Letting your children play sports is something that you should consider as it will keep them physically healthy and mentally alert. Archery is amongst the coolest and most challenging activities that you can get them into. In fact, it is also a great way for you and your child to bond since you can learn it together. Likewise, the skills gained can be used for future hunting adventures.
Obviously, before anything else, your child must have a bow that can be used for target practices because renting one might cost you more than buying a new one. However, choosing the first recurve bow for your child could be stressful, and you may feel overwhelmed whether you shop online or in retail stores. There are so many different models of beginner recurve bows, and each one of them has different pros and cons.
As a guide, when choosing a recurve bow, you must know the user’s drawback weight requirements. This will be hard to determine, but a good beginner bow, especially for younger individuals, would be between 15 and 30 pounds. This will be profoundly dependent on the user’s upper body strength and arm muscles.
The next requirement that you’ll need to look at is the total length of the bow. As a rule, the taller the person, the longer the bow should be. To help ease the burden of choosing the first bow for your child, we have reviewed a recurve bow that has been specifically designed for youth.
SAS (Southland Archery Supply) Snake Recurve Bow
This recurve bow is a product of a company that has been around for years. Below, we’ll give you an overview of its features, pros, and cons for you to determine if it is a good pick for your child or not.
Features
- Ambidextrous design
- Draw weight of 22 pounds
- Listed Net Weight: Approximately 12 oz
- Length: 48 inches
- Gorgeous silver design
- Comes with multiple accessories including string nocks, arrow rest, finger tabs, arm guard, arrows and a quiver!
Pros:
- Thin and lightweight
- Easy to draw and carry around
- Durable
- Affordable
- Can be used by right and left-handed archers/hunters
- Sold as a kit
- No assembly needed
Cons:
- Weak arrow rest
A Closer Look at the SAS Snake
The SAS Snake Recurve Bow comes in one piece and requires no assembly. It has a length of 48 inches and a draw weight of only 15 pounds. This makes it perfect for teenagers who are just starting to learn archery as well as for younger children. This also means that it’s ideal for male and female adults with short stature or those who are petite.
Some of you might worry about the lifespan of this bow because of its lightweight and sleek design since most children usually handle items roughly or carelessly. The good thing is that this bow has been crafted with durable materials to withstand harsh treatments as well as has been tested carefully. In fact, you can bend, throw, and try to break it, but it will maintain its shape.
The SAS Snake Recurve Bow is ambidextrous, which means that right hand and left-hand individuals can use it. If you’re right-handed, then you’ll be using your left hand to hold the bow and your right hand to pull back the drawstring.
However, if you’re left-handed, you’re going to do the opposite. Many bows are only designed to be used for one specific hand orientation, so finding one that can be interchanged and used by both hands is rare, making this bow unique. When you purchase the kit, you will get two string nocks, and four stick-on arrow rests (two for right-handed people, and two for lefties). Although the arrow rests are not of the highest quality, they can be used for multiple practices, and you can buy a new set from the same company afterward.
Comparison
While the SAS Snake Recurve Bow is an excellent pick for younger children, you may have a child who needs a more challenging bow. The Southwest Archery Spyder Takedown Bow Set is an excellent beginner to intermediate bow.
The total length of the bow is 62 inches and has a custom drawback weight ranging from 20 to 60 pounds. It has pre-installed threaded bushings which allow you to attach various accessories in case you want to upgrade it. Some items you can install but are sold separately are mechanical rests, stabilizers, fishing reels, plungers sights, and quivers.
This has a high-quality reinforced limb tip which is created to give you faster flight and a stronger string, making it ideal for hunting, bow fishing, or target practice. This, however, is sold in either left or right-handed orientation. This means that if you have two or more children interested in archery, and they have different dominant hands, then, you need to purchase two or more sets.
Apart from the handcrafted recurve bow, the kit also contains a 14-inch Dacron string, one stick-on adhesive arrow rest, and an instruction manual with photos. Since this is a takedown bow, you need to assemble it, and for your safety, you must have a stringer tool, which is not included in the package.
Verdict
The SAS Snake Recurve Bow is an excellent choice for younger children from nine to 12 years old as well as for short and slim adults who are still starting to develop their muscle strength. It’s an excellent pick for youth camps, target practices, and family adventures. This is also ideal for parents who want to teach more than one child but do not want to spend too much on equipment.
Although the SAS Snake Recurve Bow can stand the test of time and harsh conditions, we would highly suggest that you only choose to purchase this if you’re using it as a starter bow because of its low drawback weight. Remember that as your child keeps practicing, he or she will develop more strength and will eventually progress.
This means that the child would need a stronger bow with heavier drawback weights and also one that will fit their stature as they grow. Hence, you should plan accordingly before you purchase it.
If you’re not interested in any of the bows we reviewed here, why don’t check out our detailed list of the 5 best selling recurve bows available!
Archery is my hobby & I usually hunt and play on weekends and after work. It’s a passion since I was very young and I love writing about it as well to continuously learn more and share the love of archery with others!
