which one and why?

[Recurve-4-life]

I got a lot of good responses on a prior post regarding which bow to buy for a beginner and have narrowed it to a dryad orion takedown or bob lee hunter/sportsman takedown.  Unfortunately I don't know anyone in the area that shoots a dryad so I have no comparison of my own on the bow's performance.  Any info on either bow's draw (smooth/stacking) and grip styles would be appreciated, etc.

(P.S. I'm putting my compound up on *bay today since I feel the only way to be succussful with the soon to purchase recurve is to dive in head first without a life-vest (sink or swim) fully cutting all ties with the old compound bow types)

[JRY309]

Some bowyers have bows you can test drive.What would be nice if you could attend a Trad Expo or a show where you can shoot alot of bows.Both bows you mentioned are good bows.Bows are a personal choice,what is your draw length,what type of grip do you like?

[30coupe]

I haven't shot either, but from what I have read, it would be hard to go wrong with either of the bows you mentioned. I agree with JR, though, you need to get one in your hands first. If you are making the jump from compound to recurve, make sure you don't overbow to start with. Buying a good, low poundage, used bow would be my recommended course of action. Shoot it until you are comfortable with the differences between compound and recurve, then work up on weight until you are where you want to be. In the meantime, shoot as many recurves as you can until you find the one that fits you.

Jumping in with both feet is fine, diving in head first can be dangerous...and expensive. There is no joy in being overbowed and shooting poorly as a result. It can lead you to abandon traditional archery, which is not what we want to see. If you've been hanging around here long, you have probably seen this advice offered time and again to beginners.

Check the classified section for a used bow of 45-50 pounds (45 would be better). If you have been shooting high poundage compounds, remember you were probably only holding a fraction of that 45 pounds at full draw. With a recurve you will be holding all of it. An 80 pound bow with 80 percent letoff means you are holding 16 pounds at full draw.

Welcome to the gang. Lots to learn here. Just pull up a seat.

BTW: My daughter-in-law comes from over your way. She's an IKM grad and her dad teaches at Harlan. Small world!

[Recurve-4-life]

I am 25yrs old, 6 foot 1 with a 29 inch draw length, and looking to get two limb sets.  First set would be 46 lbs, second set 53 lbs.  My father-in-law has a 50lb PSE recurve that pulls for me around 55lbs and feels just a tad heavy to start with so that is why I am leaning towards 46lbs to start and work up if necassary depending on what type of game I am hunting.

[30coupe]

It sounds like you have a good plan there. I would still probably want to give them a try first if possible. Some bows will stack, which will make them feel heavier especially with your 29 inch draw. Someone drawing the same bow to 28" may not notice a bit of stacking, but you might.

Bows are such individual things, it is really hard to say what will work for someone else. We all have our favorites and are not afraid to recommend them to others, but my favorite bow just might turn out to be someone else's least favorite.

As I said before though, I've heard nothing but good about the bows you mentioned. Remember, once you do make the selection, we expect pictures!

[Recurve-4-life]

thanks for you input and suggestions.