Talk to 10 bow hunters and you will get 10 different opinions when it comes to choice of equipment and setup. There are around 13 million bow hunters in the U.S., but you will be hard pressed to find two bows that are set up exactly the same.
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| The DuskDevil2 is offered in anodized black and camo
finishes. |
There is a vast assortment of equipment out there in the archery arena. I say thank goodness for this; I like doing things my way. When it comes to bow sights, I admit I have some quarks. I’ve been shooting a thin black colored crosshair-style sight for years, even though it has been a bit of a handicap during low-light hunting conditions.
I’ve tried several fiber optic pin sights, but I did not like the halo effect – the glow – that surrounded the fiber optic dot. Furthermore, the diameter of many fiber optic dots was too large and covered most of the kill zone at 30 yards. Nonetheless, I have been on the look out for a sight with a thin diameter fiber optic strand and one that does not exhibit a severe halo effect.
When I attended the 2004 Archery Trade Association (ATA) Show in Indianapolis Indiana in January, I continued my search for a fiber optic pin sight that would fit my individual preference. When I stumbled onto the new Montana Black Gold – DuskDevil 2 bow sight, I took a second glance, which then turned into a fairly long visual inspection. The engineering and forethought that went into this sight was evident. I simply had to test drive this sight and so one was sent to me from the good folks at Montana Black Gold.
The DuskDevil2 -- new for 2004 -- is a step above the original DuskDevil model. It features a new third axis system, which is more rigid, easier to get to and comes with larger 10/24 screws for a more secure lockdown. Two hex-head screws tightly fastened the three main components together.
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| The DuskDevil2 features reference marks for precise
adjustments. |
If you travel from time to time like I do or if you are hard on your equipment like I am, then you will appreciate the durable design of this sight. Furthermore, the sight features precise reference marks along every adjustment axis. If something were to get bumped during travel, you can quickly and easily return windage (left and right) and elevation (up and down) points to their original settings. For me this is a must for any sight or arrow rest that attaches to my bow.
The elevation of individual pins can be adjusted by moving either individual pins directly or the entire pin-mounting frame and pin guard assembly. This provides the user with the added advantage of being able to perfectly center the primary yardage pin in the center of the round pin guard.
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| The original DuskDevil showing proper (left) and
improper pin guard / peep alignment. |
The DuskDevil2 features the same three-point fiber optic leveling system as the original
DuskDevil, which helps you to center the pin frame with your peep for increased accuracy and eliminates shooting high from the tree stand. For 2004 the new DuskDevil2 has high visibility “intense white” paint on the surface of the clear plastic pin guard rim to further aid in assuring proper peep and pin guard alignment.
The fiber optic pins were what really excited me about the
sight. The DuskDevil2 is the only bow sight that I know of, which comes with a guarantee that you’ll be able to see the pins during legal shooting hours from a treestand without an external light source. The secret is the DuskDevil2’s revolutionary StraightAway™ pins, which feature fiber optics that are not bent and are, therefore, up to 50 percent brighter. The fiber on many other bow sights bend and leak light as shown in the adjacent photo and in turn tend to produce a severe halo effect.
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| One of great improvements over the original
DuskDevil is the white-color rim of the pin guard. |
The DuskDevil2’s distinctive, scuba-fin shaped StraightAway™ pins have
six times the cross-sectional strength of other pins yet they are ultra thin for 62 percent less target blackout! The nylon polymer pins are remarkably flexible. You can repeatedly run your finger down the sides of these wafer thin pins as if you were flipping through the pages in a book and they will snap back into position.
The StraightAway™ pins are installed in two parallel slots in the pin-mounting frame, which allows pins to be stacked close together for those of you who shoot lightning fast bows. The slots in the machined aluminum pin-mounting frame are slightly arched so all the pins line up with your eye perfectly.
Now to the dreaded fiber optic “halo” effect I spoke of earlier.
The StraightAway™ pins feature extremely thin fiber optics and are set in tiny black colored diamond shaped frames, which helps to absorb the perimeter glow from the fiber optic strand. The visible pin “dot” is laser-sharp with no fuzzy edges.
Those of you who shoot fast bows and use only one pin,
you'll like the black-colored diamond-shaped fiber optic frame. You can use a single pin for three different yardage settings as shown in the adjacent photo. The versatility of the StraightAway™ Micro Dot Pins is unsurpassed.
The DuskDevil2 equipped with StraightAway™ pins was designed to improve the users accuracy in conjunction with a string peep sight. However, I recently removed my string peep sight and I will likely never shoot with one again. I’ve been shooting a Hind Sight II rear bow sight and it partners extremely well with the DuskDevil2 front bow sight. The torque-free, clear sight picture that results from the marriage of these two sights produces a super accurate setup.
If you are looking for the most visible sight picture possible for low light hunting conditions, this combination is for you. Since the invention of the Hind Sight, I'm convinced there is no place for string peep sights for use in Hunting.
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| Slots in the machined aluminum pin-mounting frame are slightly arched so the pins line up with your eye perfectly. |
Unlike tournament shooting scenarios, extreme low-light shooting conditions are commonplace in hunting. In my opinion, a peep sight is simply obsolete and a Hind Sight should be standard equipment on every hunting bow.
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| The DuskDevil2 and HindSight II makes a great
low-light shooting solution. |
Give the DuskDevil2 and Hind Sight II combination sight system a try and say goodbye to cloudy peeps and poor sight visibility for good.
Those are the positives. What about negatives?
Price is about the only negative. The DuskDevil2 equipped with an optional level (shooting without one is not an option for me) prices out at a little over $100 (camo model) plus shipping. A bit pricey for a hunting sight, I admit. I suppose price is relative though. I would have paid that much for the eight-pointer I had to let my arrow down on two years ago, because I could not see my crosshair pin at last light. For a little over $130 plus shipping, you can have the DuskDevil2 and Hind Sight II combination sight system that I prefer to shoot.
