# Cabelas Warden Recurve bow for beginner?



## Thin Man (Feb 18, 2012)

Hello. 

I looked at Cabela's site on that bow and it starts out at 40# on up. Maybe someone else around here knows who manufactures that particular bow and its potential reliability.

Since you're coming from compound, here is an informative thread concerning initial recurve draw weight that may interest you:
http://www.archerytalk.com/vb/showthread.php?t=388848

I know that $79 is tempting. However, similar bows of any draw weight can be had for just over one hundred dollars from a dealer like Lancaster Archery, and they can also outfit the bow with an upgraded string, arrow rest of choice, set the bow up at proper brace height with a nock locator, as well as match the proper arrows to the bow's weight for great flight. Get a stringer and bow square while you're at it for easy, safe stringing and measurement purposes.

Holler back as questions arise, and good luck.


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## Huntinsker (Feb 9, 2012)

That bow is essentially a private label version of the Samick Sage. It's not a bad bow but it's not the best. It hasn't really been out that long to speak about the durability just yet. Personally, I think for $79, it's worth a try. If nothing else, Cabela's has a great return policy.


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## Traditionalist (Oct 28, 2012)

Go for it, for $79 it would be a great starter bow. Considering I just paid $85 for arrows when I should have gotten one of these for my brother....when you feel like your ready for a different bow later your not going to be out of a whole lot of $$$$


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## Traditionalist (Oct 28, 2012)

Also I'd say stick with 30# or 35# for starting out. Many over bow themselves and create a bad form. Feel free to pm me is you have any questions, I'd be more than happy to help with arrow setup.


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## Azzurri (Mar 10, 2014)

I'd say Polaris/ Sage/ Ragim whatever even though it will cost more. 40# is overbowed for a beginner. Even if they can handle it, it's not the way to learn.


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## diamondarcher24 (Mar 16, 2014)

Thanks guys. I think I will wait and see if I can get a good deal on a sage come Black Friday.


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## coxral (May 10, 2011)

You can check on this site and others for good deals on used bows too! As far as $79, go for it, to start with. Don't expect the limbs to last too long, especially if you take it down a lot. I've had a Ragim Impala 3pc for years, used to take it down a lot and 1 limb broke. 2nd set still working! Good luck!


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## Fury90flier (Jun 27, 2012)

it's too heavy to start with, doesn't matter how big you are....well, if you're Arrrrnold fine.

find a bow with about 30# or less draw weight. It's more important that you develop form than shoot a "mans weight". A "true man" is more interested in learning proper form. 

While drawing 30# is quite simple for most of us...controlling it is completely differnt


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## diamondarcher24 (Mar 16, 2014)

One more question, since the Warden is the private label of the sage, is it safe to assume that sage limbs would fit the warden when I want to go up in weight or if they don't last long?


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## sheepdogreno (Sep 29, 2014)

dont know anything about the warden however i can speak for the sage. its a great starter bow. Ive been shooting mine non stop for 3 months and have been very impressed. i want to upgrade to a nicer "looking" bow of better build quality but thats the only reason i want to upgrade. I will keep it tho to bowfish with because i dont care to ding it up


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## Thin Man (Feb 18, 2012)

I just looked at some close-up pics and descriptions of both the Warden and Sage, and though they look similar, there are some differences. The Warden is definitely not exactly built like a Sage.

The Sage's riser consists of fewer laminates of only two types of woods ... the Warden's specs state four types of riser wood and has more laminates. 

The limb bracket on the Warden rides up taller where the limb connects, and is designed in a shape more like the Greatree bow brackets. The Sage's bracket has a lower profile. 

The Warden's tips are blonde-colored, standard-design wood (the glass runs between the belly and back of the tips). The Sage's tips are a bit hard to detail in some of the pics, but on the back side they appear to have a black overlay of different design (it has a very visible, raised "bump" profile as it connects to the limb), and looks like it may be made of a non-wood material (a plastic?). This black overlay is identical to the one I have on a different Samick bow, and it seems to be a thick, not-quite-wood overlay designed to mitigate the nature of a low-stretch string. My non-low-stretch Samick Polaris bows have the simple wood tips identical to the Warden. 

I can't see a plunger hole on the Warden since the pics of it have a side-plate material over that area. 

At casual glance it looks less like a Samick design and more like another manufacturer's design, such as the Greatree I mentioned above. It's definitely a hybrid rather than a duplicate.

So I'd ask some questions to make sure that Sage limbs are compatible with that particular bow. They may well be ... even if Samick didn't build it. There seems to be a lot of "design copycatting" amongst the various manufacturers of this type of bow.


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## Sanford (Jan 26, 2009)

Diamondarcher, it appears from the Cabelas site that their Vista Sage is a rebranded Sage riser, and the limbs will fit the same for each, Vista and Sage. As Thin Man stated, the Warden looks more like the Greatree, which is also rebranded under some name I don't recall, or more, as our local shop carried them awhile back in some off name. These to swap limbs with Sage/Warden is not known, though.


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## ranchoarcher (Sep 26, 2013)

I'd save my money and buy something a lot better. A cheap bow is...a cheap bow. And considering the potential damage a bow splitting in half at full draw can do, it's a much safer bet to avoid the bottom of the barrel stuff. Had two chinese made bows that exploded and nearly cost me an eye. Never again. Go ILF, Bear, Hoyt, or Martin. It may take a month or two of saving a few hundred but in the long run you'll be a lot happier with less firewood laying around.


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## Captainkirk (Sep 18, 2014)

My advice? Buy the Sage. It's a proven winner.


