Top Tips for Choosing the Best Recurve Bow
The sport of archery has recently gained immense popularity. The popularity of a recurve bow is partly due to the fact that it was the weapon of choice for Katniss Everdeen, the heroine of The Hunger Games. The right choice of bow and arrows for your body and purpose, together with coaching and practice, can make you able to consistently and accurately hit targets.
How to Select the Best Recurve Bow?
Decide on the Purpose
Recurve bows are used for one of these two purposes:
- Target archery
- Hunting
Bows used for both these purposes are essentially the same, but there is one basic difference – the draw weight. Draw weight is the amount of power required to draw the bow. Decide what you will use the bow for, target archery or hunting. Visit https://getrecurvebow.com to get a lot of information on recurve bows and comprehensive reviews of various brands.
For hunting, your bow should have a higher draw weight.
Select a Suitable Draw Weight
A bow’s draw weight correlates to how forcefully you should pull so as to draw the string on the bow back. To decide your ideal draw weight, a beginner adult should start from 18 to 24lbs of draw weight. Children should start with lower than this.
Selecting a low draw weight will give you less power and speed in your shooting but will enable you to have proper technique and form.
If you are a beginner, start with a lighter bow regarding the draw weight. Don’t go for a bow that’s too difficult to pull back. If you find it too easy, move up a weight.
Younger people need to also select a lower draw weight.
Bow Length
Select a bow length that when kept on the ground sits with the top end’s limb between your forehead and nose. There are different lengths available in bows. The average adult and teenager should choose a 66 or 68 inch bow.
Do You Want a Take-down Bow?
A take-down bow can be dismantled for easy transport. Two limbs of the bow can be separated from the rest of the bow. This also allows easy servicing.
A take-down bow even makes the draw weight flexible. You don’t have to purchase an entire new bow if you want to increase your draw weight. You just have to buy new limbs for the bow.
Try Out Various Bows
Before you buy a bow, it’s always a good idea to try it out so as to understand if you can hold and shoot it. You will get many sample brands and styles in your local archery shop to try out and then choose the best recurve bow for you.
Choosing Arrows
Find Your Draw Length
Draw length is the length to which your arm can draw the bow string back to shoot an arrow. Spread your arms on either side of your body holding them parallel to the ground. Let someone measure the accurate length in inches from the tip of the middle finger of one hand to that of the other hand. Divide this number by 2.5 and that’s your approximate draw length. But before you buy anything, a professional should check this.
The length of your arrow should be 1-2 inches more than your draw length.
Arrow Weight and Material
Arrows are mostly made of carbon or fiberglass because of which they are relatively light. The weight of an arrow’s shaft is important. The heavier the shaft, the deeper will the arrow sink in the target. If you will be using the arrow for shooting practice, you don’t need arrows with heavier shafts. However, if you want to use them for hunting, you will need a heavier shaft.
During your practice, you will learn a lot of other things about using a recurve bow and arrows including gathering other equipment, finding the right stance and more. Choose just the right recurve bow and arrows with these tips and enjoy archery.
