Now that we have looked at the types of bows available, let us have a look at the most next logical question, “Which one is for me?” This is rather a very intimate question and maybe as a first-time archer, you might not know what is what, the power you need, the efficiency that you require, the energy you might need. So before you decide, this is one, why don’t you head out to the nearest target practice, try out the bows then decide.

While at it, look and feel the following points so that you can know what kind of bow tickles your fancy, the traditional or the compound bow?

Unlike those raised in a hunting family some, like me, have had to learn the process the whole hard way, trial and error until you know what right fits you.

What Is the Big Difference?

A bow generally uses its mechanical advantage of leverage and the energy it stores to cast an arrow fast and further you can generally do with your hand.

The recurve and longbows store their energy directly as you draw them. As you draw them, they also get harder and harder.

The compound bow has an added advantage compared to the two as it has a mechanical aspect attached to it through the use of cables and wheels. These two aspects enable you to have less draw weight and they also hold your draw. The other advantage is that the compound bows row your arrow much faster than the traditional bow.

• Accuracy

When it comes to accuracy, you can either do it by following your guts, generally, put up your bow, draw and release then you can go with the help of sights which generally come in together with a peep and release of the compound bow which does not come with the traditional bows. The sights and releases are things that you can still choose not to use with your compound or traditional bow if you choose to.

By adding the sights, you generally transform your compound bow to a rather very accurate shooting bow. Though you can add them to your traditional bow, the peeps and groups in the compound bar will enable you to take your time to get a clear shot before you release your arrow. This is because your compound bow has the ability to let off some of the draw weight.

When the recurve is strung, at full weight draw, your muscles will definitely shake and making that alignment a little bit more difficult to get the clear short hence lower accuracy and consistency.

For an archer using both bows, for more accuracy and consistency, a compound bow scores more.

Accuracy Winner: Compound Bow

• Power and Speed.

Due to its mechanical advantage, the compound bow will throw the arrow much faster in comparison to the traditional bow. As a result, you can even use a much heavy arrow for better penetration when using the compound bow.

Power and Speed Winner: Compound

• Price

When it comes to the price, you can decide what tickles your fancy. Reason being, a rather very light online search of bow prices, you can find some of the top of the range full carbon longbows going for $1500, some recurve bows at $750 while the same can go for as little as $120.

When it comes to the compound bows, one can get the whole package of sights, release, quiver etc. for about $500. The same can be sold second hand at $200.

Price Winner: Indistinctive.

• Weight

Try hunting or even actually take a rather long walk with both the traditional and the compound bows so at to compare the weight of the two bows. People with recurve hunting bow will have a much easier time especially in terms of carrying the bows as compared to the compound bow hunter.

In as much as the modern compound bows have tried to use space-age technology to reduce its weight, once every accessory is bolted in place, it will be quite heavy as a rifle.

Weight Winner: Traditional

• Accessories

Any accessory that can be used in a compound bow can be used on a traditional bow. When it boils down to preference, as observed, the traditional shooter prefers little to no accessories.

Accessory Winner: None, preference.

• Making Your Own

When it comes to making your own bows, the traditional ones can be made from equipment that o locally available. With help of books and videos not limited to online, you can learn how to make a traditional bow from home. The same cannot be said for compound bows.

Make sure that you, however, do not use wooden arrows with your compound bows as a flaw in the wood might lead to an explosion of the bow sending splinters everywhere.

Making Your Own Winner: Traditional

• Shooting Ability

With traditional bows, they area sheer pleasure to shoot with. They are quiet, and less jerky when at full draw. The compound bow no matter how hard the modern ones have worked to remove the jerky draw movement, this can be felt as the draw weight is being dropped off as you pull the string.

While the traditional bow allows you to see the movement of your target, the compound bow gives you a rather pinpoint making the traditional bow better for shooting moving target.

The compound bow, on the other hand, is quite noisy during shooting as compared to the traditional bow. They also have some more after release hand shocks when in use.

Shooting Ability Winner: Traditional