Hello...And Choosing a Bow?

[Hunter74]

Well I've had the itch to get more into traditional for quite some time and I believe I'm finally going to follow through with it... I have a old Root recurve that was given to me by an uncle that passed away... I'm pretty good with it but because of the sentimental value I don't mess with it a ton...

So I'm looking into getting a new recurve and I would like to know how a guy goes about choosing one? What sort of things contribute to performance or shootability? What materials give what sort of traits? Are there styles or makes that will outperform most others?

Just for example I've been looking at Black Widow recurves and I like the KB and PA... Now from what I can tell the difference is the KB has a shorter handle and sight window making it a slightly shorter bow overall... What does one gain or loose from this besides the bow being a little more manueverable?

I also had a good friend recommend I look into Dakota bows though he said it would take close to a year to get a bow once ordered... From reading some stuff on this sight I also have an interest in Silvertip and Black-tail bows... So far I love the looks of the Black Widows but they are expensive... So I would like to hear what everyone has to say about them and other bows before I make any decisions...

Thanks in advance

[Bow man]

Welcome to the world of Traditional archery, and to Tradgang.

first of all all the bows you mrntioned are great bows. and there many great bowyers out there. I highly recommend you go to some larger Traditional events with allot of vendors and shoot as many bows as you can. you will know when you find the bow that fits you and feels good to you.  Good luck with your search

[JV Rooster]

X2 what Bow man said.

[katman]

Great advice above. You can also watch the classifieds and pick up bows you want to try at a discount and resell if they are not to your liking.

[LONGSTYKES]

Welcome aboard. Enjoy the the gang. Great recommendation from Bow Man. Good Luck.

[KentuckyTJ]

Welcome from Kentucky

[Whip]

Welcome Joshua!  Where are you located in WI?  If close enough maybe you would like to stop over sometime - I have a number of bows that you could try or at least I can give you some suggestions on the differences between the ones you are considering.
The first outdoor shoot of the season will be coming up the end of this month at Sparta, and there are usually a few vendors around at that one.  Best of all would be to try to make it to Compton in Michigan in June.

If you are close to southern WI shoot me a PM here or give me a call 920-397-0959.

[Brianlocal3]

I can not contribute too much since I'm new to Trad, but I will tell you for me personally I have yet to shoot a bow I did not like.  Being a rookie I guess I don't know better. But I have shot Bw To samick and hit reasonably well with them all.

[Pope Co.]

If your like the rest of us you'll end up with several anyway. I'm a Fred Bear fan, I've bought several vintage Bear's off of ****. In fact I have one that might get here today.

You had another question about overall length of bow. The shorter ones are better out of tree stands and a plus as far manuverability. But they are less forgiving. I'll try to explain. A simple mistake like gripping the bow tightly will cause the bow to move upon release, thus causing a bad shot. This  is worse on a short bow. Any microscopic mistake is accented with short bow. These simple mistakes will happen with a longer bow, but not as bad.

Good luck. This is a great path to follow.

[Hunter74]

Thanks for the warm welcome and advice guys... I am getting exited about this and would love to try several bows out... Heck I'd be more than willing to travel several hours to be able to test a few...

Whip that's a great offer... I live in central WI but I do get down that way from time to time

[Duker]

WELCOME  

[sheephunter]

Different strokes for different folks. I am 100 percent behinds the other who have posted and said to try a number of different bows at a shoot to see what you like. Archery shlots are great for that. Many times, others will let you shoot their personal bows to get a fell for the product if a vendor is not around. I know I have. For an afforsable start, I agree with Pope. Bear bows can be found for great prices and shoot very well.

[maineac]

I would agree with what has already been posted.  When I jumped in I ordered a bow from a decent bowyer and really enjoyed the bow and the journey.  Since then I have added some longbows, which I also love, maybe a little more than the recurve, though I just bought another recurve.  

The heavy riser of recurves,especially takedowns, add to stability and consistency for some, as does length As Pope said.  The best idea is to try as many as you can before committing to one custom made for you.  To start I would recommend watching the classifieds here for a couple of weeks to get some ideas on prices and styes of bows.  Get a reasonably priced one that meets your budget and tastes.  Then practice a lot and work on form.  Once you get your form down you should be able to shoot any bow you end up deciding on.  Or like most of us, you will end up with several to play with.

[Hunter74]

Thanks for all the input so far guys... Keep it coming...

Looks like I'm gonna need to track down some bows to try... So so far what I'm hearing is decide on what feels best... Performance is going to be similar between any of the top bowyers and shootability is really going to come down to what feels good to me?

[Hunter74]

Whip.. I meant to send you pm but I think I sent you an email instead... Thanks again

[awbowman]

From a guy that went through this two years ago, and not to sound like a broken record, but

1)  Shoot as many bows as you can.  You will eventually hit on a grip that just FITS you and it will make all the difference in the world in performance and accuracy.

2)  Seriously think about a used bow for your first bow.  You can always upgrade later, but you can begin fairly quickly and start enjoying the trad bow. A used trad bow is just about the best value out there  ....  and WITHOUT THE WAIT.

3)  Find someone to help you with form and arrow selection.  You cannot shoot well/consistent without both being made as efficient as can be.

4)  Do not "overbow" yourself with too much poundage.  Overbowing will cause problems with developing proper form.

5)  Don't become discouraged, the trad bow is the greatest weapon on earth, but it does require a commitment to become AND STAY proficient .... although proper form will take you far.

6)  Finally ALWAYS enjoy the trad bow.  If you aren't, put it away for a while.

[Hunter74]

Another question I have is how common is it for a recurve to have more of a low wrist grip?

I was looking at a collection a guy had and I didn't shoot any but I picked up several of them just to look closer... One thing I noticed is the couple that had a more low wrist grip automatically felt more natural in my hand...

How many of you that have gone from shooting a compound with a good narrow low wrist grip have found you prefer a more low wrist (or straight type grip such as on a Longbow) in traditional tackle as well?

Or is it really an entirely different animal to where you generally want a fat high wrist grip for proper form and shooting with traditional tackle?

[JamesKerr]

Welcome! The only way I know to see what bow you will like best is just to shoot them all.

[Sixby]

The first guitar I bought was a brand new 1963 Fender jAGUAR. i never regretted it. There are lots of ways to look at things. I have always loved the best.


God bless you all, Steve

[Sam McMichael]

Well, you have certainly gotten a lot of good advice on your recurve selection. Good luck with the search. Now in a couple of years, you will also get a yearning for the longbow, and you can take this wonderful journey again.

I can't help you too much with recurve  selection (my only really nice recurve is an old Red Wing Hunter), but when you start looking at longbows, I can chime in with a useful tidbit or two.

Welcome to the Trad Gang campfire. You will enjoy this.