20 Best Traditional Bows For Hunting (2023 Updated)

This was the first bow, that I bought in a long time. It fits the arrows nicely. It also shoots nice and there’s no hard pool. And it’s easily fits in small space. It is Light weight it’s not heavy weighted and it’s not confusing like the other bows.

it doesn’t have all those gears and things you have to watch out for. I would highly recommend this bow if this is your first time or if you are looking to upgrade for the kids.

I have been using several of these for years on a public trial course at fairs. each gets used for literally 200-300 shots on any given day. They take great abuse and keep on going. They have outlasted much pricier bows and many many strings.

We got our kids some of the Bear Archery beginners bows from Academy, We enrolled them in beginners lessons and they asked me to get a bow to go out in the yard and practice with them. I had been researching bows to upgrade for them and came across the PSE Snake.

I was surprised to see that it worked well for myself and my 9 yo twins. I am able to get some zip on it and they were able to get their arrows on target.

I bought this as a birthday gift for my 7 year old and he loves it! I wanted a quality recurve that he can grow with. I purchased the 15 pound bow and could have probably gone the 20 pound. The bow has replaceable limbs, so I can always upgrade those in the future.

PSE always makes great products and they did not disappoint with this bow.

Both the upper and lower plastic limb pockets were cracked upon arrival. The plastic pockets are secured to the bow by 2 Phillips head screws and it looks one screw on each limb was overtightened at the factory.

I am going to exchange the bow and try again. This is my second bow of this model, my first is a 20# model and it has lasted well over 10 years with no problems so I am hoping this is just a fluke.

Nice little bow that can be upgraded with stronger limbs as the archer becomes stronger. Good balance and feel in the hand. Beautiful Gloss White limbs against the wood riser looks absolutely awesome.

Only negative is they didn’t spend much time prepping and clearing the wood riser. It is full of pits and a couple places the clear coat sagged. No big deal, just cosmetic. A great beginners bow or child’s bow.

Not a toy plastic like most, but a real wood made bow with the takedown and replaceable limbs. This is the 3rd bow purchased for our daughter, just wish I had found this bow in the 15# pull before I wasted the money on the other two plastic ones that are near toys.

Good job PSE.

I am a returning archer. I grew up with archery and have had many different bows. I got this bow to come home to archery and possibly use it to bag a tom this spring. I got the #45. Finish is good. It looks really good.

The limbs fit well. It shoots great. As mentioned in one review, it is a little loud out of the box. Once I added string, riser and limb damps, it shoots quietly. The sound is like a whisper now. I also added a sight.

A quiver can also be added if that is your preference. Honestly, I am impressed with this bow at this price point.

PSE Archery Nighthawk Recurve Bow – Left-Hand – 45 lbs. Select a rating below ★★★★★ ★★★★☆ ★★★☆☆ ★★☆☆☆ ★☆☆☆☆ This is my first takedown bow. I have had all one piece recurve and built my own longbows. I was a little leery of a takedown as well as the price.

Well don’t let either give you pause. I made a flemish string for it. Top that with beaver hair silencers and you have a game killing weapon.

Drop shipped directly from PSE. Opened PSE box pulled out bow loaded in original plastic display box. Original plastic box was falling apart. Riser, limbs, sight, string, stringer were not in the original positions within the box.

While arrows and quiver were in original places, the turkey feathers on one of the arrows was deformed and pealing of the shaft because of the shift in other contents. I will assume that the shifting and damage to the arrow was the result of shipping.

During use, the nock stays attached to the string while the arrow is sent down range. Overall, the entire set up feels like a toy.

I was excited about getting back into shooting archery after 20 years But I wanted to challenge myself. So I decided traditional archery was what I was looking for. I decided the bear super grizzly recurve 50# was the bow for me.

After receiving it I went right to shooting it. Shoots smooth and pretty quiet. 50# might be a bit heavy for a beginner like me to start with but I am getting better after a few weeks. I’m excited to see where this takes me shooting again.

I really like the smooth clean look of the bow. Excellent craftsmanship. Great feel in the hand.

I have been into traditional archery for about 10 years now. I have shot a bunch of different recurves, both borrowed from friends and of my personal collection. I’ve owned my Super Grizzly for about 6 years now, 55#.

