What Is A Recurve Bow

Recurve bows are one of the most popular types of bows in the world today.

From bowhunting to target archery and the Olympics, they have a wide range of uses.

In this article, you’ll learn everything you need to know about recurve bows.

When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission at no additional cost to you. Learn more.

Understanding the Recurve Bow

Recurves just have the bow limbs, a riser (the part you hold) and a bow string.

They get their name because of the curve of the limbs, which start by curving towards the archer and then curve back away from the archer towards the tips.

This extra curve is what gives them more power than the bows that came before them, like the longbow.

But other than that, recurve bows are fairly simple!

Related: Best Recurve Bows for Beginners

Types of Recurve Bows

​Even though recurve bows are distinct from other types of bows, there’s still different types of recurve bows that are used in different situations.

Traditional recurve bows

Traditional recurve bows are the broadest defined group.

Different people will have slightly different definitions on what is considered a traditional recurve, but for the most part it comes down to 2 things: it’s made mostly of wood and doesn’t have a sight.

Most archers would agree that those are the two defining characteristics of a traditional recurve bow.

Modern (Olympic) recurve bows

​Modern recurve bows are just what they sound like, the most advanced version of a recurve.

This mostly comes down to the materials used to make the bow.

For example, modern recurves have a metal riser, usually made from aluminum.

They also usually have a sight and at least one stabilizer bar.

Modern recurves are also called Olympic recurves a lot because they are the type of bows used in Olympic competitions

Hunting recurve bows

​This is the hardest type of recurve to define because it can have the most variation.

Most hunting recurve bows are just traditional recurve bows with much higher draw weights, usually in the 50+ pound range.

The biggest reason for that is most states in the US have laws for the minimum draw weight that can be used for hunting.

For the most part, hunting recurves won’t have a sight or a stabilizer.

As far as materials, it’s a little hit or miss, some companies make their hunting recurves more like modern recurves in camo colors, others lean a lot more towards wooden materials in line with a traditional recurve.

Almost all hunting recurve bows will have string silencers and a clicker for draw length.

Takedown Recurve bows vs One Piece Recurve Bows

​One modern advancement that has made its way into most traditional recurves and hunting recurves is a take down style bow.

This means that the bow limbs can be removed from the riser for easier storage and transport.

Most recurve bows you find on the market today are going to be takedown bows.

A big advantage of having a takedown recurve bow is that as you get more experience shooting a recurve bow, you can change out your bow limbs to shoot a heavier draw weight instead of having to buy a whole new bow like you would with a one piece recurve.

With how efficient they are, there isn’t much reason to have a One piece recurve bow except for looks or just personal preference.

How Recurve Bows Differ from Other Types of Bows

Recurve bow vs compound bow

Compound bows have strings, cams and cables to help increase leverage and get more force into the arrow per pound of draw weight.

On top of that, because of the cams, compound bows have what is called ‘let off’.

This basically means that at full draw, you aren’t holding the full draw weight, you’re only holding a small percentage of it.

For example, a bow with 75% let off means that you’re only holding 25% of the draw weight at full draw. (On a bow with a 60 pound draw weight, you’d only be holding 15 pounds at full draw)

This has a few advantages, but the biggest is that it makes it easier to hold steady and aim at full draw, making you more accurate AND letting you use a higher top end draw weight than you would with a recurve.

Recurve bows are much simpler which makes them less powerful, but also need less maintenance.

The funny thing is that even though recurves are simpler, they are much harder to shoot than a compound bow.

Because they aren’t as strong, they can’t shoot as far and they shoot arrows with much more arch so you have to compensate more when you aim.

Recurve Bow vs Longbow

The recurve bow and the longbow are the two most popular types of traditional bows.

They’re very similar, but they do have some minor differences.

By far the most important difference is the bow limbs.

On a longbow, the limbs are just straight, and when the bow is strung they curve towards the archer making a D shape.

Recurve bows have limbs that curve toward the archer, and then “re-curve” back away from the archer towards the tips.

The second curve on recurve bow limbs is what causes the second big difference between a recurve and a longbow, recurves have more power than a longbow.

That extra power can be great to have, but it does mean you need a little more skill to consistently shoot accurately.

Also, because they can generate more power, recurve bows are also able to have shorter limbs than a comparable longbow.

Having shorter limbs can be useful in situations where you’re trying to shoot in tight quarters, like bow hunting.

The last major difference between a recurve bow and a longbow is that many recurve bows on the market today are takedown bows.

This means you can remove the limbs from the bow, making it much easier to store and transport the bow than a longbow or even a one-piece recurve.

How to Choose the Right Recurve Bow

Choosing draw weight

This is one of the most important parts to choosing the right recurve bow, mainly because so many people mess this part up.

Many people, especially if they have used a compound bow before, will get a recurve with too heavy of a draw weight.

They try to jump straight to the 45-60 pound range…

Then it ends up being too difficult to draw and hold at full draw…

So they never get their form down right and are shooting inconsistently, until they get so frustrated that they give up.

Because shooting a recurve bow is so dependent on good shooting form, it’s better to start with a lower draw weight and get your fundamental shooting form down.

THEN you can go up to a higher draw weight from there.

Most recurve bows are takedown bows, so you can simply get new limbs without having to buy a new bow.

If you’re brand new to archery a good starting draw weight for a recurve would be around 20 pounds for women, 10-15 pounds for kids (depending on their age) and around 30 pounds for men.

One way to test if a draw weight is too much for you is the 30 second hold test.

If you can easily hold that draw weight at full draw for 30 seconds then that is a reasonable draw weight for you.

This obviously means you need a bow to test with, so you may have to go to your local archery shop to do this if it’s your first bow.

Or if you already bought a bow before you realized it was too heavy, you can buy replacement limbs that are lower draw weight.

Considerations for draw length

One of the advantages of a recurve bow is that it can work from multiple draw lengths without being adjusted.

Because there aren't any cams(wheels) like on a compound bow, the bow is under tension the entire time you draw back, so it can be shot at any point during a draw cycle.

That’s why most recurve bows have a much wider range of draw lengths that they can be used for than a compound bow.

Since you don’t have to know your draw length down to the exact millimeter, you can get away with making a rough estimate based on some common rules.

The easiest is to have someone help you to measure your wingspan, the distance from the tip of one middle finger to the tip of the other middle finger when your arms are stretched out to your sides…

Then divide that number, in inches, by 2.5.

This is going to get you close enough that you can look for a recurve bow that covers that draw length in its recommended range.

Another thing to keep in mind, it’s better for your draw length to be closer to the middle of a bow's recommended draw range than to be maxing it out.

For archers with a draw length over 30 inches, this is going to be a little difficult and mean that you’re going to have to get a bow with longer limbs.

Related: Best Arrows For Recurve Bows

Learning to Shoot a Recurve Bow

Importance of proper form and technique

Shooting any bow with good form can’t be stressed enough, but it’s especially important with recurve bows!

Most recurve bows don’t have a sight, so you have to make sure your body is in the exact same position every time to be accurate.

Plus, bad form makes it more difficult to hold your bow at full draw, making you shaky and less accurate.

Here’s the number one way people end up with bad form when they first try to shoot a recurve.

They get a bow that is too heavy of a draw weight!!

It happens even more for guys who are coming to a recurve bow from a compound bow.

They’re used to being able to have a 60 pound draw weight on their compound so they think they can shoot that on a recurve.

SPOILER ALERT:

You can’t.

When the bow has too heavy of a draw weight, you can’t get your body pulled back into the proper shooting form and start creating bad habits that hurt your accuracy.

On top of that, you get tired fast, making you less accurate.