At what age?


Swamphunter

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At what age did your kids start with a compund bow? My son just turned 7 and is pestering for a compound, but he is definitely not old enough yet. I don't think that even the youth model he would be able to get an anchor point consistently yet. I want to wait a few more years. He still gets practice with his recurve almost daily.

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I started my daughter at 5 yrs old.

I'm not sure what kind of compound it is other then it is made by PSE. It's a very light wieght, easy to pull bow. I think the lowest poundage on it is like 10lbs and will adjust up to 20lbs.

I felt like it was a very good starter bow for her. She is now 13 yrs old now so it's time for me to up grade her bow.

She still has the bow as of today. When my grandkids come and spend the weekend with us it gives them something to shoot as well...

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Same as Griz here Swampy. My son pestered me to death when he was real young whenever I practiced. I found a 10lb. pull compound for him when he was 5. It at least started him off getting used to the feel of a letoff bow but it wasn't much for accuracy. When he was 8 I upgraded to an adjustable draw weight bow and set it at 20lb. (lowest setting). As he got stronger I increased the pull on it until he went over the 30lb. mark. Upgraded to another adjustable compound bow again a couple of years later that allowed him to increase his poundage and deliver penetration into the range for a hunting bow. He killed his first deer with a bow (a doe) pulling a little over 40lbs. when he was 14. Prior to that first kill he'd get too shook up with a bow in his hand and flat miss them. My best guess is he missed about 5 or 6 deer over his first 3 years while bowhunting.

My son is 20 now so he's long since outgrown those bows. I've been handing the last 2 bows mentioned around to friends with up and coming young hunters since he outgrew them. ;) I'm not sure what ever happened to that first 10lb bow though. I got the 20-30 pound pull bow back last summer when a close friend's son upgraded. That young man killed a very nice velvet buck on opening day of bowseason last year. I posted the story and pics last October. ;) It probably won't be too many more years down the road before my son starts his own children off with his old bows.

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My son can keep 3 out of 4 arrows in a 6" circle at about 8 yards with a recurve and no sights. I have let him shoot this bow almost everyday this summer and he is really doing well instinctively. I would like to get him a compound maybe as early as next eyar from what I have heard from you folks.

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I was lucky and started hanging out with friends who bowhunted when i was 13 or 14 and got my first bow that winter with my christmas. I got a Hoyt MagnaTec with 50-60 pound pull, had it for 2 years and then upgraded to my Switchback. I was very lucky to hang out with that crowd because of how good they all are and how many good things i learned which helped me get better much faster then expected. But my best friends brother who's always hanging out with us was 8 then and shooting a compound bow. He hated being the little guy so he was always determined to shoot at whatever yardage we were, so with a 30 pound bow he would back up to 50 yards with us and shoot rainbows at the bag targets. But that helped him get better, at 11 he got a bowtech rascall last fall and i'm pretty sure if he gets his opportunity there's gonna be a brown 4 legged animal on the ground this year.

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That Genesis is a really great starter compound bow. No fixed draw lenth and a consistent 20lb draw weight. All my boys started on that bow, then the Browning Micro Midas, it has a adjustable draw length that you can adjust without a bow press. It comes 20-30lbs and 40-50lbs.

Yup... 5 years old was about the age they all started. Now my son Joe is better than me.

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My son started shooting his recurve at the age of 3 . Of course he misses the target more then he hits it . But it's the point of getting them started . I would say if you boy is bugging foe one ..Then make him happy and get him one .

my buddy's son killed his first deer at the age of 8 with a compound .

Man I can't believe that legally some states allow hunting at this young of an age. Ny says you have to be at least 14 to hunt big game with a bow. I kind of sucks....

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Man I can't believe that legally some states allow hunting at this young of an age. Ny says you have to be at least 14 to hunt big game with a bow. I kind of sucks....

Cannot believe that states do limit the ages Ken. It is a shame that they do really in my opinion. I mean if I am not mistaken most states that do allow hunting for kids without age limits, like they do here, they have written in that a licensed responsible adult has to accompany the youth up to a certain age and be in a position to take immediate control.

Really I think it all depends on the kid and when that kid is mentally ready. My oldest daughter killed her first deer here at age 9, she could have easily killed her first one at age 8, but she would not take the shots she had offered as she could not keep steady and opted to pass so she would not make a bad shot. That really impressed me. She had been going with me on days when conditions were good since she was about 4.

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My oldest daughter started with a compound at the age of 4. My youngest, a long bow at the age of 4. My oldest daughter started deer hunting with a muzzleloader at the age of 7. My youngest isn't quite there yet. All depends on the maturity of the kid and the involvement of the parent. I would never want a state telling me when my kid was old enough to hunt.

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About the bow hunting I started shooting when I was 12 which is when My dad got back into archery hunting being a big kid I was able to practice with my dads bow we had the same draw length and I was strong enough to hold his 55lb draw. Now I am 17 shooting my own bow at a 30 inch draw with a 62lb draw weight and shooting better then he does.

just a little story i wanted to share;)

Brad

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