I do not claim to be an expert, just a guy with a little experience with different bows. I am comparing this bow to to the ones I’ve shot, which are Bear Grizzly, Bear Kodiak, Bear Kodiak Magnum (I do not recommend this one for guys with 30″ draws), Samick Sage, PSE Coyote, and a Hoyt take down (don’t remember the model, it was a friend’s).

Compared to the rest, the Bear Super Grizzly felt the smoothest to draw, very quiet when tuned, durable, accurate, and the finish wares well and reveals a beautiful finish. Specific comparisons: -The Bear Grizzly: The Super Grizzly is more forgiving and smoother on the draw.

My Old Grizzly suffered a little limb twist in the same time and conditions that I have owned my Super Grizzly. I think the glass on the belly of the Super Griz helps prevent this also. It’s still as straight as it was out of the box.

-Bear Kodiak: While the Kodiak’s added length provided a more comfortable draw hand, it did not feel as fast or as smooth as my Super Grizzly. -Bear Kodiak Magnum: WAAAAAAY too short for guys with longer draw lengths.

Not a fan at all. -Samick and PSE Coyote: These two are not built to the same quality control, nor fit and finish. Again, not as smooth and comfortable as the Super Griz. I felt a big difference in quality when shooting.

-My buddy’s Hoyt: A bigger price tag for what, to me, boils down to high speed looking aesthetics. The Hoyt shot well and comfortably enough, but not twice the price tag worth.

This is my fourth Fred Bear bow and it was the most expensive. I am comparing it to a Grizzly, AuSable, and Montana. Now I know why the 59′ Kodiak is the most expensive of the four. It is a true gem of a bow.

Light weight, beautifully crafted, a pleasure to shoot, fast, and hard hitting. I suspect this will prove to be my favorite. Five thumbs up for Fred Bear Archery for bringing back this classic recurve.

Order bow as a gift on line. It’s too heavy for my wife (arthritis) but it is also not returnable. Nothing noted on the product page about no return policy. I was told this info is in the return policy information page.

If you shop with Academy online you are expected to know the details of their return policy page before you shop. No information is noted with the product. Very disappointing.

I bought this a month ago and I’m so happy that I did! The bow feels extremely sturdy and When pulled all the way back the arrows are super accurate. You can buy a tiny arrow rest that just sticks to the wood right above the knocking spot so the fletching doesn’t hit the wood on a shot which allows you to knock your arrow completely straight.

It also comes with a spot to put a scope for height. Was hitting a piece of paper sized target from about 40 feet and I barely had to adjust for that much height at ALL the thing just shoots hard and straight its amazing.

Great bow. String also come’s with a tiny metal knocking spot so you know where to knock your arrow every time.

I purchased my Western Archery Edge Bow to help me rehab my shoulder replacement. I had to quit shooting for many years ,due to the shoulder injury. My new Edge is a 35#, 62″ recurve take down bow. The riser is a beautiful wood laminate with a nice matt finish.

The limbs are wood and fiberglass with reinforced tips so you can use high speed strings The first thing I did to the bow was to install a flipper arrow rest on it. I don’t shoot arrows with feathers off the shelf so the flipper rest was my first thought.

This bows shoots way above it’s price point. It pulls smooth and has no stacking at a 28″ draw length. I installed some string silencers that I made from a yarn ball and the bow is very quite with no hand shock at all.

I had to twist the new string about 30 times to get the proper tiller height. The instructions didn’t give a tiller range so I went to the web site for that info. I shoot instinctive and use a split finger, finger tab.

My arrows are carbon 29″ 500 spine. They shoot straight and very accurately through my Edge bow. I would highly recommend this bow to others. The only thing that I will change about the bow is the string.

Will be getting a Flemish replacement string soon.

Not great for the price. though not horrible. for the price. Shooting off the ledge kills any synth arrow flight you might have. Needs to have a proper after market arrow holder to do anything worthwhile when it comes to taking down an animal and not hear you draw it (and maintain accuracy).

Feels under the 40lbs weight draw that mine was labeled as. Feels like a 30lbs, and arrows fly like a 30lbs draw (wobbly arrows visible from release). Would be good for a beginner using cheap arrows.

