Is Archery Equipment Becoming too Expensive?

[AJ the TP Guru]

A recent article in Field & Stream magazine (Feb.-Mar. 2017) suggested that archery equipment may be getting too expensive, thus constricting how many bows are being sold, and in turn closing up local bow shops. I'd be interested in hearing my TBH brothers' opinions on this topic.

Specifically in the article, a former bowshop owner says, "Guys can't afford new bows, and shops can't afford to keep the inventory." (The author references only this one shop owner who closed up, and who is quoted herein.)

So how's your bowshop doing? Are you still able to get good service at a reasonable price, and is its inventory sufficient in your opinion?

The author states that bow prices have gone up (what hasn't?), and that a fully loaded top-line bow these days runs from $1400-2000. He further claims that today's bow prices may be out of reach for many (true, but so are top-line golf clubs . . . and have you priced Titlelists lately?) He says that a decade ago, archers were replacing their bows every year or two. Really? Were you? I surely was not.

He does acknowledge that there are less expensive alternatives which offer something close to the features and quality of top-line bows. Thing is, most of these bows are sold by Cabelas and Gander Mountain because their profit margin isn't sufficient to sustain most independent bowshops. I'd agree with that, but suspect that a guy interested in service and a continuing relationship might be more inclined to buy such a bow from an independent (to say nothing of shooting in leagues and practicing regularly at an indoor range).

So are there enough of you guys who disagree with this author to keep your local bowshop in business?

[DapperDan]

Don't know anything about shops but I bought a new fully rigged bow last year and I can tell you that yes, they are expensive. I was north of $2000 when it was all said and done. I will not be buying a new bow in the near future. That is for sure.


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[Death from Above]

Nope...not becoming, it has been for a while.

Just like everything else...

[Brinkley]

I would imagine that it is increasingly harder for a small shop to stay in business only selling bows, and accessories. The price of gear has seemingly gone pretty high. Take sights for instance, your top of the line sights will cost you a third of the cost of the bow easily. Your average bow hunter is not going to keep a shop in business in my opinion. The margins seem low on the bows and the overhead of keeping everything on the shelf is pretty steep.

The shops that seem to me to remain successful offer something other than bows and accessories. A nice air-conditioned range that can accommodate small tournaments and a place to practice out of the weather. This takes a lot of square feet to accommodate but this seems to be something that we (archers) want. Take Texas Archery in Spring for example. They have more square feet of range than show room and this gets people in the door I would imagine.

[mfarmer]

J&J in Port Lavaca just closed down.

[rcm719]

Lets just say my fishing gear as tripled but my archery gear has stayed the same for the last 3 yrs.....

[txpitdog]

Bought my bow used. I would not have been able to afford it new at the time, and if it were stolen or damaged I would probably go right back to another used bow.


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[Low Fence]

Its killing small shops. From 01'- around 09' I bought a new bow every year for nothing else to help the shop out. It's worth it to me to have a quality shop close to home and someone that will get me out of a bind in a time crunch. At that time the top of the line from every manufacturer had gone from $499 up to $599.... then $650..... then $899.... now we are at MSRP of $1150 + bare bow

I'm out

[Playa]

Lubbock Indoor Archery closed this spring. Cost, but I think competition has become a bigger issue. You can't survive strictly on high end bows ($700 and up), and you can buy online and bypass your shop except for maint

[stickbowcoop]

I have owned 7 bows in the last 5 years and only 2 have been new. I prefer to buy used 1 year old bows because you can save a lot, but you don't get a warranty with most used bows. I like to change bows because I just enjoy trying new bows (I am the same with motorcycles).

But I do agree new bows and equipment can be quite expensive and to me the technology is not keeping up with the price increases.

[miket]

Nope...not becoming, it has been for a while.

Just like everything else...

Agreed. Costs for things have been getting farther and farther out of reach for the blue collar guy. This includes everything from land to vehicles, to leases to hunting and fishing gear. I think it is largely driven by the boomers that have a good bit of money to spend in their latter years and, in my case at least, a dying manufacturing base. The folks in my trade used to be solid middle class. Now a new 4wd truck costs a years ( or more ) salary ( with OT! ). New bow? Ha!

[nchunter]

One thing that may also be at play is the liberal opening of cross bow rules in most if not all states. I have known a tremendous amount of crossbow users who switched from compound bows. If I am not mistaken, most hardcore bow shops would reluctantly have a few crossbows. However, the friends I know, simply ordered on amazon or some other online retailer. I picked a bear archery one up for $259 at a gander store that was closing, however, it took about 5 minutes to put together and came with site, bolts and quiver. I picked it up for archery season guests who cant shoot a bow but can sit in a blind and pull a trigger.
If it breaks or needs work I am not sure I would spend too much on labor adjusting it. In 10 minutes my boys and I had it sighted in and blasting through a foam target at 40 yds.
I think sometime bow hunter and the shops became too ridiculous. Paper tuning, chronographs, ridiculous speeds and kinetic energy. It would be intimidating for a rank amateur to walk in and purchase a bow. Not to mention it customizable to you only. Let's face it, my wife, sons, sister guests, can all shoot the crossbow.

[critter69]

I used to buy a new bow and acc. every year, rotated by myself and two boys, and yes it has gotten a lot more expensive. The " cheap" bows now are priced what the top of the line bows were at, a few years ago. You can buy a very nice rifle and scope for 1500.00-2,000.00 and it will hold its value a lot better then archery equipment. But I don't want to rifle hunt, so I need a bow. But now we will ( try ) keep them for 3-6 years. Bought a new shot gun, and may buy another one before I buy another bow. And you can buy a **** nice over and under shotgun for around 2000.00. That and I make my own long bows, but shoulder surgery has me shooting compounds , for the most part. I also know a lot of my sons buddies would love to start archery hunting, but as soon as they " shop" and find out how much it's going to cost to "get into it". They change their minds. So I say yes the prices are hurting the sport, but hunting and fishing ( eventually) will be a "rich mans " sport. And you can see it's headed that way quickly.

[pafdrn]

Well I have been bow hunting for 30 years, kill 4 or 5 deer and many hogs each year, and I have only purchased 3 bows ever ( 1988 PSE Fireflight, then 2005 Bowtech, then 2009 Mathews; the Bowtech is still my primary bow). I just change my string every 3 or 4 years. Occasionally upgrade my sights or rest. I am definitely not a big spender, but I do buy all my supplies from the local shop and I never buy from the big stores like Academy, Gander Mountain etc... I believe in supporting the small business owners. I just could never bring myself to spend 1K plus every year when I still kill the animals I am after with my current gear.

I also have 2 sons that I had to buy bows for as they grew, so that was added expense.

[Pilgrim]

I don't think archery equipment is becoming too expensive unless you want to make it too expensive. A bow, a gun, or a hammer are just tools. Who would replace a perfectly functioning hammer every year? The increasing costs of using these tools due to lease costs, tags, license fees, taxidermy pricing, costs of processing meat, fuel, a lack of affordable quality public hunting, etc is keeping more people out of the outdoor sports and consequently hurts the local bow shops long term viability more than increasing prices. JMO