Recurve Bows

[Zuljin]

Talk to me.

Looking at a take down bow. Not opposed to a one piece either. Around $300 and good enough to hunt hog and deer.

I've a compound now. An old Bear. 70 pounds, turned way down from when I used to bow fish a little.

What's some good brands? Any to avoid? What do I look for, in general?

My old bear has been used and abused and still shoots. Samick gets good reviews.

 

[45_70sharps]

At that price range, you might want to hit some of the traditional bow forums and look for something used.
I think a black widow one piece would cost three to four times that, a wes wallace costs about twice what you are looking at spending.
I do love my wes wallace longbow!

3 rivers has a bear for about your price.
http://www.3riversarchery.com/Bear+58+Grizzly+Recurve_i2085X_baseitem.html

Sites like stickbow.com have classified sections and you might find a great deal on someone else's used bow.

Welcome to traditional archery!! You will enjoy loosing those training wheels on your old bow.

When shopping in that price range, any of the bigger old brands like bear or howard hill archery would be very good bows. I'm not sure if howard hill makes recurves or if it's just longbows they sell. You would have to check that out.

You might see if there is a traditional archery club in your area.
You can learn a bit from them, you might find a good used bow and if they do a shoot you can probably have a chance to shoot one or two and learn what you like more. Who knows, you might discover that longbows are way cooler!

 

[Punity]

Compound or death hahaha.

I do love running into traditional bow hunters in the woods. They look awesome like right out of a wilderness novel.

 

[Homercidal]

Odd. I started out with a recurve when I was a kid. never managed to get interested in bowhunting for deer.

But my dad mounted an open face reel on it and took it out bowfishing with a friend. That always seemed interesting. Bow still has the screw holes. They went out after suckers swimming up the nearby crick.

 

[Zuljin]

Thanks.

I was surprised to see how much recurve bows cost. I figured the prices I see for production bows would be for custom jobs.

There's a place not too far that has bows to try. I've read it's a bit different without the "training wheels" (lol).

 

[45_70sharps]

Like I said, if you can find a traditional club you should contact them.
I think the back of traditional bowhunter magazine has a listing of clubs.

Recurve and longbow are both fun, but you shoot them different. Getting to shoot a couple would be good before plunking down the cash.
Remember, there's no letoff so you probably want a lighter bow than your wheelie bow.
70 pounds is no longer a point you hit during draw, but it's at full draw.

Pulling a few bows would help with figuring that out for you.
Also, the draw weight is on the bow, but so is the length of pull you hit that weight at. If you're length of pull is longer or shorter, your draw weight will be more or less.

Not getting a bow that's too heavy is key to shooting well with a traditional bow.

 

[phoenixs4r]

I'm gonna be 'that guy' that hijacks a thread. You guys may have inspired a gift idea for my GF, for some reason i think she would enjoy a bow.

Since i honestly have no idea, and i'm a cheap individual overall, would something like this be an acceptable starter-backyard shooter for a gal who's never done it before.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001PO5QW2/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

the "jr" in the title and all the reviews stating they got it for their kids is making me shy away from it. Thoughts?

PS, my backyard is only like 30 feet long, something tells me this is a bad idea but she'd enjoy it.

 

[45_70sharps]

I'm gonna be 'that guy' that hijacks a thread. You guys may have inspired a gift idea for my GF, for some reason i think she would enjoy a bow.

Since i honestly have no idea, and i'm a cheap individual overall, would something like this be an acceptable starter-backyard shooter for a gal who's never done it before.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001PO5QW2/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

the "jr" in the title and all the reviews stating they got it for their kids is making me shy away from it. Thoughts?

PS, my backyard is only like 30 feet long, something tells me this is a bad idea but she'd enjoy it.

Do a search for a Martin bow. It will be a good bow and it will be a real bow.

The one you have listed is a kids bow. "looks like dads" is what it says. More of a cool toy that requires adult supervision. Draw length might be a problem with that one. Draw weight might be a bit light.

There are a ton of them out there but Martin is the cheapest that I can think of that anyone would call a real bow.

 

[phoenixs4r]

Thanks!