Not recommended for a seasoned hunter using expensive arrows, tips and/or flights. Might be good for an indoor practice piece to keep up muscle memory, or even those needing physical therapy shooting a total of 10m max.

But not horrible. Again, would recommend for a beginner getting into archery. Will teach the proper form, as when you mess up your draw with this, it slaps the hell out your forearm meaning your form and release isn’t quite correct yet.

First off, I didnt buy this bow from 3R – I got it used from a private party. Mine is 50# but I probably pull a lil more at my draw of about 29. 5″. I own a samick discovery in 50# as well and while it is a fast shooter and accurate as hell, I still prefer my montana.

Does it vibrate? Yes. Is is sort of a lobber? Yes. But it is a longbow with maple limbs. I have shot longbow most of my life so these things are nothing to me but they may be a disappointment to someone coming from another platform.

EASY to dial in, i can achieve pretty much nail driving accuracy anywhere from 30-70yards with a 500spine or 400spine arrow. wood feels the best off the shelf with this bow but for durability and consistency sake i usually shoot carbons.

I pack this bow with me for a week at a time when i pack up and head out to the job, and I am never sorry to have it with me. Shooting almost daily in high winds, heavy rain, and cold conditions here in PNW does not really phase it.

I use paracord string silencers and a cat whisker below it and it is whisper quiet. surf wax on the string because i usually dont have beeswax lol and the string is fine. it is not the TRASH bear string however.

the grip is trash, take it off. Now, when I say it is not really phased by foul weather, damp, and cold, i dont mean it is impervious. I will say that if I am just getting dumped on for an extended period of time and cant find cover, i do notice a slower shot.

But that is my fault not the bow’s. probably my string being wet, and the feathers being soaked doesnt help anything, but when the weather is dry, it will shoot like normal again. I have not experienced any of the quality issues I have read about in finish and such, fingers crossed.

But those will be my fault not the bow’s at this point. Bottom line, if you want a fast shooting “longbow” dont get this bow. It is plenty powerful, but there are others out there that will send em down range much quicker if thats what you want.

otherwise, get it.

This was my second bear Montana I also bought a 40# Montana for my wife. I personally shoot a 45# and a 55# I have shot compound pretty much as long as I could walk. Played with a recurve some years ago and enjoyed it.

I basically have gotten disgusted with the compound industry. I have spent I don’t know how many thousands of dollars on compound bows and all the bells and whistles. I wanted to get into trad to simplify my bow hunting.

From the first day out with the Montana I found the fun I had lost in my shooting. I wanted an affordable yet capable bow and went with the bear due to it being made in the USA. I am very pleased with the bow it does everything I need it to do.

It is a little on the slow side but fine for the Kentucky whitetails I chase. I harvested my first trad deer this year with the Montana. A year and a half old 6 point. It is now the pride of my trophy room even though it is the smallest buck.

I would definitely recommend the bear Montana for the price it is a good longbow.

I bought this bow about a year ago and it is one of the best Traditional American LongbowI that I own. I own several new and older classic traditional Bear Archery bows. The Montana shoots great, is accurate and fun but make sure you are wearing an armguard.

Only reason I did not give it a 5 Star rating is because the leather wrap and string it comes with are kind of cheap and cheesy. Bear Archery bows need to come with better quality strings like they use to for the price you pay! Otherwise swap out the string and maybe replace the leather handgrip! Again, fantastic bow!.

I was So excited for this to arrive and it finally came yesterday! I opened The box and found most of the instructions in 5 languages, however, it was not fully comprehensive and didn’t give proper information regarding assembly.

I finally put it together (and have extra parts) but it’s missing an essential part – the bar where you rest the arrow. The arrows are kinda cheap too but hey! It was only $50! Also, it’s very large and a bit heavy.

I’m 5’4, 120lbs and I have issues holding it up, pointing and shooting. Great for some cheap fun, but not recommended if you’re tryna be Hawkeye during c-19.

We purchased the first of this bow, from Walmart, as a gift for my daughter several years ago. It was of an appropriate size and draw weight that she could manipulate it at 8 years old. Our neighbor was an elderly Navajo/Ute Indian who took an interest in my daughter’s bow activity and taught her how to shoot it.

