Need some advice from you fathers..

[Iron]

My son Jake is 10, he has a vintage Ben Pearson recurve. He doesnt like shooting it as much as i had hoped, he has it in his head he wants one of these youth mathews compounds. I have tried to be subtle and tell and show him that shooting these recurves are much more fun...Problem is he gets discouraged because he isnt that good at it, he has it in his head ( school buddies influences) that he needs sights and a fancy release with a cool quiver full of arrows on his bow..i will admit to you guys this dissapoints me, i had visions of us stump shooting and so on. the advice i need is how to handle this? my first instinct is to let him be his own man and buy this compound bow, i know, and you guys know, you still have to be steady ,tune,and sight in this compound before he will be close to being good.
Or do i continue to try and persuade him to the trad side of things? i asked him just a bit ago, i could tell he would get a new recurve if thats what I wanted..he doesnt want to let me down. i told him i think i would rather him have a compound and use it than a recurve that sits.  i just gotta get this idea that he needs sights to be good out of his head!GGrrr!    

i'll take your .02 worth now please.

Jason
Happy New year BTW.

[Spectre]

Let him shoot a wheelbow for now. Just because he shoots a wheelie doesn't mean he can't go stumpin with Dad. Maybe throw the old Pearson in the truck, too, just in case.

 At least he is into archery.

[legends1]

My son when he was that old went through the same thing.I got him a nice used compound he shot it for about about three year.Then he started picking up my bow and shooting it all the time in hunting camp.Next thing i new i was looking for me a new bow.I have seen this meny times.Dont worry, most likly he will come back around.

[Barney]

I think it's better for a kid to shoot what will keep them shooting.

My daughter (15) shoots a compound and my son (10) loves his recurve.

[jacobsladder]

Let him have both...It's his decision what to hunt with...your job to teach him how to hunt correctly with what he chooses....Make sure his trad bow is light enough in weight for him to enjoy...

Jakes 14 now and has outgrown his compound... he hasnt asked for another one..


 

 

[FerretWYO]

i can give you some advice from a son. Let him shoot what he wants if it will get him out there with you. As many have have said he can still go shooting with you. THAT IS WHAT IS IMPORTANT. After a while he will see that your way is more fun.

[Dave Bulla]

Boy, that's a toughie.

I think I'd try to take him to a couple trad only events like mojam where there are a bunch of other kids running around shooting stickbows.  In the mean time drop some comments about how you don't approve of trying to buy accuracy via gadgets, aids etc and give him some examples of folks to look up to if possible.  Some old Fred Bear or Howard Hill videos might get him "into" things a bit.

As for his shooting and his bow, be sure he's not over bowed and that his arrows are properly matched.  There are few things more discouraging to a kid than holding proper aim and still missing the target and mismatched equipment will cause that all day long.  Take at least as much trouble to tune his bow as you do your own hunting rig.  It's like fishing.  Start a kid on bluegills and the trout will follow.  There is a certain amount of success needed to keep their attention.

If he's an average 10 year old, anything over about 20 or 25 pounds at his draw is probably too much.  Sure he might be able to pull more but shooting properly with more weight is unlikely.

If all that fails, go ahead and get him a compound.  There's no sin in shooting one.  He can still stump shoot with one too.  Who knows, once he "learns" to shoot with a compound and sights, maybe he'll be able to pick up a trad bow and do better.  If he elects to stick with the compound, you can ease him back into trad for certain activities like bow fishing.  Lots of compound guys switch to a recurve for bow fishing.  He might have so much fun that he'll want to shoot it at other times too.

[Pegg]

Hey Jason
I started my son who is now 10 years old with a compound two years ago. Then he saw me shooting my recurve and longbows. So he wanted to try it. Now when we go to the woods he wants to bring the long bow or recurve. What really helped me was taking him to as many archery shoots as you can. He will see all the different stuff and really like it. Try taking him to a sport shop and give him a compound to put in his hand fully loaded and walk the store a few times and he will see how heavy it gets fast. My son and I shoot both compound and traditional. But the only time the compounds come out is if we are going to sit in a tree stand and the closest shot is 30 yards. Which is not to offen. Good luck and if you want to and does not get it out of his head have him give my son a call. He will tell him and get another idea to him.

