Archery Compound
What is a great Recurve/Compound bow to learn with?
I am interested in learning archery, not so much for hunting as for sharp shooting. Seeing as I am completely new to this field, I have no idea what reputable brands are, whether I should pick a recurve or a compound bow, and once I've decided that, how to pick the right model for me (height, pounds). Any advice?
For a beginner I always like recurve better than compound. You can go from recurve to compound with no problem but the reverse is not always true. Although, Brady Ellison started with a compound and now on his way to the Beijing Olympics. But he's an exception to the rule.
Another thing to factor in is, what are your aspirations? Do you want to perhaps go to the Olympics one day? If so, then your only option is to go recurve, there's no compound in the Olympics. As for there are more competition in recurve, this is not really true. There are just as much competition in compound if not more. Specially here in the US, more people shoot compound than recurve, during tournaments even on the NAA side of things, there are as many compound shooters as recurvers. NFAA is bound to have a lot more compound than recurvers.
Now bow brands, for recurve, Win&Win/KAP, Samick, Hoyt are all good brands. Compound you have Matthews, Hoyt, PSE, Bowtech etc. There are 2 schools of thoughts on this. You can buy a beginner bow and test out the water, see if archery is for you, if it is you upgrade to get the best model if not you sell it. Or you can go all out and buy the best model and it'll stay with you forever, if it doesn't work out the best model will fetch better resale value. It's all up to you.
As others say, find a club near you. If you're in the US go to www.usarchery.org. Under Directory Search you can do search by state. Some club will also offer equipment for you to use, this way you can also test the water, see if you're into it.
The length of the bow depends on your drawlength, the weight though, if you start with recurve, it doesn't matter how strong you are I always like to start people with very light bows 20# and under. It might feel like nothing to you, but when you start using the proper muscles, it'll begin to feel like a lot of weight. You see, in day to day activity you rarely use the proper archery muscles. Most people don't even know those muscles exist, somewhat akin to wiggling your ears. This is specially important if you want to do target shooting as you said. Start too heavy and you'll be pulling with your arms and shoulder, the parts that are strong. Although they're strong they're not meant for the fine movements required in target shooting. So pulling with them will result in large jerky motions. Good luck, and welcome to the wonderful world of archery.
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