It was a catalyst for a great learning relationship between the two and our cultures. After the gentleman died a couple of years ago, the bow sat idle for about a year. When my daughter decided to resume using it, it snapped in the middle of one of the bow halves, not at a joining point.

She was heartbroken, given the relationship tied to that bow. We thought we would find a used one for a spare part on eBay, but to no avail. This led us to purchase another from Walmart this Christmas.

When it arrived, my daughter chose to display the original one in her room, rather than repair it, as a remembrance. As we were not certain of the strength of the remainder of the bow, it was likely a wise choice.

She would use the new one for her bow activities.

I am a 19 year old girl who was interested in learning archery after watching The Hunger Games. I am 5’4” and 102. 5 lbs and this bow is perfect for me. It is a little hard to draw since I am not very athletic, but I am sure if I work at it, it will get easier.

This bow is awesome and exceeded my expectations. First of all, it is beautiful. It looks very sturdy, and I like how it is all black and not brightly colored like most of the other youth bows. I also love the shape.

Just so you know, it is a recurve, even though the product says it’s a longbow. I looked around a lot to find a good youth recurve bow and was disappointed in all of them but this one. It is well worth the $34.

The bow itself is very high quality and seems durable. The bow string is actually a real bow string. The only thing is the accessories. They are really cheap, even the arrows. The first arrow I shot got broken, with the nock shattering to pieces.

They also seem cheaply glued, so I definitely recommend buying other arrows (they should be 26″). Don’t worry about any of the add-ons to the bow (sight, arrow rest, quiver, etc) because they would make the bow too heavy and bulky.

The finger tabs don’t stay put and almost caused me to let go prematurely. The arm guard fits me, but it didn’t help me when the string slapped my upper arm. Overall, I definitely recommend this bow to any beginner, as it is of excellent quality and looks amazing, just like Katniss’s bow in the Quarter Quell! Wonderful bow.

Perfect size and draw weight for recurve bare bow target archery. At 28# draw, it is suitable for young teens through adults to shoot comfortably for long sessions. Love it and purchased two more for the family.

Price was very reasonable.

Bow was 28lb draw weight as advertised. Came disassembled in a box, and included the allen key to assemble it. Definitely a good buy and great for a new archer or just someone looking to have fun.

It’s a good deal for the price. It’s not a competition bow but it’s much better than having to make a survival bow & it is definitely deadly. I’m happy with my purchase. Thank you.

While this is probably marketed as a beginner’s bow (and the only left handed option at the time I went bow shopping) it would probably be more accurately classified as a discount bow for the expert archer / bowsmith who loves having to maintain their bow closely and often.

The biggest problem I notice is with cam / bowstring alignment. My string has been fraying consistently on the sharp inner guide rail of the upper cam, due to being pulled too far off centre by the middle rail which pulls the string off centre for arrow clearance (forget the technical term).

I discovered that the hole into which this bowstring guide bar is (just below bow sight attachment) inserted is misaligned, and so in order to prevent dangerous fraying, you must only insert the string guide bar through the first of two holes, which reduces the angle, allowing less fraying at that top cam.

I am serious about the Allen keys also. Most screws come loose slowly over time, including the cam screws which secure that sharp top guide rail. if you hear any buzzing / vibration while shooting, be sure to check your screws before the bow blows up on you.

Additionally, the peep site is held in place by poorly tied factory knots. Better manufacturers leave these knots loose intentionally to allow for peep site positioning before being firmly secured. this is easily fixed by moving them into position, and then tying some proper knots with the correct fine string at the end of these slidable factory knots.

The bow sight adds no value to the bow in my opinion. the level of vibration that rattles through it with each shot made it impossible to cinch down tight enough to prevent it moving with each shot. I missed my first shot at a grouse because it had slipped almost completely out of its bracket, which it did after my second shot at said grouse.

So if you buy this, tighten everything down within reason, and think about upgrading your bowsight immediately. It does shoot fairly well. It is weighted nicely, and produces a repeatable flight with good technique.

Just look after it, especially if you don’t have a large budget for repairs. I may be needing a new string soon, which apparently is only available from specialty string-makers, not the manufacturer themselves.

I purchased this bow only two months ago and have had 2 issues occur that should not have happened this early in the life of this product. After the first month the string began to fray aggressively to the point where I had to replace it for safety’s sake.