Sean

[Ragnarok Forge]

Keep it fun, the compound keeps him shooting then this is a good thing.  

My teenage girls have abandoned ship almost entirely.  My oldest has a compound and a longbow.  The only one she shoots anymore is the longbow.  I figure in a few years they both may take it back up but right now texting and boys are way more important.

[steadman]

My son who is now 11 said the same thing. He then read a couple of books, the rangers apprentice, saw my recurve hanging( I shoot longbows all the time now), and told me he liked the recurve. Thats what he got this year and he loves it. I had planned on buying him a compound, but he changed his mind. If it were me, I would get him the wheel bow. Eventually he will want to try trad. The thing is, if he loves bowhuting, it really doesn't matter what type he shoots, you will have a hunting partner, that's more important than the type of bow he shoots IMHO. Good luck!

[foamkiller]

OMG disown him or put him up for adoption!!!!LOL! If he gets a compound w/sights and has some success hitting what he is trying hit, it will be more beneficial in the long run to keeping him involved in archery. Yes, compounds are archery too. As long as he is shooting a bow it is all right. He doesn't have to be a carbon copy of Dad. If he never picks up a stickbow you still have created an archer. My guess is that after awhile he will pick up the stick.

[KSdan]

Work with his passions. . . there are far more serious areas in life where you will need to draw lines.  I have five kids.  They have all went in various directions, but you see the values of our lives and even my trad hunting as an influence in aspects of their lives.  

My oldest- 24 yrs., and closest to me in regards outdoor experiences, has found his greater passion in trapping and backpacking.  I really never trapped, and only limited packing.  I introduced him to both as he had passion to learn such things.  We live in different parts of the country right now, yet he will call me a few times every week to tell me stories of his trapping and packing adventures.  

Get your boy a compound, or even a gun, and let him have fun.  Even if he never jumps into your world- you may be surprised what comes to maturity in his 20s and 30s.  Teaching him to love what ought to be loved is far more important.  More is caught than taught.    

My 2C

Dan in KS

[FEIK77]

I'm fifteen now and I've been shooting bows since I was 3. I always shot the little selfbows that my dad made for me when i was little, then switched over to an old bear when i got strong enough. When I got old enough to hunt i shot a compound for a couple years and took several deer with it. I just wasn't quite ready to try with a traditional bow and I have no regrets. This past season I used my new recurve and I know I'll never go back to compound even though I didn't get a deer this year. Long story short I would get him a compound cause I bet he will eventually come back to trad. But I would still encourage him to take his Ben Pearson stumping with you, thats what I always did with my dad.

[jacobsladder]

FEIK77...thanks for sharing  

[TimRadke]

That answer would be easy for me... Hunting and archery for me is about making my own decisions and doing things the way I think I want to do them and the way I think they should be done.  I'd give my boy the same opportunity.  (by the way, my boy is due in another 2 months so this piece of wisdom comes from that much experience!)

[Covey]

I think I brain washed my young'un! He's 11 and shoot's a 52" kodiak mag. I've actually asked him several times if he would like to shoot a compound so he could have the let off, maybe make him more comfortable hunting, but he say's he's sticking with the recurve! been shooting one since he was 6. I say let him shoot whatever he want's! as long as he's with you that is all that matter's! father, son in the wood's what could be better!! Jason

[newtradgreenwood]

Quit being a control freak and be glad he wants to do something with you.

[newtradgreenwood]

Quit being a control freak and be glad he wants to do something with you.

[Iron]

Quit being a control freak and be glad he wants to do something with you  

I appreciate advice like that, makes a guy want to come back often.

I think you all have just said what i knew all  along..just needed to hear it from someone else i guess.'

Thanks. Jason

[longbowben]

Let him shoot what HE WANTS.My son is 7 and shooting both.I just want him enjoying himself.My son has taken 3 deer already, and he wants to bow hunt so a compound would help him start earlier.Maybe at 8 he might take he first bow kill.I will be stoked if he did.