How to Buy a Recurve Bow

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12-02-2018, 07:00
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Recurve bows have a characteristic bend in the limbs, away from the archer. These are used in the Olympic games and by many archers that want a traditional look. They were historically used by many groups including Persians, Romans, Greeks, Mongols, and the Chinese. Recurves are a great option for starting archery, but can be confusing at first glance. This article will help you buy your bow and choose your accessories.

Defining Your Recurve

  1. Choose a discipline. You can shoot a recurve many different ways, but the most distinctive are Olympic recurve/freestyle and barebow/traditional. When shooting Olympic recurve, you will attach a sight, clicker, plunger, stabilizer, and other accessories to make your bow as accurate as possible when target shooting. If you want to shoot barebow, you will shoot off the shelf of your recurve and will not have a sight. This is a more traditional style and may appeal more to some people.
    • If you wish to hunt, Olympic recurve style bows are not suitable for this task as they are too tall. You will want a shorter bow, usually, a wooden takedown recurve. The Samick Sage and the Martin Jaguar are examples.
  2. Determine your budget. The most expensive recurves can go to about $2000. An entry-level takedown recurve will cost you $130 and an entry-level ILF (international limb fitting) bow for Olympic style will be around $300. You will need around $200 more for accessories such as finger tabs/gloves, arm guards, quivers, nocking points, a stringer tool,  arrows, and a target.
    • If you want to have a full Olympic recurve setup, you’ll also need a quality sight, stabilizer, clicker, and plunger.
  3. Know about draw weight. This is how many pounds it takes to draw back the string and is commonly referred to with a # (25# means 25-pound draw weight). Adult beginners should start at 20-30# no matter how fit they are, as archery uses muscles not exercised in other activities. Children and teens should start even lower at 15-20#.
    • Higher draw weights allow the arrow to be more accurate over long distances.
    • Many people have draw weight egos, which means that want to start off with a high draw weight. They later find out that it is too heavy and need to buy another set of limbs/bow. Don't be this person!
  4. Find your draw length. Put your arms out and have someone measure them from the tips of your middle finger to your other middle finger. Divide that number by 2.5 to get your draw length. When choosing arrows, you'll need to add 1-2 inches onto this number to buy the correct length of arrows.
  5. Choose a bow size. This will be in correlation to your draw length. If you have a large draw length, you will need a larger bow. Otherwise, the bow will stack (it will not pull evenly and become difficult to reach an anchor point). Most bows are weighted at the number of pounds pulled at a 28-inch draw weight. If your draw length is less, you will be pulling less draw weight on your bow and vice versa if your draw weight if longer.
    • These are all ideal lengths, but not necessary to follow exactly.
    • If your draw length is 20-22 inches, get a 54-inch bow.
    • If your draw length is 22-24 inches, get a 62-inch bow.
    • If your draw length is 24-26 inches, get a 64 to 66-inch bow.
    • If your draw length is 26-28 inches, get a 66 to 68-inch bow.
    • If your draw length is 28-30 inches, get a 68 to 70-inch bow.
    • Higher, and get 68-72 inch bow.
  6. Know your eye dominance. This is important to aim your bow. Make a triangle with your index fingers and thumbs. Center as object at least 15 feet away and close your left eye. If the object remains in the center, you are right-eye dominant. If the object moves out of the center, you are left eye dominant. Most people will choose their bow based on their dominant eye rather than their dominant hand.
    • If you are cross dominant, that is you have a different dominant eye and dominant hand, you have two choices. You can choose a bow based on your dominant eye and learn to shoot that way, or use an eye patch to cover up your dominant eye and use your dominant hand instead.
  7. Choose your bow's limb and riser material. Aluminum, wood, carbon, and magnesium are used for risers. Wood and carbon risers are typically very light and will need additional stabilization. A wood and fiberglass mix is used for most cheap limbs while higher-end ones will use bamboo.