No more than 50 arrows in to the new string the cam draw length modules gave out (in the middle of hunting season for me nonetheless). All tune ups and installations to the bow were conducted by a highly reputable archery shop with decades worth of experience.

I understand that this bow is geared more towards the entry level or budget friendly consumer, however I don’t thinks it is unreasonable to expect the parts of this bow to hold up for at least more than a season.

The only satisfactory part of the experience thus far was the customer service readily replacing my broken parts. And to be fair the bow shot like a laser for a limited time when it was tuned up and working properly.

If I had a time machine I would have just saved my money and bought a bow with higher quality materials. The money I’ve spent replacing, installing, and tuning this thing would have already bought me a better bow from the start.

Ultimately, you get what you pay for.

To start, I’m an experienced bow hunter for over 45 years. I’ve bow hunted whitetail and elk for years. I started with a longbow, then recurve before moving on to compounds. Three years ago I had two complete shoulder replacements and a left rotator cuff surgery.

Not much left of the left rotator, so I was seeking a light bow with adjustable draw length and adjustable draw weights, the 70 lb. Hoyt no longer an option. I wasn’t ready to give up and go to the crossbow, and I wasn’t ready to stop bow hunting.

The last two years I used a Browning Micro Midas youth bow I had purchased for our son several years ago just to get by. I hadn’t been able to find a good option at my local pro shop, but found the Cruzer G2 at Cabela’s.

I tried it and a couple of other options they had. The Cruzer was by far the smoothest and easiest on my wasted shoulders. I’m still getting comfortable and fine tuning, but it was very well setup from the start and truly not a lot of adjusting.

If you’re in a similar shoulder situation and not ready to give up being a bow hunter, I would suggest you give this option a shot.

The bow is perfectly fine for the price, though the one I received had several imperfections in the wood riser. There are a couple spots where the wood is chipped, and the holes driven for accessories were poorly done.

I needed to sand them down in order to not catch a splinter. Other than that, the bow shoots just fine, and I’ve seen the same exact bow at other Archery stores that had none of the cosmetic issues that mine has.

Its a great bow for the money so far anyways. The limb mounting system is a little weird as it dose not lock the limb completely solid but two layers of duct tape around the limb was enough to solve that.

The ratings are confusing as its a 165# draw not 195# and the tag says 53 pounds of kinetic energy instead of 57 but also says it shoots 260fps with a 380 grain bolt wich is 57. it don’t really make a difference to me as it seems to have enough power.

It would drop an elk but I’d keep it within 40 yards but i wouldn’t hesitate shooting a deer at 60 with it. Probably the best budget recurve but not made in Florida which p me off. I had a recruit terrain and loved it, if you can find one its the best budget compound and Barnett’s customer service was excellent.

Well worth a bill and a half and it shipped in 2 days. This review form is a pain in the d to fill out telling me my nick name is invalid screw you to the guy who built this page.

I bought this crossbow to get back into archery hunting. I was previously a bow hunter but after having kids I hung up the bow and 18 years later I am getting back into archery. I decided to buy a crossbow after researching all different brands under $400 I settled on the wildcat.

I got it on sale at Dicks for $149. 99. Easy to put together, accurate out of the box user friendly affordable bolts made by Barnett. Bolts that came with it were of equal quality as the crossbow. Scope in my opinion is also of equal quality.

Easy to sight in. You should buy a cocking rope. It is a chore to cock with out. I would recommend this crossbow to anyone looking to get into crossbow deer hunting. 30 yards max killing distance.

I bought this crossbow about 6 weeks ago. I’ve been to the range 3 times, I’ve had the bow shop (Wildcat Archery, Pooler Ga. ) take it apart , reinstall everything, and even had them shoot it. To no avail this crossbow has some sort of malfunction.

It will shoot On an even plane. The problem is it will inconsistently shoot right or left of the target. I bought new bolts, we even put the crossbow in a shooting vice and it will very seldom hit the target but more times it will shoot to the right or left of the target.

I thought it was me, but after the bow shop tried and could not get a consistent grouping. It’s determined the crossbow is worthless.

I own several Fred Bear bows including Grizzly, Ausable and Montana. I knew the Kodiak is a top of the line traditional bow so I wanted one for my collection. As soon as I received it, I headed off to my local archery range and gave it a go.

