Go over and post this very same question on the Traditional board on this site and see what the answers will be.

There is absolutely no doubt you could be ready to hunt by October if you got a recurve now, if you are willing to put in the time and dedication to become proficient.

As far as recurves, there are tons that you can get totally outfitted for under $400, and some are top quality, specifically the Chekmate line. Having said that, there tend to be a very long wait time for a custom built recurve or longbow, so you may not get a custom in time to get accustomed to it.

Like I said, click over to the trad board and ask those guys. Many of them never post over here in the bowhunting forum and probably would not see it.