Archery gear, for beginners
The number one question I get as an archery instructor is how do I get started, followed by what bow should I buy. Here are some simple answers, this is what you need to buy:
Bows:
Kids 7-10 years, a recurve bow, 14-20 pound "draw weight" (how hard it is to pull the string back), 45 inch in length. This is a "real bow" that you can actually hit a target with, not the toy bows they sell at Target. This is a fine bow for all ages, adults can (and should) start learning on this bow, it's much easer to learn to shoot on a low draw weight bow.
Here are some examples, either from Amazon or at least you'll know what to ask for at Bass Pro Shop:
Martin XR Recurve Bow Kit
Crosman Archery Sentinel Youth Recurve Bow
Teen age to adult bows, you need to be taller and stronger to handle these:
PSE Razorback Recurve Bow
Ragim Wildcat Jr 54" 16#
Ragim 2013 Ragim Wildcat Jr 58" 22#
Ragim Wildcat PLUS Takedown Recurve Bow Complete Archery Set
Samick Sage Takedown Recurve Bow
Arrows:
To start, you'll lose arrows, so go with a bunch of cheap Fiberglass 28 inch arrows, they work well for kids 7-12. Once they get older and have longer arms, step up to a 29 or 30 inch aluminum arrow. The Easton Jazz 29 inch 1816 is a great all around arrow, for teens or women or average men. If you're a bigger guy step up to the Jazz 30 inch 1916 arrow.
Wizard Archery Fiberglass Target Practice Arrows
Feather Fletched Easton XX75 Jazz Aluminum Arrows
My goal here is to get you answers to get you started, not to provide a complete education on the world of archery, types of arrows and bows or how to shoot. There's lots of YouTube videos that can help you along. I've not personally owned or shot all of the gear above, but most I have, I'm familiar with the brands and items and it gives you some choices to compare.
What I use and recommend is Ragim bows (Wildcat Jr 58 inch, 22 pound, great all around bow) and Easton 1816 29 inch arrows. I also use Martin bows (Saber 60 inch, 40 pound draw) and a few other Ragim and Martin models. My son started with the Martin XR when he was 7.
One confusing term I will point out is "takedown bows". This just means it comes apart. And "compound bows". Avoid these (the ones with the pulley systems at each end), they are expensive, complicated and send arrows way off into the brush where you'll never find them. Not good for learning.
What else you need:
All you "need" is a bow stringer (ask Youtube how to use this). You may also want a target, a quiver, an arm guard and a glove or finger tab. And somewhere to shoot. If you don't have an instructor handy you certainly can learn on your own, watch some "how to" videos on Youtube to see the proper way to nock and release an arrow.
Your first question after you get the bow is where do I put it so it doesn't get broken. Get a hard case. Archery gear is easy to damage if not stored and transported correctly. Spend $20 now rather than a lot more to fix your broken bow later. And it's great to have a grab and go case, with bow, arrows and quiver together.
Condition 1 #759 40" Black Hard Rifle Case (looks good, I've not used it)
Flambeau Outdoors Tactical AR Case, Large (I have several, I can fit 2 smaller bows in it)
Youth Archery Arrow Target
I started out just labeling everything with a Sharpie, now I use a Dymo to label and number each arrow, so I can tell if a certain arrow is not flying right. And the length of each arrow, makes in easier to grab the correct arrows. However, there's still some reasons to use the Sharpie, people can just peel off labels and take your gear, harder to do that when it's marked with a Sharpie, and it takes far less time to mark a dozen arrows that it does to make and apply labels.
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