 

[phoenixs4r]

They sure go up in price quickly, lol

 

[oogaboogachiefwalkingdeer]

Why not just make your own. Osage Orange is the wood you need. Mike

 

[45_70sharps]

Making your own sounds nice and all but it's a bit of an advanced project if you want to do it right and have a good shooter.
Osage is a great wood for bows, I'm not sure about recurve limbs. I'm not sure about recurve construction at all. I think you would need to be working with some sort of a composite material to make the thin, light, even limbs that store energy the way you want them to.
Osage would make a good riser, or a good longbow or self wood bow of any sort. Yew is also an excelent wood.
I want to take the bow making class at Pacific Yew some day. You get to come out the other side of the class with a bow you built. I'm thinking sturgeon skin backed would be very cool.

 

[Zuljin]

Why not just make your own. Osage Orange is the wood you need. Mike

Yeah. Make my own bow. "The Indians did it."

That's the phrase that launched a paddle in a canoe from Long Beach to Cat Island, Ms. It's a fricken wonder we weren't washed out into the truly open gulf or flipped over and drowned. The Coast Guard asked us what happened to our boat. They though surely we had sunk a larger sailing vessel and were self rescuing. :cross:

I did read however that bois d'arc, horse apple, is also a good wood. We have those around me.

Any tips on this make your own bow idea?

 

[oogaboogachiefwalkingdeer]

Osage is the same wood as hedge or horse apple or bois darc. Bois darc is french for bow is dark and refers to the wood. I have made at least forty bows. Recurves long bows sinew backed snake skin backed . You can easily shape it with heat for recurves. Get the Jim Hamm book Bows and arrows of Native Americans. It is all you need to make first class deadly hunting weight bows. These are not wall hangers I speak of but true meat makers. You see compounders get as far away from the target and try to hit a small dot. Selfbow shooters get as close as we can and the kill something. Look up OJAM on youtube and you can see a free bow building event that happens every spring in OK. I reckon they build a couple hundred in a week end. Mike Smyth

 

[45_70sharps]

I'm going to build my own self wood bow sometime.

Maybe a flat bow, maybe a D, but what I want to do is a yew wood Longbow.

Make it about 6' 2" long to make the traditional definition of a longbow.
Maybe sturgeon skin backed.
Probably shoot for about 45 pounds draw so that when it's backed it's near 60.

Go get a bear or elk with it and be happy.

 

[Zuljin]

Okay, that OJAM and self bow thing in general looks cool.

But tonight I'm on ebay. I either need to put the beer or the credit card away.

 

[45_70sharps]

Rather than ebay there is cabela's.
Here's one. http://www.cabelas.com/product/Hunt..._l=PPC;cat104693580;cat104235480;cat103969080

Here's a fred bear longbow from cabela's http://www.cabelas.com/product/Hunt..._l=PPC;cat104693580;cat104235480;cat103969080

classified adds at stickbow.com http://leatherwall.bowsite.com/tf/lw/CLASSIFIEDS.CFM

Nice used bow http://leatherwall.bowsite.com/tf/lw/classdetail.CFM?id=72169

There are others also, but most of them go up in price from the $300. Some way up.

Don't forget you are going to want wooden arrows and that it's very important to use feathers for fletching rather than the plastic fletch on a compound arrow. You are either shooting off the shelf or off your finger instead of from a separate rest so you need feathers!

Now, I need to quit looking at this thread before I get a wild hair and decide I need another bow!

 

[PapsD]

Check online for used but don't buy anything sight unseen.

Bob Lee makes a really nice recurve black widow is nice as well. The grips are amazing on the black widows. Striker makes a really nice recurve as well.

Check your local bow shop. If you trade in your bear you might be able to get a better recurve.

3 rivers has a lot of good new bows plus they are a pleasure to do business with.

Learn to bareshaft tune your arrows and learn to make your own strings.

I'd suggest a 50lb @ 28 for deer and hogs. Much more than that will be hard to hold for very long.

Besides a slow bow will kill a deer as well as a fast one. It's how quiet the bow is and the broadhead that makes the difference.

 

[Zuljin]

I'm back and forth now on Martin, Samick, PSE or Bear.

 

[45_70sharps]

I'm back and forth now on Martin, Samick, PSE or Bear.

Can't go wrong with Martin or bear in the lower priced decent bows.
Bear is named after Fred Bear and was started by him.
Other than Pope, Young and Howard Hill there are no other name in traditional bow hunting that compare or can even be used in the same sentence.