Setting Up Your Recurve and Choosing Accessories

  1. Bolt on the limbs for a takedown recurve. Slide the limbs into the riser slots. Use the bolts provided to screw the limbs in. Some can be done by hand, but others will need a hex wrench.
    • If you are having trouble getting the limbs in, try putting the bolts on the limbs first and then putting it in the riser.
  2. Know how to string your bow. You will need to purchase a stringer tool to avoid twisting the limbs of your recurve and/or voiding any warranty. Put the string on your limbs with the bottom loop in place and the top loop as high as you can comfortably get it. Put one pocket of your stringer tool on the bottom loop and the other pocket/rubber block as close to the top loop as possible. Step on the stringer and pull upwards sliding the top loop in as you pull.
    • If you are having trouble, step on the string with two feet.
    • Pull the string about an inch and release to make sure the string is seated properly. Don't pull any further as that would be a dry-fire.
    • It's best to also unstring your bow after you're done. This isn't necessary since most bows are made of modern materials that prevent limb setting, but it's good to have the peace of mind knowing that nobody will be able to pick up your bow and dry-fire it.
  3. Put on a plastic arrow rest or fur shelf rest. These are anywhere from $2-8. The rest is used to give your arrow a consistent spot to be placed and prevents it from falling. It is used by both Olympic archers and barebow archers. You can also use a fur shelf rest and a strike plate (barebow) to shoot off the shelf of your riser. Both will have adhesives to attach them to your riser.
    • You can shoot vanes and feathers off of a plastic rest, but with a fur rest, you'll need to use feathers. Vanes will deflect off the riser and be inaccurate.
  4. Add nocking points. These are usually metal pieces meant to be put on your string to prevent the arrow from sliding upwards. Use pliers to attach them about 1/4 inch above your shelf/plastic rest. You can use an arrow to approximate this or buy a bow square.
    • Many archers also tie their own nocking points using thread or floss. Run the thread/floss through some type of glue before tying. Tie one knot on each side of the string alternating until you feel it is large enough. Singe the ends using a lighter/match to melt the glue and make the nocking point last longer.
  5. Add string silencers. Your bowstring will slap the limbs when you shoot. Silencers go on the string to prevent this smacking noise. You should attach these when hunting to avoid frightening your game. You can also use dampeners which serve the same purpose.
    • You can make your own by wrapping yarn on the limbs to serve the same purpose. However, it may not look as good.
  6. Put on any additional bow accessories. Most recurve risers have holes for a plunger, stabilizer, clicker, bow fishing reel, and sight. You can attach these using Allen wrenches and screwdrivers, which may or may not be provided. Follow the instructions the manufacturer includes.
  7. Wax the string when necessary. Buy bowstring wax to keep your bowstring functional for longer. Whenever the string begins to get dry, apply some wax. Rub the string with your fingers to get it warm. Rub the wax in liberally to get it in all of the strands. Clear off the excess by wrapping a thread around and pulling it off.
    • Do this after a practice when you notice the string is dry.
    • String waxes typically come similar to a chapstick tube or a small circular container.
  8. Choose the right arrows for your bow. You will need to find the correct spine, length, fletching, grains, nocks, and material for your bow. You should spend a good amount for arrows if you want to be accurate. After all, the arrows are the ones hitting the target, aren't they?
    • Getting an arrow with too weak of a spine will not fly straight. If the arrow is way too flexible, it is equal to a dry-fire in terms of stress on the limbs.
    • Never shoot a damaged arrow. You could end up with an arrow in the hand or worse.
  9. Decide on a finger tab/shooting glove. Olympic archers use tabs, while most barebow/traditional archers use shooting gloves. The cheapest finger tabs are a piece of leather with a finger hole. More expensive tabs have a metal plate, spacer, anchor plate, and a pinky rest. Shooting gloves cover only your index, middle, and ring fingers and are connected to your wrist.
    • Finger tabs give you more accuracy as your fingers are all on the same surface.
  10. Buy an armguard. These go on the arm holding the bow and protect the forearm against the string. Sometimes when you shoot, the string will slap your arm if your elbow is over-extended. The armguard will protect against this.
  11. Choose your style of quiver. You can use a field, hip, or back quiver. Hip quivers are worn on a belt and give you easy access to your arrows although they bump around while walking. Field quivers are like a hip quiver that faces backward preventing the arrows from catching on bushes or people. Back quivers are ideal for hunters as they won’t bump around although poorly made ones will make it difficult to reach for an arrow.
    • You can also make your own quiver.
  12. Buy or make a target. Targets come in 3-D animal, block, pyramid, and bag types. They can get quite expensive, so you might want to make your own. Fill a handmade bag with old clothes (remove zippers and buttons), plastic bags, cardboard, old carpet, or foam blocks.
  13. Get a good-quality string. Most bows ship with a Dacron B-50 bowstring. While there's nothing wrong with it, other strings are better quality and add more speed to your arrow flight. Fast Flight strings have modern materials that increase the arrow speed. Endless loop strings and Flemish are other types on the market. Strings all have different material make-ups and it's up to you which one you want to use.
    • If your string serving (the extra layer of material on some parts of the bowstring) is unraveling, you can buy a jig and fix it yourself, or get it fixed by a shop. You won't need to get a new string if this happens.
    • Don't shoot a damaged string. It could break resulting in injury to yourself or others. If the string has mild fraying, you can wax it and shoot it. However, fraying indicates that the string hasn't been cared for in quite a while, so you might want to replace it.

Tips

  • Go to a range or club to learn basic archery form and get help choosing your bow and accessories.
  • Learn to shoot a recurve bow. Bows are not exactly cheap or just toys; practice with rentals or take classes beforehand to make sure you can handle a recurve bow.
  • Don't choke the riser in a death grip. Hold it in the pad between your index and thumb fingers.
  • Touch a spot on your face everytime you pull the string back. This is called an anchor point and it helps you be accurate. Recommended anchor points are the cheekbone or bottom of the jaw (near your ear) since these bony parts of your face never move.
  • You will get what you pay for if you buy cheaper bows.
  • Don't get a fiberglass youth recurve. They are inaccurate and don't have the same appeal.
  • If you want to save money, try making a PVC bow.
  • You don't need a very expensive plunger or clicker to start out. Having one is better than having none.
  • Go for plastic arrow rests vs magnetic ones. They are a fraction of the price and offer more accuracy. Even archers competing in the Olympics use stick on rests for about $2.50.
  • Try to get a good-quality sight to start out. It can be used forever and you won't get frustrated with an expensive one.

Warnings

  • Recurve bows are not toys. They can seriously harm or kill people and animals.
  • Only shoot in a safe area and away from people, property, and pets. Before you raise your bow, always announce that you are about to shoot.
  • Don't dry-fire your bow (fire it without an arrow). This may cause the limbs to break and snap back on you!
  • If you don't plan on shooting your bow, don't draw it. You never know when you can accidentally fire.
  • Have a backstop to your target in case you miss. A hanging sheet or net is good.
  • Do not shoot with a damaged string, limb, riser, or arrows.
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