Best Recurve Bows For Beginners

Buying a bow for the first time can be overwhelming.

There’s hundreds of options all with different variations and features

In this article you’ll learn what you need to look for in a bow and what the best recurve bow for you is.

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What to Consider When Buying a Recurve Bow for Beginners

Right or left hand

Which hand you shoot a bow with is the very first thing you need to know!

The biggest thing that determines this isn’t your dominant hand, it’s actually your dominant eye.

For most people, their dominant hand and dominant eye are the same, right handed people are usually right eye dominant.

But not everyone is that way, including me!

When I first started shooting it was a struggle for me because everyone told me I had to shoot right handed because I’m right hand dominant, but I couldn’t aim to save my life!

Finally, someone taught me how to figure out which eye is my dominant eye, and we realized I couldn’t aim because I’m left eye dominant.

Once I learned that and switched over to shooting left handed it was immediately easier for me to aim.

So here’s the important question…

How do you determine which eye is your dominant eye?

Here’s a quick and easy way you can figure it out.

1. Pick an object that’s about 30 feet away

2. Make a triangle with your hands and hold them a foot or two away from your face

3. Looking through your hands, center the object in the middle of the triangle (ideally the object will take up half of the triangle

4. Close one eye, is the object still in the middle? If it is, that’s your dominant eye.

5. Close your other eye and open the first eye, is the object still in the middle? If it is, the object is too far away. If not, that reconfirms that your other eye is your dominant eye.

You can get that done in under a minute, and you’re good to go.

I would test this a few times to make sure you’re getting the same result.

Once you know which eye is your dominant eye, you can narrow down what bows you’re looking for.

With recurve bows, right handed bows are a little easier to find, but left handed bows are readily available.

Draw weight

This is where people who are new to shooting recurve bows set themselves up for failure…

Especially if they are used to shooting compound bows!

Most people start with a draw weight that is too heavy for them.

In the worst case scenarios, some people can't even get all of the way to full draw.

Usually people can get there, but struggle to hold it for any significant amount of time, so they're always rushing their shots.

For most adult men, 30 to 35 pounds is a good draw weight to start with.

Its light enough that most people can hold it at full draw for 30+ seconds repeatedly.

For most women, 20 to 25 pounds is a solid starting point.

For hunting with a recurve there are some minimum draw weight requirements, but I wouldn't suggest jumping straight to those draw weights or higher.

If you get a take down recurve you can start with a lighter draw weight and get replacement limbs to build your way up to the draw weight you want.

Draw length

This is a pretty important thing to get figured out, but it’s not as important as it is with a compound bow.

Because recurve bows can be shot from any point in the draw cycle, even if you don’t max out the draw length of a bow, you can still make it work.

Is it more efficient to be closer to the max draw length?

Yes.

But for a beginner, it isn’t the end of the world if you don’t.

The reason draw length is important is because it makes a big difference on how long of bow you need.

Most adults will have a draw length between 25” and 30”, which means bow length around 62”

Also there are recurve bows that can be shot with either hand.

Do you need a take down bow?

Originally, recurve bows were all made from one piece of wood.

Now, you can still get one piece bows (even if they use multiple materials), but they are waaaayyy harder to store and transport than take down bows.

Take down bows have limbs that are removable, which makes them easier to store and travel with.

Honestly, there isn’t a huge reason to have a one piece bow other than if you think it looks good or you want something that is somewhat historically accurate.

Best Recurve Bows for Beginners

Samick Sage

Draw weight (@ 28”): 25 lbs - 60 lbs

Draw length: up to 28”

Brace Height: 7.5” - 8.25”

Bow Length: 62”

Hand: Right or Left

The Samick sage is easily one of the most popular recurves you can get today.

Part of the reason it's so popular is how much bang you get for your buck.

This bow can do everything you need a recurve to do and it looks good doin it!

Made primarily from Hard Maple wood, the Sage has a more rustic look while still having the performance you need.

A big bonus is that the Sage is a take down bow, so the limbs can be easily removed, without using tools, so you can travel and store it easier.

This also means that you can get replacement bow limbs to use different draw weights with it as your strength improves.

All of this makes the Samick Sage the best bow for beginners on the market and a great back up bow for anyone who hunts with a recurve bow.

If you want to learn more about the Samick Sage, you can check out my full review HERE

Vista Monarch Recurve Bow

Draw weight (@28” ):29 lbs, 35 lbs, 45 lbs.

Brace Height:

Bow Length: 62”

Hand: Right Hand

This is a solid option as a beginner bow, but it does lack some things that would make it a good bow to grow with.

Realistically it’s going to be a bow you can get started with for a fairly low price and get you into archery, but if you decide you want to stick with archery you’re likely going to upgrade.

Downside is that this bow is only available up to a 40# draw weight, which is usually the bare minimum most states require for bow hunting.

Another downside for some people is that this bow is only available in a right handed model, so all of the lefties out there are going to have to keep looking.

If you want to learn more about the Vista, you can check out my full review HERE

Fred Bear Grizzly Recurve Bow

Draw weight (@28”): 30lbs to 60 lbs in 5 lbs increments

Brace Height: 7.5” - 8.5”

Bow Length: 58”

Hand: Right or Left

Bear Archery is one of the most well known names in the archery world, they’ve been making high quality bows for decades.

In fact they’ve been making the Grizzly, with very few tweaks, for decades!

The Grizzly is a high quality bow for someone who wants to ​take traditional archery very seriously.

It is designed more with hunting in mind than target archery, but it can work for both.

The biggest negative as far as target archery is there’s no bushings to mount a sight or a stabilizer, the only bushing is for a quiver.

One big drawback of the Grizzly is that it is a one-piece recurve bow.

Not only does this make it more difficult to store and travel with, but it also means that there isn’t an easy or inexpensive way to change your draw weight if you’re wanting to build up to a hunting weight.

The only way to get a different draw weight is to buy a whole new bow, which at the price of the Grizzly can be a big setback for many archers.

The Grizzly made the list as one of the best recurves for beginners because it can work great for someone who’s looking to specifically get into hunting with a traditional bow, and wants the best of the best from the beginning.

Outside of that use case, there’s going to be better, less expensive fits for someone looking to do something else.

PSE Razorback

Draw weight (@28”): 15 lbs - 30 lbs in 5 lbs increments

Brace Height: 7.5” - 8”

Bow Length: 62”

Hand: Right or left

The Razorback is a great entry level recurve bow, especially for teens and smaller adults.

For its size, the Razorback is very lightweight, making it easier for new archers to hold steady for longer.

On top of that it has bushings pre-installed for mounting a sight, stabilizer and quiver.

And it’s a take down bow that can be assembled & disassembled without tools, making it incredibly easy to store and transport.

PSE is an archery company that you can trust, they’ve been around for decades and continue to make great bows, which is one of the reasons we love the Razorback for much.

The only real downside is that the Razorback is only available in draw weights up to 30 pounds, which means it’s not a great fit for larger/stronger adults…

And it isn’t strong enough to hunt with.

Other than that, it’s a great starter bow to get you into archery at a low price point!

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What size recurve bow do I need for beginners?

For most adults, a standard 62" recurve is going to work fine.

If you're really tall, you may need to bump up a few inches, closer to 65"