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Thumb releases have become very popular in the past years. It feels like everywhere I look on social media archers are shooting with a thumb release. So I decided that I should go out and buy myself one to see if a thumb release was the best fit for me. 

Well, in this article I will be breaking down each part of the Scott Archery Pursuit. I trust Scott Archery for all my release needs and figured that I would stick to what I already know and love. After shooting with it for a few months here is what I have to say.

Inside the Scott Archery Pursuit Box

Right out of the box you get the release that is attached to a wrist strap. I found it interesting that a thumb release would come with a wrist strap. I do not see other people using a wrist strap so I decided to detach mine. 

Out of the box, the Scott Archery Pursuit has a three-finger design. I left that on because it felt the most comfortable for me. However, in the box, you also get a modification of a four-finger attachment. All you need is an allen wrench and you can easily put whatever attachment on that you like. 

The release itself is a standard half-moon hook that you connect to your D-Loop. Also, it comes with the thumb trigger already attached to the release. 

You get all this for a price point of around 150 dollars which is neither the cheapest nor the most expensive thumb release on the market.

First Feel of the Scott Archery Pursuit

Straight out of the box, this release felt so good in my hand. The Scott Archery Pursuit is a durable and smooth thumb release. The grooves fit decently well in my fingers. The thumb barrel is what impressed me the most because it has a diamond groove pattern that helps give you a great feel on your thumb and some extra grip. 

Overall, I was super excited to get this release on my bow and put some arrows through it. 

Comfortability

The comfortability of the Scott Archery Pursuit was pretty good. I can’t give it a 10 out of 10 because after about 45 shots my fingers did start to hurt a little bit. This causes me to become a bit more focused on my fingers rather than my target. 

However, that was after a ton of shots. The thumb barrel fits really well for my thumb. It would slide perfectly in between my two thumb knuckles. I personally really enjoyed the feel of shooting with the Scott Archery Pursuit.

Adjustability

This is where it gets fun! The Scott Archery Pursuit is extremely adjustable for the price that you are going to pay. It will get a little bit technical if you are new to shooting a thumb release like I was. All the adjustments that I mention can be utilized using an allen wrench. 

The Finger Attachments

I mentioned this earlier but the Scott Archery Pursuit comes with two different finger attachments. You get a three-finger attachment and a four-finger attachment. I would recommend trying both to see what you like the best. I personally like the three-finger attachment. 

Thumb Barrel Position

The thumb barrel on the Scott Archery Pursuit can be adjusted to slide further away from your thumb or closer to your thumb. This will all depend on your liking. For me, I like to have that thumb barrel sit right in between my two thumb knuckles. 

Trigger Travel

One thing that I have been learning a lot about recently is how a bow release has different kinds of travel lengths and how that can benefit you as an archer and a hunter.
The Scott Archery Pursuit can be adjusted to have lots of trigger travel (the length the trigger moves before firing) or it can have nearly no trigger travel. I like a happy medium. I do this because it allows me to rest my thumb on the trigger without it shooting. Once I am steady on my target, I just slowly start to pull my thumb until the arrow has been released.

Shooting with the Scott Archery Pursuit

I did enjoy shooting with the Scott Archery Pursuit when everything went right. My grouping got better, I was feeling really confident. Then something weird happened. I started to collapse my bow before I was ready to shoot. With a thumb trigger when this happened, my thumb would already be on the barrel, and often times the trigger would get hit in the middle of letting my bow down. I say this to make you aware of what happened to me.

Now, this scenario is my fault because my bow was overdrawn and my draw length was too small. That was the source of me collapsing my bow. The pursuit release had nothing to with that. I still think it is a great release and one that I will be using in the future. I just need to spend more time getting super comfortable with my setup first. (it also doesn’t help that I do not have a very big backyard or place to shoot regularly at my house.)

Negatives of the Scott Archery Pursuit

There are only two issues that I found with shooting the Scott Archery Pursuit. 

Noise

The sound on this release is not quiet at all. In fact, I think it is decently loud as you lock the hook onto your D-Loop and as the trigger fires. I think that this is something that Scott Archery could try to do a bit better with its next thumb release. 

Personal Problem

As I stated above, the second issue that I had was due to me. It had nothing to do with the release itself. I wanted to add it to this post because you may be struggling with some of the same problems I was having. If you are, I would say stick with an index trigger until you are extremely comfortable with your archery setup.

Will I be Using this for Deer Hunting?

I haven’t quite yet decided. As of right now, I will be using my Scott Archery Quick Shot index finger trigger. I feel more comfortable with this release at this time. However, if I can get enough practice with the Pursuit, then I may be taking that into the woods as my primary bow release.

Conclusion

The Scott Archery Pursuit is a great thumb release for the price that you will pay. I think that if you are just getting into thumb releases, this is one of the best options. Just make sure to shoot somewhere so that mistakes will not result in injuries or damaged property.

If you are deciding to try a thumb release, make sure to take it slow and focus on your form. That is my full analysis of the Scott Archery Pursuit thumb release. If you would like to look at one, click here. 

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