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## Captainkirk (Sep 18, 2014)

ranchoarcher said:


> Had two chinese made bows that exploded and nearly cost me an eye. Never again.


Can you elaborate? (Make. model, etc)?


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## ranchoarcher (Sep 26, 2013)

Both were greatree models. Got one and it self destructed in less than 60 days. The replacement they sent didn't quite make it to blowing up but died in less than 30 days. I caught it just as the riser was starting to split and stopped shooting it. Can't recall the model but here is the pic. The interesting part is they make their bows like cheap walmart furniture. It only looks nice because they put a laminate of some kind over the wood. What you see isn't the actual wood of the bow. The replacement they sent wasn't the same model either. It was something different but it started doing the same thing. That tells me their QC isn't worth the risk.


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## Captainkirk (Sep 18, 2014)

I would agree with you and avoid that make bow like the plague.
Losing an eye is no joke.


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## Hank D Thoreau (Dec 9, 2008)

I have had two bows blow up on me. I have been hit in the eye brows above both eyes and the bottom of one of my eye sockets. Each missed my eyes by about an inch.


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## ranchoarcher (Sep 26, 2013)

It's because a bow exploded that I ended up in trad at all. Bought a compound June last year and not knowing a thing about bows didn't know what to look for to show that it got damaged in shipping. Drew that 60lb beast back one time and just before getting to full draw the cables on it snapped against bent cams. Inside my garage it was louder than crap. I stood there for a second expecting some body part to hit the floor. Got it fixed but never really dabbled with it anymore. Got the first of several trad bows the next month. Hoyts, Real Samicks, Omega, and Martin. Cost a tad more but it's worth it to stay in one piece.


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## Fury90flier (Jun 27, 2012)

ranchoarcher said:


> Both were greatree models. Got one and it self destructed in less than 60 days. The replacement they sent didn't quite make it to blowing up but died in less than 30 days. I caught it just as the riser was starting to split and stopped shooting it. Can't recall the model but here is the pic. The interesting part is they make their bows like cheap walmart furniture. It only looks nice because they put a laminate of some kind over the wood. What you see isn't the actual wood of the bow. The replacement they sent wasn't the same model either. It was something different but it started doing the same thing. That tells me their QC isn't worth the risk.
> 
> 
> View attachment 2085838


Highly unusual from my experience. From what I've seen, dollar per dollar, the Greatree bows were better than the Samick.


no, Greatree isn't rebadged Samick.


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## Dieselchessy (Mar 1, 2012)

Just got my $80 Warden in the mail. Fun little bow to shoot. Says "Fleetwood Archery" on it. Fit and finish isn't great, but seems plenty functional. Limb pockets are plastic, has plunger, damper, and sight thread inserts. Velcro pad and leather strike plate. Endless loop string with brass nock installed. 
I got it to try for bow fishing and just playing.
Depending on where you count the riser has 12 laminations or so. The Palm swell/belly is 1 large piece of maple(?), then the other 70% of the riser is various 1/8" thick laminations of hardwoods (plywood). Looks plenty strong and stable.


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## martha j (May 11, 2009)

ranchoarcher, what model greatree is that you show blown up?


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## ranchoarcher (Sep 26, 2013)

The McKinley was the first one that split in two. It's the one in the pics above. The second was called an outrage. Yeah, the outrage is they have the nerve to sell it. The riser started cracking and lucky for me I heard it starting to give way before it went. Both were over $300 and neither worth a nickel. On both of them I could feel the riser flexing at full draw which I should have taken as a warning that something bad was imminent. They both began stacking severely right at the 28 inch mark in draw. I normally go 29 so maybe their bows are rated for nothing more than 28. Should tell people that before snatching their money. The other wood riser bows I have didn't react like these. I've got two old Ben Perason's from the 70s, a newer Samick Devestator, Martin x200, and Imperial. Not a one has a flexi-riser or stacking issues like the greattree crapola.


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## Nokhead (Jun 10, 2012)

I was going to ask: "Damn Ranchoarcher, do you have like a 36" draw?" But at 29", wow there's no excuse for that. Especially when you think about all the 50 year old, or older recurves around that are still shooting fine. I have a York bow, that was an old bow when I got it in the mid-sixties...and it still shoots great. I had a English Long Bow blow up on me, not too long ago, one that was found at an estate sale, and that was *NO* fun at all. Nice bow too, until it blew.

ken.


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## rb61 (Sep 11, 2014)

Azzurri said:


> I'd say Polaris/ Sage/ Ragim whatever even though it will cost more. 40# is overbowed for a beginner. Even if they can handle it, it's not the way to learn.


I have a 40# recurve and find that it is too much for me as a beginner. I have a 30# Ragim on the way. I will let you know if it was the right move.


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## Dieselchessy (Mar 1, 2012)

Dieselchessy said:


> Just got my $80 Warden in the mail. Fun little bow to shoot. Says "Fleetwood Archery" on it. Fit and finish isn't great, but seems plenty functional. Limb pockets are plastic, has plunger, damper, and sight thread inserts. Velcro pad and leather strike plate. Endless loop string with brass nock installed.
> I got it to try for bow fishing and just playing.
> Depending on where you count the riser has 12 laminations or so. The Palm swell/belly is 1 large piece of maple(?), then the other 70% of the riser is various 1/8" thick laminations of hardwoods (plywood). Looks plenty strong and stable.


My bow looks exactly like the black limbed Monarch model bow on the Fleetwood site. Even has the same white string.


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