Inexpensive Recurve/Long Bow

A decent recurve can be had for a lot less than a compound. Like in the $150-200 range. If that's still too much, I'd scope out some pawn shops or thrift shops. Some archery shops might have some used ones as well.
Carbon arrows run about $40/6 arrows. I'm not sure about wood right now, but I imagine it's cheaper than that.
Long nows are a different animal, you don't see them as often. Long bows can be expensive, but I'm sure you could find them too

If you're at all interested, you can actually make your own recurve bow with very few tools and minimal cost. My brother-in-law is 16 years old, decided he wanted to start making bows about a year ago, and is currently working on his sixth or so. His parents are anything but rich, and I think he uses about five or six basic tools (no power tools) from start to finish. Also, the bows are remarkably well made. He shoots just as well with his homemade bows as either of us can shoot with my Bear Charge compound. I can get you the info he uses (a professional bowyer posts a blog online with instructions, iirc) if you're up to the task.

rodwha said:

That's reasonable! I thought they started around $300 for a cheesy bow.

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That's true of compounds, but not recurves. Decent compounds stripped bare start around $300. By the time you add the components for a "ready-to-hunt" package you're in the $500 range just for the most basic of bows.
Recurves are much more economical.

rodwha said:

Any cheaper brands to steer clear of or look for?

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Not sure about any cheaper brands, but you're pretty safe if you stick with companies like PSE, Bear, Martin, etc.

Just FYI though, you mentiond 50#, which you'll be able to find no problem, but 60# is usually the top weight on recurves. Very different from compounds, there's no let off, so you hold the full weight for your entire draw.
I'm sure you know that already, having shot some recurves already, but if you weren't pulling 50# before, I'd definitely try it before you buy. That's a lot on a recurve. You still want it to be fun to shoot!

You might want to to look at "three rivers archery" they have pretty much any thing you need for traditional archery , including books on how to make your own bow, and both completed arrows and supplies to make your own.

Dan

Isn't 45# about the least one would want to use for hunting medium game?

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I've always been told that an ethical, skilled hunter could use a 30# recurve and have no problem with deer.

Samick Sage is the go to inexpensive trad bow of the day. They have been around for a little while and have a good reputation in their market area.

earlthegoat2 said:

Samick Sage is the go to inexpensive trad bow of the day. They have been around for a little while and have a good reputation in their market area.

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That was my BIL's first recurve, the one that made him want to start building them himself. The Sage is a takedown bow, but it was very affordable (about $150-175 iirc), and its a very nice, accurate bow. It would be my first choice in a recurve if I was looking to get into trad archery.

Whenever I'm at a garage sale and there's a stick bow on the table. I black out until I'm five or six blocks away;when I get home, I find that the stick bow has stowed away with me, and my wallet is $40-50 dollars lighter. I've grabbed some nice Bears, Damon-Howetts, Pearsons, and always for less than either retail, or the 'tag' price.

Inspect such bows carefully before buying, since you don't know whether they were abused or damaged in a previous life. Buy up any gear that might be on the table too, if you can get it cheap enough.

I bought my Bear off of Ebay (it is a 70's vintage model). I found a seller who wanted a fair price, had good feedback, and was willing to send me lots of detailed pics.

If you buy a newer bow, you can put a more modern string on it. I know some of the newer strings are not recommended for older bows.

I like the old Bears because not only were they well made, they are easy on the eyes as well.

I have a couple of older Brownings that I picked up in pawnshops for next to nothing, around $40. Both work fine. Georgia was the last state to leagalize compound bows, so into the 1980's recurves or longbows were the only option here. I didn't own anything but a Ben Pearson 45# bow I got for Christmas when I was 16. At that time 40# was the legal minimum weight. They don't even list a legal minimum now in the regs.

While I have a couple of modern bows, I still prefer using the old Brownings. They are at least 40-50 years old but work fine.

Many older Archers, myself included, still possess the bows that they started with. With this in mind, find a guy willing to part with his "first bow". When I started serious archery, compounds were merely a pipe dream and bow makers were few and far between. My Bear Grizzley still hangs where I see it most days and I made my first ever archery kill with this bow and a cedear arrow that I made. There are lots of bows around an Archery Shop, because they take bows "in trade". There would be my first place to start looking.

rodwha said:

I'm typically leery of buying used as I don't know how it's been taken care of.

I know that a bow needs to be unstrung, and stowed horizontal.

Are take down bows sturdy? I'd think it would be a weak point. I had never seen one in a traditional design. I'm kinda partial to a solid bow I think.

I've recently joined tradgang as a member here recommended it. Nice site! Thanks!

Nice to know about Samick Sage bows. At first glance I figured them likely one to avoid, as the cheapest tend to lack quality.

I also checked out 3 Rivers. Thanks! I found how to get an estimated draw length (27.7"), and so I see the average (28") will work great.

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I believe that it is a toss up, as far as opinions and experience goes, as to whether a recurve needs to be kept unstrung or strung. I keep mine strung almost always, as I have talked to people and read accounts of folks who keep their bows constantly strung with no loss of draw weight or twist in the bow. Just like a magazine spring, it seems that bow twist has a direct corrollation between the number of times a bow is bent/unbent. Keeping a bow in the same position all the time shouldn't hurt anything at all. YMMV.

Can't get much cheaper than DIY. Appropos of nothing, here's a YouTube channel for a guy that makes his own PVC bows. If nothing else, it's entertaining:

http://www.youtube.com/user/BackyardBowyer

I've been wanting to get back into archery (last did it as a teen) and have been wondering the same thing. Specifically I'd like a long bow for less than the $800+ range of the yew self bows. Maybe something that has a long bow style but is made of more durable and cheaper fiberglass? I am worried about breaking something that expensive, for sure.

Regarding take-down bows' durability, I would expect that to be a weak point too. My BIL's Samick Sage (takedown) is nearly two years old. He shoots it on a weekly basis and has since he bought it. I've not heard him mention any issues at all, and I haven't noticed any myself. The locking bolts still go on tightly and haven't loosened at all. Seems as good as the day he bought it.

I have a Samick Sage. It's a great bow. the nice thing about them is you can start with lower weight limbs then upgrade as your skills progress. the limbs you've outgrown will sell quickly on eBay.

there's the samick sage and the martin jaguar that I know of. I'm sure there are others from fred bear and pse. medievalcollectibles.com has some other off brand stuff that's pretty interesting. It all depends on what you want.

There are a number of online vendors of "U-finish" longbows. I got this 50# hickory longbow last year from gibow.com. I just had to do some light final sanding and then finished it with a couple coats of Watco Danish Oil topped with Sno-Seal. I also made a leather arrow rest and added the strike plate, and served the string with some artificial sinew.



It's a very nice shooter and dead silent. It cost about $65.

I have a 40# Ben Pearson and 45# Bear recurves that I have had for a long time. I hunted with the 40# years ago. I was 14 then.

I have a #45 Bear Kodiak Magnum I got free from my uncle bought in the 80's.
Very nice bow for me. I don't know how much they can be found for though.

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Nice bow dave markowitz