# Bow/Arrow setup for 8 to 10 year old?



## rharper (Apr 30, 2012)

My 11 year old runs a gmx riser with 30lb limbs. He's running 1616 platinum arrows with 3" feathers. Not sure the grains on his points. He was running 1816's but they were too stiff.

My 9 year old runs a a recurve similar to the Samick Polaris 66 Takedown Recurve Bow.(you an find that on Lancasterarchery.com) (Cost around 120 bucks) He was at 15lb but is just transitioning to 20lb limbs. He needed the recurve purely due to the weight. Couldn't hold the Fuse Freestyle compound I had originally got him very accurately. He also uses Beman carbon flash arrows (1000-13 on the shaft). At 10 yards he's really doing very well. Almost to his 200point JOAD pin with it. But at 20 yards the lack of poundage is hurting him. We have my oldest boys original recurve and let him try that but it's at 24lb limbs and he can pull it but it's just a bit too much over a full couple hours of shooting yet. (Side note: he got his moms genes and is on the small side for his age. His younger brother is 2 years younger and he's an inch taller and outweighs him by 5 pounds) He uses a stock stick on rest with 3" feathers. I can't remember what the weight points were that Adam's Archery put on them. And they fly great out of the bow.

My youngest is 7 and he just moved from a Fuse Freestyle to a Hoyt Ruckus. He just ran out of poundage on that compound. His favorite is to shoot the 30 yard bales and it was funny to watch the arc he had to shoot to get it there. With the better bow the trajectory got lower along with a higher poundage. Bow weighs 2.8 pounds and with the peep site his scores went up overnight. He is using Easton Carbon Storm arrows (500 on the shaft) 90 grain tips and stock easton fletching at 3.75" length. They were his older brothers but seem to fly well out of his new bow.


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## rharper (Apr 30, 2012)

Sorry for the back story but it shows kinda where we arrived at this point.


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## 4Blades (May 27, 2008)

Thanks for the info....gives me a good reference point to start with. I forgot to mention they do need to be recurves for the trad events we attend. Is the draw weight you mentioned at their draw length or at 28"? And I noticed the youth bows at lancasterarchery don't show the draw weight...?


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## Bean Burrito (Apr 20, 2011)

4Blades said:


> One of my biggest frustrations is trying to get my boys set up with equipment that yields good, predictable flight. Most of the kids stuff you find in WalMart is junk. I wouldn't mind spending $100 on a decent bow if I knew I'd be able to buy shafts that were weak enough and consistent enough. Or maybe there are youth bows I could put a plunger on to help with tuning stiffer shafts?
> 
> Any recommendations are appreciated.


$100 wont buy a decent bow :wink:

I'd recommend starting off him on an ILF setup, something decent but lower priced like the SF offerings. Good value for the buck and very reasonable quality. Jazz's or PP are good bang for the buck for young shooters. The Super Club arrows may be worth a look, I know John highly recommends them. If he can cope with the weight go for a 25" riser, it'll suit him better in the long run.

I know you may not want to invest too much, but if he's keen on archery it will save money in the long run. At the bare minimum you could go for one of the wooden take down bows offered by Cartel/Samick/etc. but you'll need to replace the entire bow when you want to move up to a decent quality set of limbs (and weight adjustment, quicker takedown, stiffer riser, ore longevity etc. all make the aluminium riser worthwhile).


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## beerbudget (Feb 5, 2011)

My 11 yo daughter shoots an Excel with 18# Privilege but she's only drawing 24in. Set her up with Champion II rest, SF plunger with the lightest spring and the 1416 arrows hit where she aim.


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## rharper (Apr 30, 2012)

nock to rest is 22" roughly. I thought youth bows were rated at 26" but I may be mistaken.

http://insight.octmtn.com/templates/product.aspx?ProductGuid=OMP1625415&GroupGuid=58096

There it is.


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## 4Blades (May 27, 2008)

Great info...thanks guys. I hadn't even heard of some of those arrows before.


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## limbwalker (Sep 26, 2003)

$100 will certainly buy a decent bow for a 9-11 year old...

Get a wood-handled polaris recurve in the 20# range (they will only be pulling about 13-15# at their draw length) and have them shoot 1214 Jazz arrows fletched with feathers. Use a Hoyt superrest stick-on rest without a plunger. It's designed to be shot without one if need be. 

I've worked with literally 100's of young archers and this setup will get them going, on target, faster and cheaper than anything else.

If you're wanting to stick with more traditional gear, look into the Black Rhino longbows from Illinois and some 1/4" wooden (ramin) dowel rods from Hobby Lobby for arrows you can make with your child at home.


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## midwayarcherywi (Sep 24, 2006)

The biggest factors are to keep the physical weight of the bow low, as well as the draw weight. These 2 factors will allow young archers to achieve good posture and repeatable shots. 

It really is heart breaking to see a youngster trying to muscle back a bow which is too much poundage, or hold up a bow clearly too heavy. The chances of success become very slim.

Arrow flight should not be a huge concern at this point. Get them having fun, with the appropriate equipment for the size and strength of the child.


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## 4Blades (May 27, 2008)

Awesome, thanks!


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## 4Blades (May 27, 2008)

Does anyone know the weakest spine Jazz shaft (or similar) that will take a normal insert so I can have them use screw-in points (they need to be able to use judos)? Looks like most of the Jazz arrows require a glue-in point?


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## limbwalker (Sep 26, 2003)

I think the next size up from the 1214's (whatever that is, probably a 14-something) will accept a standard screw-in insert. But the best way to find this stuff out is to just log onto the Lancaster website, look up the sizes available for the Jazz arrows, then look up the sizes available for the screw-in inserts. Not that hard if you just look around a little.


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## 4Blades (May 27, 2008)

Well, it's not as easy as it might seem. From what I can tell, the weakest spined Jazz that takes a screw-in tip is the 1716. Then I have to research the deflection to see if it's spine is appropriate. From what I can tell, it would be too stiff for a 15 to 20 lb pull. Then I had to try to research another arrow that was mentioned, the Beman Flash. Nowhere on the Lancaster website does it say that all the sizes take a glue-in tip. I had to find and download the Beman product PDF to figure that one out. Another thing that is seldom mentioned is the raw shaft length. I could deal with a stiffer arrow if I could keep it long enough. So I guess I could spend all day researching each type of arrow, but I was hoping someone would already know the answer. I appreciate the help thus far provided. I sent an email to Lancaster to see if they could narrow the field down a bit.


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## Warbow (Apr 18, 2006)

4Blades said:


> Well, it's not as easy as it might seem. From what I can tell, the weakest spined Jazz that takes a screw-in tip is the 1716.


I believe that is correct, which is why I got 1716 arrows for my light bow.


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## camoplumber (Nov 25, 2010)

Limbwalker

Thanks for your post. It helped me out.


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## Moebow (Jul 8, 2010)

Don't overlook the Mathews Genesis bow! Adjustable from about 10 to 20 # and steady draw weight with no let off and no wall. Best of both worlds, compound and recurve. The best beginner's bow out there in my opinion. Yes, eventually they will want to move to a recurve or a let off style compound but this bow will let them start correctly, they won't grow out of it immediately AND let them decide which way to go later. It is the NASP bow.


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