Getting ready to retire, and I've been binge watching the "Alone" (aka "Voluntary Hunger Games") series. I noticed a lot of recurve bows and it occurred to me that learning archery might be fun.

Anyone ever try it in their 50s? I've got some arthritis in my left hand, would that kinda ruin the experience? I have a good-sized backyard with no one behind me but woods at the 'retirement home' so I think a backyard range is doable.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: AllenInAR,

I dont see why you couldnt do it at 50. I've had longbow, compound and currently shoot recurve. With arthritis, I'd say work up to it and don't overdo it on your first run as you can leave yourself sore for a bit, especially in the shoulders. Perfect thing would be to see if you could shoot with a friend of course and see if your hand can keep up with it.

Compound would likely be easier due to letoff and might be easier on the arthritis if the recurve is too much.

I'm mid 30s & just picked up recurve.
Built a target stand so I can shoot in my back yard.

I went with a SWA Tigershark on recommendation of tigereye on here.

"Take up". no. But just getting back into it after a 15 year break. (compound, not recurve) Shot my new bow today for the first time and it went surprisingly better than expected.

Since I tore the hell out of my shoulder in the early 90's, I could never shoot at lot. A dozen or two shots and I was well past done. No issues with that today. My main concern was how my near constant elbow joint pain would play into it, but surprisingly it wasn't an issue today. The big problem is my neck/back issues have caused some atrophy in my left arms and it also causes my hand/arm to shake all the time. (Murder on my pistol shooting and I'm at the point where I shoot better one handed than two because of it.) But it wasn't as bad as I expected, maybe because the bow pulling in on my arm helps steady it.

I KNOW I couldn't shoot a recurve or long bow anymore, not unless it was extremely low draw weight.

not sure if this is a hijack or not but the thread is timely for me. I have also have been thinking about taking up archery at 67 and casually reading up and looking online at equipment. I have a sorta small gun range on my property - about 75 yards max - with room to shoehorn in an archery target. I have no idea what type of bow, brand/model, arrows to get that will be good for a beginner but that I also will not outgrow. The Tigershark mentioned by P250UA5? That would be a good price range for me. My ambitions are not large. Also suggestions and sources for target, stand forearm guard, finger guard and whatever else needed to start from scratch. Any guidance would be appreciated.

I started in my 50's using an ILF recurve. I think the key to avoid hurting yourself, unless you're already in exceptional condition and not your average joe, is to start easy and low and slowly work up. I use the stretchy band exercises to strengthen the shoulders. Rowing may be good too.

I started with less then a 30 pound draw and worked my way up to 35 pounds. I did it slowly but it took less than 6 months. I could draw higher weights but then I couldn't shoot as many. Shooting instinctively, I enjoyed out to 20 yards but 10-15 yards was my sweetspot; actually 10 yards was boring with almost everything going into the "center" ring. 20 yards doesn't seem like much but it was like going from 1moa to 10moa for me. I struggled to get good groups. There are older guys using 45# draws and get better results but I'm not as big as they are.

Your left hand doesn't do much. It just needs to be able hold the pull weight steadily. It doesn't even need to grip - you just push like against a wall.

I have a Lancaster / TradTech Titan riser; ILF limbs give you flexibility try many different limbs (different brands). I had wood risers but I had a couple that started to delaminate on me so I went w/ metal (titan). Very solid, no vibration.

quote:

Originally posted by kho:
I have no idea what type of bow, brand/model, arrows to get that will be good for a beginner but that I also will not outgrow. The Tigershark mentioned by P250UA5?

As you get better, you will very likely want to make changes to whatever bow you get; you'll also need to replace arrows to match. As I went from 25# to 35# draw, I needed to change arrows (the flex of arrows).

Probably lots of good places but as a beginner I've been a happy Lancaster customer. One stop shop for many things and great customer service.

Possibly start with weight adjustable compound bow....preferable with cam wheels... reason== on a recurve bow the draw weight starts stacking up as you draw and at full draw you are holding the full draw weight..... but on a compound bow pound for pound the wheels make the draw weight easier to pull and at full draw the shooter is actually holding a percentage of the draw weight ..depending on the round wheels or cam shaped wheels can determine actual holding weight.........Compound bows do not have to have all extras (sights / balancers / etc) and be shot as a bare bow.. Cam bows generally have a greater drop off ( Less holding weight) than round wheel bows........My last bow / for hunting and competition was round wheel 85lb draw weight and a hold weight of 57lb.......... Age here is 74yrs but have not pulled a bow back in 20yrs. Major improvements in the equipment developed since then. ...................... drill sgt.

