Need help getting started....
 

A friend of mine is wanting to jump right in and get started...with me shooting a compound, I suggested we come here and get his answers. Thank you in advance for the help....
Recurve questions... I just ordered a pse coyote recurve(60" length 55lbs), bow tip protector, string keeper, shooting glove, and bear hair rest.

My questions are:

What type of arrow to go with? Cedar? Carbon? or Alum.? I know most recurve shooters(the ones I've seen) use wood (I assume cedar) why?

If I go with the cedar I'll have to use the tapper tool to tapper the shaft for nocks and broadheads..... is this a difficult process or something any moron can master in minutes?

Now lets go to broadheads.... What do you suggest????

Then comes the quiver.... the recurve, side, or back?

Along with the new hardware I'm gonna need a new 3d target... so I thought about ordering the Mckenzie hd medium deer, any other suggestions, cause those are a bit pricey......and the replacement sections aren't cheap.....

THANKS AGAIN!!!!

RE: Need help getting started....
 

Not sure on the arrows and broadheads to get. Its mostly just a personal choice though if your gonna use a newer style bow like the pse coyote you may just want to just use some aluminum's with it.

I do not think the bear hair rest will work on it cause its set up to use a bolt on arrow rest just like a compound bow. A flipper rest might be your best choice. PSE makes a bolt on quiver that works fine with that bow.

If your friend really likes shooting recurves he may want to look into getting a custom made wooden bow. I think they are much better.

RE: Need help getting started....
 

Hey earlybird, welcome, it's good to see you here.

First things first, have you ever shot a bow before? Either way, I'd suggest you call and cancel your order on the PSE @55#. There are too many things that go into the length and weight of a bow for each individual and in my opinion it's too much bow for a newcomer to start with. As a matter of fact, I'd even say this to an experienced compound shooter, but I'd recommend going with a bow that is 35-40# at your true draw length which needs to be measured. Go used and cheap as possible on a good used recurve. The reason I say this is that in order to shoot traditional equipment, you need to develope good and consistent shooting techniques like how you stand while shooting, how you hold the bow, how you grip and release the string, your anchor and so on. These things must be mastered before you can start to become consistently accurate with the bow and starting with too much weight can and will cause bad habits that will make accuracy near impossible and then you aren't having fun anymore and the passion goes away and you either drop out of archery all together or never become any good at it. I recommend you go to an archery shop, preferably a trad shop, and have your draw measured. If they have some good used recurves that aren't real expensive, buy one. Otherwise go to ebay or many of the online classifieds and find a bow that is lite in weight so you can learn properly.

Once you have your bow, you'll also need an arm guard. Nothing like a good string slap or two on the arm to get your attention. Finger protection in the form of a glove or tab. Bow stringer unless you want to break the bow or twist a limb. A quiver is whatever will hold your arrows. I like a back quiver for practice, some like side quivers on the belt and others like the Lakota (plains indian style)quiver. Once you have your draw length measured and the bow you can figure what the approx. #dage is at your draw or you can have it weighed at your draw. Then you can start thinking about an arrow. I know all this sounds complicated, but it's actually pretty easy compared to what someone has to go through with a compound.

If you have a range nearby, check it out and check out the club that operates the range. If there are any traditional shooters there, ask for help. Most will gladly offer their experience and help you start off in the right direction.

Oh, I'd recommend canceling your bow order anyway, even if you were an experienced archer. Mainly because unless the people that make the bow (it's imported) for PSE have changed the limb design, it's just plain dangerous. I witnessed one that was a few months old, blow up at a 3D shoot. On the other hand, there are those who stand behind them, so I guess like anything else, it's who you talk to.

Any of the arrow materials will do. Taper tools are a breeze if you get a good one. Broadheads are for experienced shooters. Learn to shoot first, you'll thank youself in the longrun. But, to somewhat answer your question, the one that shoots most accurately for you. That's why I say to learn to shoot first. Any of the 3D targets are good, but I prefer the ones that are cheap to buy. That way it don't matter if you shoot them up. Once you have the basics of shooting down and are getting pretty consistently accurate on the ground, practice just like your going to be hunting. If in a tree to hunt, get in a tree to practice. As your experience with the bow increases you will learn what your self imposed shooting range will be while hunting and you should stick to it. Letting deer run around looking like porcupines because of all the arrows sticking in them, is not a good thing. :) Sorry about the length here. It's real difficult to actually put it all down so I know there will be others coming along with similar or completely different thoughts on this and remember, it is a load of fun if you don't take it too seriously.

RE: Need help getting started....
 

good stuff Wahya! Getting your tapers on wood arrows is the key to getting proper nock alignment. It sounds simple enuf but you would be amazed at the amount of folks with nocks on sideways!

As for arrows, mainly its a matter of choice. Imo getting a goldtip is MUCH easier FOR ME to get to fly then a cedar. Knowing what I know now getting woods to fly isnt all that hard. I like the looks of wood more then the coal black goldtips, the smell of cedar etc etc. Why Cedar, well its one of the better woods to mill, it stays fairly straight, has a fairly straight grain etc......There are other types of woods that make a great arrow out there...some are and haven been proven better then cedar as an arrow but maybe harder to make. I have heard stories and really dont have much to back it. I can attest to shooting sitka spruce shafts (top notch shaft imo!), Barrel tapered ash, and parrell cedars...all of them flew great, stayed straight and were from moderetly tought to down right rebar! I could literly shoot my ash at rocks as long as it hit it dead on and didnt ricochet the arrow would more often then not bounce off! Cedars...well they will snap if ya try it out of a heavier bow but it can be done. I am shooting cedars, mainly because its whats out there, cheap, good, and easy to get, plus the smell. Pick what ya want or have at hand! If ya get woods get the best ya can afford!!!

