Nick's Picks - Top 5 Bow Packages Under $1000

There are SO MANY bows on the market today and SO MANY different opinions out there about which ones are the best. It can be very overwhelming at times, especially once you start seeing the price tags attached to some of these things. I will say this though, we are at an interesting point in time for the compound bow market. Right now there is so much competition between the various manufactures of these bows that if any of them try to put out a sub par product, well, lets just say they wont be on the market very long.

There is a silver lining to all of this competition. Right now every compound bow manufacturer is competing to be king of certain price points. For the longest time they were all focusing most of their effort on the highest end price point which would be the bows that are $1000+. This would mean that all the really good stuff was too expensive and out of reach for the average shooter to afford. I know I sure couldn't/can't afford to drop that kind of money on anything, especially something that doesn't have a motor and wheels. Luckily most manufactures have realized this, and they have shifted their focus towards the "everyman" price point. Once this shift happened the full force of the competition also shifted and now the goal was/is to make the very best AFFORDABLE bow. Thanks to this we can now find some of the best bows to ever hit the market for under $1000 and in some cases well below $1000. It is truly a great time to be a bow hunter.

If only we could shoot and compare them all side by side. The luxury of actually being able to hold each bow, draw each bow and shoot each bow is something that very few shooters actually get to experience. If we are lucky we will be able to try out a couple here or there but we will most likely not be able to try them all. Any hands on time is better than none though. This is what inspired me to sit down with Nick and ask him for his input on all the bows that he has had his hands on for the 2017 season. We worked out a list of his top 5 favorite bows so far this year. Keep in mind that these are his personal opinions but also keep in mind that he has shot a staggering amount of arrows through pretty much all of the bows that have crossed our path so he has a pretty educated opinion.

Coming in at #5

The PSE Brute Force LT. In Nick's opinion the Brute Force LT has a lot going for it. This bow has a fantastic draw cycle coupled with a very nice valley and back wall. "Its the kind of bow that you can shoot all day and not get to the point that you are too tired to keep shooting" Nick said. He said that one of the most impressive features about this bow is how well balanced everything is on it. "Sometimes with bows in this price range you have to choose between certain things like faster vs. smoother for example, but in this case you get it all. A bow that shoots great but also hits hard and shoots fast to boot". The Brute Force LT is one of our best selling bow packages so it is pretty clear that a lot of other shooters feel the same way about this one.

Coming in at #4

The PSE Bow Madness Epix. This is a bow that a lot of people have had a chance to shoot in one form or another. The "Bow Madness" name has been around for a while and it has always carried a very good reputation for being some of the smoothest shooting bows on the market. The newest Bow Madness has kept that good reputation going strong. The Bow Madness Epix is a model that I have personally spent some time with and I agree that it belongs on this list. I asked Nick what it was exactly about this bow that stood out to him and his response was simply " the draw cycle". "This is one of the smoothest bows that you will ever shoot. It is built from top to bottom with the goal of being super smooth and forgiving in mind. This is not a bow that you would buy in hopes of getting as much speed as possible because it is not meant to be a speed bow, even though it is still plenty fast, it was built with a focus on comfort rather than only speed. It makes for a much better overall experience." The Bow Madness Epix is also one of the best selling bows for 2017 and once you shoot it you will understand why.

Coming in at #3

The Kinetic 2 by Tribe Archery This is a newer bow but it is one that we recently had a chance to spend a lot of time with and test out here at the shop. "This is a bow I recommend highly" Nick said. "I know it is one that most people have not had a chance to try out yet because it is newer but I really hope the fact that it is new doesn't spook you away from trying it out. When you do try it you will know what I mean, the bow is awesome. It is a smooth shooting bow but it is also a fast bow and that is a rare combination to pull off, especially for under a grand. Not to mention that it looks great too." I agree 100% with the fact that this bow looks awesome. The K2 is in the new Treezyn camo and I had never seen it before I shot this bow. Now that I have seen it though I feel the need to own a bow with it on it.

Coming in at #2

The Diamond Deploy. This is another bow that we have sold untold amounts of and because of that our bow builders have had some serious hands on time with them. "I really like the Deploy". Nick said. "I like how it shoots and I really like how easy it paper tunes. If a bow is not easy to tune then it will hurt a pro shops opinion of that bow for sure. To make it on this list a bow would have to have a few very important traits. It will need a very nice draw cycle, it still needs to be fast (enough) but while maintaining the smooth draw cycle, and it will have to be easy to tune, time, adjust, and really any other setup work that needs done to it, while still being dead in your hand. If these traits are all there then it makes for one awesome bow". In Nick's Opinion, the Diamond Deploy does all of this and more. The Deploy is actually fairly cheap for how good the bow really is. You simply can not go wrong with it.

Nick's #1 Pick is

The Obsession Turmoil. I want to mention really quick that the Turmoil would have been my top pick too. Anyone that has ever shot this bow, has fallen in love with this bow. There is no in between on this one and honestly I have yet to meet anyone that has shot the Turmoil and didn't love it. "This bow should not cost under $1000. Obsession could have gotten away with charging a lot more for a bow like this but thankfully they chose not to." Nick said. "This is the fastest, smoothest, deadest shooting bow I have ever shot that didn't cost $1200 and a Kidney to own. It looks excellent and the overall feel of the Turmoil is that of a very high end, expensive bow. Since this bow is capable of so much but still somehow manages to cost under $1000 it is most certainly my top pick for this list." The Turmoil is currently our best selling bow so far in 2017 and still going strong.

At the end of the day it is important to know that picking out a new compound bow mostly comes down to personal preferences. It is helpful to gather opinions from different sources about these bows but always remember that the most important piece of the puzzle is a simple question. Is this the right bow for me? That's all that matters in the end. If you find one that feels good to you and that looks good to you, then that is the bow for you.