I gotta say Checkmate too. I' ve got a couple of Checkmates that are going to be on my short list for inclusion on the Santa list.

Don' t be too afraid of the old recurves. Yep, they can break but heck, even your new Mathews can break. Even a warranty won' t keep a bow from breaking. Find an old Pearson or Shakespeare. Most are not collectable and they' re quite reasonably priced. As long as they' re in decent condition, they' ll shoot.

Or... When I get the hankering for a new bow and don' t have even two pennies to rub against each other, I make a selfbow. Lots of instructional websites on the ' net!

That' s the neat thing about trad. You can spend a boatload of money if you want to, but you can also go all-out primitive, make all your stuff from things you pick up in the woods, and shoot arrows without spending a nickle.