OMG immediately comes to mind. It shoots way above its 45# designation. Smooth, fast and really hard hitting. I couldn’t believe how powerful it actually felt compared to all of my other bows. Immediately became my favorite.

Now I know why this bow gets rave ratings. Amazingly beautiful and functional in every way.

I bought in early summer to have enough practice time before whitetail archery season. I had months of shooting almost daily. very impressed with every aspect of this bow; from the looks, to the smooth shooting, and it was almost completely silent when shot.

I would encourage anyone to this product. I have always shot Bear products and really didn’t expect anything less.

Have a pse sequoia 50#, love it, tough to beat, but i think it got beat. My 60 # sierra is beautiful, well built, put my own leather thick arrow rest on, shot it, wow, best bow i have at 35 yds. Shoots straight consistantly, arrows land where you point it.

Thought i couldnt shoot straight consistanly but i was wrong, a bow can make the difference. So i highly recommend the omp sierra. Vibration not enough to make me ad dampeners, its quiet enough, i’ll keep shooting it bare, just very impressed with its accuracy at that distance, wow.

Bow shoot well. Comes with a very good flemish twist string. Slight hand shock with lighter arrows. Wish the handle was a 1/2 to 1 inch longer but is very shootable as is.

First experience with a longbow after years with a recurve. Regret the purchase. The handshock is terrible. A shame they stopped carrying Bear’s traditional offerings. It is finished nicely and is light in the hand.

Great bow until you have to shoot it.

I like the bow good power but the techs have something less to be desired……. after 60 shots the stops on my cam loosened and popped mid draw……I suppose the techs never heard of a torque wrench. I would by the bow again either from another dealer or just take to another company to work on my bow.

This was bought in Boise Idaho. The unfortunate thing is this has messed up my plans in going hunting now and I live two hours away from any bow tech…. thanks Cabela’s.

I’ve shot Mathews, PSE, Bear, Parker, Mission, Diamond, Bowtech, etc. So I have shot a lot of compounds and owned more than 10+ bows in over 30 years of hunting. I can say hands down, this is the easiest, quietest, most accurate bow I have shot out of the box.

I tuned mine with a 3 brush containment rest for hunting and set the module right at my draw length and set the string stop 1/2 inch past my draw length for an extended valley and lock back hold on the cams.

Man, this shoots lights out accurate every time. I bare shaft tuned with 400 spine set at 60lbs. I tried a 350 spine and they all shot same Point of Impact. My broad heads impacted same point to. Do yourself a favor and pick one of these up.

I prefer it to my Switchback and Z7 for the valley and hold accuracy. PSE hit a home run on this Stinger X model. I used to be a die hard Mathews fan, but this PSE is my go to hunting bow now and they rate it as a “beginner” bow? It isn’t a speed bow, but has more than enough energy for all the hunting I do and is extremely easy to work on.

This bow hit a home run with me.

I’ve been into archery for 40yrs (I hunt probably 150 days a year. seriously), and this bow is all around excellent. This bow,and all October Mountain bows,are actually rebranded Samick bows. Samick is a solid name in traditional archery.

That said,this bow is solid,very well built,and shoots as good as my bows costing close to $800. The riser is beautiful, the limbs can be changed out to any weight you want,its just a solid bow,made for everyone from beginners to pro shooters.

That said,you can save $100 because everywhere else they are $149. Is the bow worth more? Absolutely! This bow shoots as good as a $1200 Bob Lee custom.

I got this bow as a gift 5 or so years ago. I’ve shot hundreds of arrows through it, so I suppose it held up well enough. I’m a little disappointed because the bottom limb snapped today without cause (i.

e. I didn’t overdraw, etc. ). If OMP offered a 60# bow, I might go for that.

I only just received this bow and thought I’d send in a review right away. The first thing I noticed after opening the box and assembling is the excellent workmanship. Not a single blemish on the limbs or riser.

The riser itself is beautifully made and blended with nice maple. The grip fits my hand perfectly. After firing a few arrows last night, the bow draws smooth and is surprisingly quiet. There is a lot of quality packed into what some consider an entry level hunting recurve.

I’m very impressed and would recommend this bow to anyone. novice to experienced.