Today I went to the Archery range at my local Bass Pro Shop's Outdoor World and shot with my traditional recurve bow for the first time. I spent about an hour shooting targets. Didn't do too bad for my first time. For the most part, my shots were within 6-8 inches apart with an occasional shot that was way off. I hit four right on the bullseye.
It surprised me that I was the only person not using a compact bow. No one seems to like traditional bows. I feel the compact bow makes it too easy. I was struggling trying to keep my string pulled back. The compact bows give you a relief of pressure after you pull it back far enough. My traditional recurve bow maintains a constant force of 45 lbs. when pulled back. I was shaking all over the place trying to keep it steady. It got difficult aiming for more than three seconds. It was fun though. For $5, you can't beat their indoor range. All the private ranges and memberships elsewhere want like $200 a year and $30-$50 a lesson. This "Outdoor World" place charges $10 for a lesson and I can go to the range anytime I want for $5 an hour. It's great. One thing I regret not doing today was suggesting that my girlfriend take pictures or a video of me shooting the arrows. Instead, she just watched and realized this after the fact as well. lol. Maybe next time I'll have some media content.
Would love to learn how to handle a bow myself but our town is to small so no clubs have been formed and no practice ranges, are you planning on taking one or two lessons?
Being that it seems to be quite affordable, I'm considering taking a few lessons in the next week or so. That way I can get on the right track. Might as well be taught the proper form and basics by a person who can show me and analyze my movements.
My philosophy is "Real bows don't come with wheels."
Depends what you're in archery for.
I'll probably get a compact bow in the future, but will most likely always fall back on a traditional bow as a choice of preference.
Does the traditional cost more than the compact?
Out of my little archery experience, I've come to prefer recurve over compound, although they're very tiring and because of that, a little more difficult for precision.
Compacts and Recurves can sell for about the same price for the bows themselves, but the accessories and parts on a compact bow make it more expensive. And the maintenance on a compact bow adds to the cost. Being that it has a lot of moving parts, there's a lot of room for hardware failures. On the plus side, the repair may be much cheaper on a compact bow. You break a recurve and you need a new bow.
If you want a relief of pressure after you pull the string, just get a goddamn crossbow.