Help with a recurve
 

I' m wanting to start shooting traditional, not really for hunting purposes, just messing around in the yard. I have a really old, but looks to be good condition recurve. It says shakespeare wonderbow- necedah model X26. It' s 55# @ 28" and I want to know what spine arrows I should shoot out of it once I figure my draw(guessing it will be shorter than my compound draw length) Is there a table I can look to, I' m guessing the draw will be around 28-29" . Also is there anything special about tuning or setting the nock point. 1/4" above square? Would I be better finding wood arrows to shoot or just shooting aluminums. Thanks in advance for any help.

RE: Help with a recurve
 

There are guys that slobber over the old Shakespeare Necedah. They' re too short for my 32" draw length, so I' ve never shot one. Go to www.bowjackson.com and click on Arrow Shaft Charts. Then look at the Easton Legacy chart. That' s the best chart going for aluminum arrows on trad bows.

Some people are allergic to shooting anything but wood out of a trad bow, but I think aluminum is a better arrow for someone just starting out. Aluminum is as close to perfectly consistent as you can get. Carbon is right behind. Wood takes a lot of work to get arrows perfectly matched for spine and weight.

Tuning a trad bow involves correct arrow spine, adjusting the nock point and adjusting the brace height to your shooting form. I usually wind up with my nock set 1/2" above square, but where your nock will wind up depends entirely on your shooting style, arrow selection and the bow' s tiller. Generally between 3/8" and 1/2" is a good starting point for tuning.

Shooting a stickbow isn' t rocket science or wizardry. It' s simple but subtle at the same time. Enjoy the ride. :)

RE: Help with a recurve
 

Not much I could add to what Arthur said--not much about traditional archery is set in stone, just work with it and you will find out what works best for you.

Chad

RE: Help with a recurve
 

ICS 500 carbon, cut it to 30" with a 125 grain field point. I use a 30" ICS 500 in my 52# bow and a 29" in my 56# bow ... I absolutely love them. I add weight tubes and they go about 500 grains. I can almost promise these bad boys will shoot out of your bow with not much tuning.