Taper tools..if ya have a disc sander you can buy/make a jig to do both nock and point tapers. You could buy a woodchuck taper tool but for a beginner I would recommend either the whiffen style pencil sharpner looking taper tool or, of the two I would recommend first, would be the true center taper tool. Get a couple shafts to fart around with. It can be a bear to setup sometimes, other times is simple! Play with all of them as other then the whiffen they all need/require some kind of set up.

Quivers....well ask yourself what you are going to be doing first. You might not want a side quiver like mine for treestand hunting (learned that the hard way {:D]) but yet you might not want a back quiver for stalking.....They all have there nuances..the bowquiver is the simplist and probably the best all around quiver. Great Northern makes a great one IMO! I do prefer a side quiver like Wahya mentioned, Lakota style quiver, as most of my hunting is done on foot, stalking/stillhunting. Its great with a backpack, where for obvious reasons you couldnt wear a back quiver as the backpack is int he way. Really the choice is yours. Just like buying a car, finding one to fit your needs or desires......you might not want a little 2wheel 2 door clown car for Alaska where some places measure snowfall in feet rather then inches. A truck serves you better.....a bow quiver might serve your style of hunting best where a backquiver is a pain all the way around. Personally I like backquivers also. I wear one every time I am out shooting, it may have a few arrows in it and lunch, grouse arras etc....this lakota style quiver is a new gig to my bag of tricks and I think it will suit my style perfectly! So far anyways!

Broadheads...well whatever works, is sharp, and you have confidence in! First it must fly straight...simple enuf! Most trad folks like the cut to the tip basically for more penetration.....Zwickey, Magnus, Snuffer and the Wensel Woodsmens are just a few both 2,3, and 4 bladers.....Figure out what you're going to be hunting would be the first route. If your chasing whitetails its obvious you wont need as much in penetration as I need on Moose......Where in turkey hunting you might want the biggest natiest broadhead out there rather then trying to achieve a ton of penetration as you dont need it and you will be better served leaving the arrow in the bird with the attempt to pin its wings......There are many heads out there, check them all out!

For targets...here is a cheap alternative. YOu CANT shoot broadheads at it but while you learn its a great target to have and costs realtivly nothing! Go find some burlap sacks....anything from the medium size to a 55gallon size if ya can find one depending on how big of a target you want. Find some of the bigger department stores, shipping stores, etc and ask for there used shrink wrap. Feedmills are pretty good about getting rid of it for nothing! Total cost for 2 targets is about 3 bucks plus a couple phone calls and about 2 gallons in gas! I can shoot in my house at close quarters to work on form!

Wahya hit it right on...a begginer needs to work on form and keep working on form as long as they are in the sport of archery! Its the KEY to shooting good CONSITENTLY!!! Dont let it overwhelm you though, enjoy the sport..if plunking on a hillside is what turns your fancy then so be it! If its true competition then go for it! If its hunting the hunt but make sure you spend the time at the range and you spend it doing the RIGHT things! There are books out there that can lead you in the right direction and I would recommend anyone or all of them but you have to walk through the doorway and choose to partake.....there is no excuse in the bowhunting world for a poorshot regardless of the equipment he/she deires...its one of my biggest complaints, folks saying oh he/she is just a trad shooter what do you expect! Sorry pard, it doesnt cut it! Get out and chase grouse/squirells/rabbits. Its a great place to learn how to bowhunt using your gear, its fun, and it doesnt require the long days, hard labor a big game hunt. The rewards are great as there can be a TON of shooting or stalks on ole bushytails and they are all great eating! From there it only gets worse...the desire turns in to a passion which turns into a addiction...then yall be like the rest of us.....Where is the next Archery Anomous meeting at <img src=icon_smile_big.gif border=0 align=middle>! Enjoy it and good luck!!!

http://www.geocities.com/tradbow007/...dventures.html

RE: Need help getting started....
 

I have to agree with everything Wahya said; especially the part about starting with a light weight used bow. 55# is pretty heavy to start with. Most guys figure since they pull 70# on a compound, they can handle 55# on a recurve. Not so! Whole different set of muscles involved. Besides you're gonna have to shoot a whole lot more with the recurve to become proficient than with a compound. With a properly tuned compound, most archers can be competent in a couple weeks. With a traditional bow it's gonna take a whole lot longer with a lot more practice. I'd also recommend going with aluminum arrows to start. They're more consistent and require less maintenance. Only longbows require wood arrows for competition. With the recurve you can shoot anything; wood, aluminum, carbon, glass.

Jack

RE: Need help getting started....
 

Not much I can add to the previous comments, except &quot;ditto&quot;.

Blessings,
Dave

RE: Need help getting started....
 

Thank you all for your replies. You have been a great help!!!!