitted with a crimson trace lazer in the grip. While not legal for big game in many places It would be just the ticket for wild pigs in Texas.

So I am leaning toward that brand of bow.
I plan on a 60 to 65 pound draw weight.

I am unsure which arrow to use, aluminium or carbon fiber.

I want a cut on contact broad head, as I will mostly shoot wild pigs, black bear and elk.

I looked at some G5 Montec broad heads today, and also saw some small game brodheads they make.

I am thinking a 3 pin sight would be easier to use or maybe one of the one pin dial in sights.

The best thing to do is go to a number of shops (I bite my tongue on the pro in pro shop cause some are not such pros) and get some bows set for your draw length and shoot shoot shoot as many as you can.
Put them in your hand and feel them. Caress them and shoot shoot shoot them.
The only bow I would recommend is the one that feels the best to you!!!
There are MANY MANY good bows out there. I shot a bunch and held even more before I decided on my Bowtech Guardian. That was last year, there are alot of new bows this year and there will be even more next year.
I norrowed it down to a Diamond 'black ice' and a Bowtech 'allegiance' until I shot the 'guardian'!!!
As far as arrows, CARBON!!!
I have been shooting Easton AXIS full metal jackets and love them till they bend. That is the problem with alum core or jacket or all arrows, they will bend and stay bent!
I went to an AXIS realtree for the weight. At 9.8 grains per inch and a Montec 125 grain blade, I can still get plenty of speed and carry the KE to get a good pass through shot.
As far as pins, that is a choice you have to make. For the most part out to 20-25 yards you can use the same pin on the newer speed bows.
Me, I just went to a 7 pin Spot Hogg 'hogg-it hunter' but thats me.
Here is a great website to learn almost everything you ever wanted to know about flinging sharp sticks: Archery Talk

Now I will warn you, it is an addiction!!!!
I got my bow about a year ago and now I do almost all my own work.
I just got Mrs. Smed hooked up with a Diamond 'edge' so we can shoot together. I am thinking next 3D season we will go have some fun!!

Good luck.

You will enjoy getting your set up sorted and put together.

September may be way to close to go bow hunting for Elk.

Unfortunately it takes a lot of time and practise to get proficient with the bow and arrow.

excellent advise from smedley.
if you act quickly and devote a LOT of time and effort to shooting, you may can be ready for an elk hunt, just practice perfectly, and know your limits. meaning if you can't hit a target consistently at 40 yards, dont think its all going to come together when that real live animal steps out at 40 and you decide to slings sticks in his direction.

as for broadheads, i shot my elk last year with the g5 montec, and loved it. great penetration, large holes, lots of blood, elk went less than 50 yards. i'll be trying to put one through an antelope in a month or so.

i shoot gold tip carbon arrows with blazer vanes and a fall away rest, for me personally this is a great setup. you may want to think about a whisker biscuit, as it will not allow your arrow to fall off the rest.

as for sights, its up to you. i would like a 7 pin personally, but my 5 pin is working for me at the moment. i would recommend a small level on whatever sight you choose. this will help you develop proper form when shooting. you will develop your own style of shooting, kind of like your own swing at golf, and mine is to get anchored, check my level, aim, and shoot. sounds like a lot, but i do it very quickly.

another thing i tell beginners, get a sight with a few pins, and practice until you can group well with your farthest pin. then for hunting season, take them all off but one. your 20-25 yarder. that way you won't be tempted to try and make longer shots than you should, and you won't forget which pin to use in the stressful times of drawing on an animal.

there are a ton of great bows out there, i love my mathews, i have shot diamonds that i love. don't forget about ross, anything you choose that you like will be fine..

good luck, and be warned, there is no cure for the addiction.....

I would suggest going to a large well known proshop that carries many diff lines of bows that you can feel and possibly test shoot.

I decided to sell my Mathews LX in Jan and while on business in Ft Worth, TX I stopped by a small proshop one evening. They had Diamond, Bowtech, Mathews, and Martin. I test shot the Mathews Drenalin, DXT, Switchback XT, BT Gaurdian, and handled the Diamonds and Martins. The Mathews and Bowtech had the best feel to me and after shooting them I selected the Switchback XT.

Try a few and see what fits you the best.

I'm loving the new SBXT I purchased and actually shoot it better than any bow I've owned.

I only hunt deer with a chance for pig once in a while, so I really cant help you with arrow selection for elk or bear, but for medium game, I love carbon arrows. The Goldtip 5575 XT hunters are my arrow of choice now and shall I go for larger game, I'll probably try 7595s.

There are alot of good broadheads on the market. For cut on impact, I like the Magnus heads as they fly just like my fieldtips. One of my buds likes the G5s for bear.

As for sights, I looked at dozens of them before I bought one for my new bow. I wanted a sight that was well built and rugged, but light weight, bright pins, and pins not too large for precise aim points. I went with the Toxonics archery 3 pin, it's made well and the pins are super bright in low light situations.
http://www.toxonics.com/hunting_sights.html

Good Luck and let us know what you decide.


Reloader

Thanks for the information Gents.


In a few days I plan of shooting some bows.

I will let ya'll know what happens.

Good Luck.

Enjoy it as archery very addictive.