I took it up around 50 when we got our cabin. It started when I got a little archery set for my daughter. For Christmas my wife and daughter got me a Grayvn longbow with a 40-45lb draw. I’ve been hooked since. Just target stuff though. We have an 11 yd range. No idea how accurate I would be at longer distances, but I’m getting pretty good at that distance.

59 years old, and over the last couple of months I have been thinking about shooting bows again (last time I did it was when I was in H.S., my dad and I would go out to an indoor archery range on Sunday mornings) recurve/take-downs only.

I was thinking about buying a 30# draw weight recurve and saw some videos about this company that has me interested. https://www.shatterproofarchery.com/


Unfortunately, I can't do it in my yard and would have to go to a range. My sportsman club has an archery section - but it is a 50-55 minute drive, there is an indoor archery range within 10-15 minutes.

Still thinking about it.

thanks for the comments and suggestions although I confess I am still a bit overwhelmed and confused about my best options. I think a some more online research followed by a trip to a brick and mortar archery store is my best course.

I like the idea of the take down recurve bows. Start off at like 35#?

I think it depends on a few factors, like:

1. how strong are you? I'm on the older, smaller side (albeit chubby). So, I started at 25# but worked my way up to 35# in about 6 months. I think if I started at 35#, I would have hurt my shoulders.

2. How long do you plan to shoot? I would go to the range and shoot for 2-3 hours at a time. Lower draw weight helps; higher draw weight and I'd probably spend less time shooting and would take longer to do the reps to ingrain the fundamentals. Higher draw weights isn't necessary for 10 yards.

3. How far are you shooting? 10 yards doesn't require much and lower draw weights can help learn proper fundamentals - easier to keep form and you get more reps before you tire. Longer distances may be easier w/ higher draw weights if shooting instinctively. I've never tried it with a sighting system though.

I saw this thread and was trying to come up with a Geena Davis joke but then realized some of you guys might not appreciate it......

I've heard people suggest when going from a compound to a recurve, so start with a bow that's half the draw weight of what they've been shooting. Since you don't shoot a compound, it's not relevant other than to express that even people used to shooting bows are surprised by how heavy 30-35 lbs can feel.

quote:

Originally posted by Blume9mm:
I saw this thread and was trying to come up with a Geena Davis joke but then realized some of you guys might not appreciate it......

You mean we might not be aware that she's an Olympic-class (I think) archer?

I tried archery out of curiosity by finding a local archery range within driving distance. They had me buy just minimal support gear and provided regular pull string style bows, but they also discussed the fancier bows, along with the compound bows that people can spend more on.

The basic class was great and its a relaxing sport in my opinion. I think it has to do with the focus you have to place on the target along with form. I never stayed with the hobby, but it was fun when I tried it.

You could test drive the hobby by finding some local archery range. Most classes should provide you with the main gear as a loaner until you figure out the type of archery you really want to get into.

I was shooting my compound at 61 no problem at all. 63 now and it still wouldn't be an issue. Just too many other distractions and since I can't bow hunt in my current life situation it's not a priority.

Heck no. I was bad enough at it when I was young, strong and steady.

I shot a lot when I was a kid in the scouts. One of the few things our broke-ass troop had was a set of archery equipment so we used it quite often.

20 something years later I got my son into it and decided to pick the sport up myself too. I bought him a nice 18lb recurve and shot it several times at a target I set up in our garage before deciding to get my own 50lb recurve.

It seems a 45 pound bow hits a little higher than an 18 pounder. Here’s a picture of the back side of my garage after my first shot



Also a cheap target arrow launched from a 45lb bow will go through drywall, plywood and siding, you know, in case you were wondering.

After that I went to a real range and practiced a lot, then ended up attending some classes and eventually became a USA Archery level 2 instructor.

Now it’s been a couple years since I picked the bow up but I do love it. If you’re interested I’d highly recommend finding a local archery shop or club that rents equipment and provides classes. It’s a truly fun sport.