# Getting Kids started



## Rabble Rouser (Jul 31, 2012)

I have 5 young boys and we are going to get a bow for them and get them started shooting, is there a recommended bow/weight that would be best to start them with? The oldest is almost 11 and the next two are almost 9 and 7. At this point I want to just get them shooting and interested. We have been making wild bows (tree branches) so far and they really enjoy it, so I want to encourage the interest. Looking for advice on hardware, bows/targets/arrows/etc...

Thanks!


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## da white shoe (Mar 10, 2009)

I would start them with a light poundage recurve or a fiberglass stickbow... like maybe 25 lbs at 28". That way, they should all be able to draw it to their length. It would probably have to be pretty short in overall length for the 7 year old, depending on his height. 
Make sure you get arrows that are fletched with feathers... then you can just shoot off the shelf. The only other things you will need are a shooting glove or a finger tab, an armguard.... and maybe a stringer and a target.

The Mathews Genisis would be a good compound for kids of different sizes to all shoot together. You will need an arrow rest, but after that, you can go as high tech as you like... sights, release aid, ect. I would recommend an inexpensive slider sight so that you can move it for each kids draw length... the farther they pull it back, the flatter it will shoot.


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## aread (Dec 25, 2009)

Most of my shooting is at public ranges and the #1 problem that I see is parents starting their young kids out at 20, 30 or in one recent case 40 yards. That's almost guaranteed to be a failure. The kids are lucky to hit the bale. 

If you want them to enjoy archery, get them close and let them have some success as soon as possible. 5 yards is not too close for the younger ones and more than 10 yards is too much, even for the older boy.

This is the first time I think that I've disagreed with da white shoe on this forum. I'd recommend bows much lighter than 25# for your sons. The older boy can probably handle a 15# recurve or long bow, but the younger ones need a little lighter draw. But I do agree with the Genesis bow. That's just a fun bow to shoot. You may want to get two. An Original Genesis for the 11 year old and a Mini Genesis for the younger boys. But there is a lot to be said for fun with a tree branch. 

Keep it safe, keep it fun and build on success. My club runs several youth classes every year and the kids really like breaking balloons. The instant feedback provides a smile every time. 

JMHO,
Allen


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## da white shoe (Mar 10, 2009)

I'm happy to say that we still don't disagree, Allen! 

I recommended a stick bow that draws 25lbs at *28 inches.*
The 11 year old would probably only be drawing it somewhere between 20 and 23 inches, so it would be considerably less than 25lbs.
The younger boys would probably be drawing quite a bit less than that... depending on everyones size.
Of course, an even lighter bow wouldn't hurt anything at all... and I like your suggestion of getting 2 bows even better.


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## Archmoab (Jul 30, 2012)

I'm just a mom that started shooting with my kids and I really like the 2 "pros" say in this posting. 
Have fun!


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## Stubby'smom (Mar 20, 2010)

There are some good suggestions here. Just to clear some things up for me. Are you looking to buy one bow for all the kids or are you willing to purchase multiple bows? What are you looking to spend? Your ll year old and 9 year old would probably do well with something like a Diamond Razor Edge. It's a good starter bow and is very ajustable in draw length and draw weight. Depending on the quality of bow you want and the $$ you want to spend, you could go with a Diamond Nuclear Ice or Atomic for any child 7 years old and under. All the bows I suggested come as a package deal. You can also find them all except the Atomic used if you don't want to purchase a new one. 
Another suggestion I have is to find a shop and club near you. My shop offers kids league during the winter and they don't even have to own a bow (but it's nice) and 3D shoots for kids. My club does an intro to 3D for kids in the spring and there again we provide bows to kids who might not have one. You may also meet people who can help you and your kids out and might have options for good used bows for your kids.


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