 

[PapsD]

I'd go with a bear out of those 3. I've shot a few older bear recurves and really liked how they felt.

Take downs are nice but 1 pieces are easier especially for a beginner.

 

[lhommedieu]

I've been learning to shoot a recurve for the past 18 months or so. I got a Samick Sage (take down) because I was a newbie to bow hunting/shooting and wanted to learn good form: the replaceable limbs on the Samick allowed me to start with 30#'s and gradually increase the draw without sacrificing form.

I don't take down my bow as it's just not time-efficient to do so. I just leave it assembled and travel with a full case when I need to.

When know you're ready to hunt, re-sell the Samick Sage limbs (or keep them for younger family members and friends down the line) and get a Bear recurve. I've got an older Bear Grizzly from the '70's that still shoots great.

+1 re. 3 Rivers Archery

If you ever get a chance to come out East, Len Cardinale in New Jersey is an excellent coach.

Best,

Steve

 

[Zuljin]

I'm still looking at "vintage" Bears too. Tempted to take a chance on two or three and hope one or two is good, for the right price.

So far, I know to look out for twisted limbs, cracked limbs, messed up fiberglass and busted tips. Trying for only reenforced or laminated tips. I'm passing on any with self drilled holes too. Maybe the last owner did it right. Maybe not. I feel like I should pass on any with the original string still strung in it too.

Anything else I should look out for?

 

[Zuljin]

PSE is out. Too many poor reviews. Imported quality is hit and miss.

Samick is distant third to Martin and Bear now.

 

[45_70sharps]

PSE is out. Too many poor reviews. Imported quality is hit and miss.

Samick is distant third to Martin and Bear now.

Can't go wrong with either of those brands.

 

[oogaboogachiefwalkingdeer]

Hand made gives you the freedom to do it like you like it.... just saying. Mike

 

[PapsD]

PSE is out. Too many poor reviews. Imported quality is hit and miss.

Samick is distant third to Martin and Bear now.

PSE = Pretty Sh!tty Equipment. LOL.

 

[45_70sharps]

PSE = Pretty Sh!tty Equipment. LOL.

Yep. Stay clear of companies that focus on wheelie bows.

 

[PapsD]

Are Hoyt recurves any good?

I thought a lot of Olympic archers shot Hoyt?

 

[J8D]

This must be a magical day. First I see a post about buying guns and now this one! I will give my 2 cents with justifications.

First, I would go with a used bow until you get used to shooting traditional and in case you decide you don’t like it you aren’t trying to sell a used $1000, custom Black Widow or other high end brand.
I would keep watching Craigslist and Ebay through Christmas for some deals from guys who are trying to offload their equipment to pay for Christmas. If you don’t see any hot deals then give it another month or so (end of January or even February) until all the hunting seasons are wrapped up and guys are again trying to dump gear.
I don’t think any name brand recurve is going to be bad (Martin, Hoyt, PSE, Bear, etc&#8230 for your first recurve.

Until you learn to shoot traditional (and hopefully you are shooting instinctive) your technique and skills will require some development. Any of those bows will serve that purpose. It is like a guy who decides to take up golf going out and buying a set of Pings. Yes, clubs do make a difference, but not for a golfer who hasn’t developed his skills at golfing.

Yes, building your own bow would be great. Buying custom bow would also be great. Yet, I would recommend waiting on either account until you decide traditional archery is for you and until you can truly benefit from either. I plan to buy a Sheep Eater recurve (Google it). Yet my skills reached the level that require such a fine bow.

Shooting traditional takes patience and repetition. Shooting compound is similar to riding a bike. You can put the compound on the shelf for a couple years. Yet, if your bow is still tuned, you can pick it back up and still shoot the piss out of it. Shooting traditional is again more like golf. Time away from the game will have a negative effect on your skill level. You need to shoot and shoot and shoot until it becomes "instinctive". Once you have developed these skills (I am still waiting), then the degradation of accuracy is far less.

I was shooting around 300 arrows a week for seven months prior to the 2010 elk season. I then shelved the bow for nearly two years (military move) and picked it up this past summer. I was really surprised at my accuracy (though it was still less than when I was shooting regularly) out around 20 yards. Sadly I was comfortably hitting 35 yards when I moved.

Good luck!!!!