Hello. My kids are showing an interest in archery and we are thinking of getting them bows for Christmas. I have a 10 year old girl and twin 6 year old boys. We bought a Bear brave for my daughter a couple years ago. Is the Bear Brave still good? What bows are solid quality bows to get them shooting? What should look at? Something that you an actually tie a d loop on, etc.
I am looking into a bow for my 8yo and I am leaning towards the Mission Radik. There is also the Hoyt Kobalt. I saw both of them at LAS and they are both nice. Hope this helps start the looking.
My grandson is about a year away from getting started (6 years old). I am looking at the Mathews mission. Seems like a very versatile bow he can "grow" into. Lots of adjustments as he grows
I have two 11 year old boys. They both have Diamond Infinite Edge bows. These are adjustable bows that will grow with your kids. I would recommend that for your daughter. You can pick up decent used ones on ebay for cheap. I think the two bows cost me around $175 and other than needing to be adjusted to fit, were in good enough shape for kids that are learning. It would be too much for the younger boys. I would pick up another Bear Brave so they each have their own. That is more age appropriate. My five-year-old has one.
The Mission bows are very good. I got a Radik for my younger son when he was seven. It maxes out at 50lbs at 28 in. I shot it maxed out before I set it up for him and was very impressed with the quality. It definitely exceeded my expectations for the price. The Mission Hammr will go to 70 lbs at 30 inches, providing more growing potential. Both of my boys shot a Bear Brave when they were younger. It’s definitely a viable option for introducing a kid to archery. Black Eagle Arrows 60X Custom Strings Tooth of the Arrow Broadheads
I started my kids with a Genesis Mini, which is good for those 6-7 year olds. My older son is 10 and has moved into the Mission Hammr, which should last him well into his teens. The issue with the little kids is their ability to hold the bow up and shoot. Most of the bows that are super adjustable are meant to grow with the kids as they get older, but they're a little too much bow for the 5-6-7 year olds. That's where that Genesis really fits in nicely. I put a whisker biscuit on it, got him a shooting glove and an arm guard and let it rip. I never bothered with a release, sight, etc. At that age it was all about flinging arrows at targets, no matter where they hit. That's just the way I'm doing it - which doesn't mean it's right or the only way.
sorry for bringing back a year old thread. My 9 year old son is shooting a hand me down (read old) Fuse Freestyle and the bow is a POS. I just found a Mission Radik used, fully set up, some type of whisker biscuit, multipin sight, quiver and wrist strap for $225 Unfortunately its blue camo... Its at a shop about 45 minutes from home, if my hunt tomorrow/friday goes good I'll try to look/buy it on the way home. I see Justin had his kid shooting a Mission Hammr, anyone have experience with the Radik?
It doesn’t look all that different than the mission craze that we have. Great bows. For the record, I had a couple boys over to learn to shoot with my 6year old. The ages were 7 and 9. I had the craze adjusted for the older boy and set to the lowest pound DW it was to go and he still struggled with it. He chose to shoot the Genesis bow I got for my 6 year old and they all had fun. I’m not saying you should by the Genesis for your son as he is probably ready for the next step bow. I think you have to worry more about fundamentals first than what they are capable of strength wise. Just because he can muscle back 12-15lbs doesn’t mean he will be comfortable with it and might even dislike shooting because it’s a little too much. just food for thought.
After you get them a bow that fits and they can grow with , If I could suggest that these young ones join a winter archery league, one of the archery shops around me has a kids league and it is fantastic. The instructor makes it fun for the kids. They shoot at a variable of targets. 10 yards to 20 yards as they get older and better. Higley's Archery shop. Centerville, Pa. Dave Luce instructor.
The Radik is a great bow for young archers. It's pretty close in specs to the Hammr and at that age it should fit him perfectly. I wouldn't worry about the camo - you can always rattle can it if you want! That's what we all did back in the day.
picked up the radik while driving to hunting cabin Wednesday, man use mom and pop shops! they close at 7 and its at least a 30 minute drive for me, I call them and ask if its a problem if I show ar right at 7, he said no, we dont lock up the second it hits 7. They stayed late to help me and 2 other people in the shop.
I bought a Mission Hammr to rehab my shoulder and I'm pretty impressed with the quality. I shot the heck out of that bow increasing draw weight until I got up to 50 pounds comfortably and then switched over to my hunting bow. They adjust from 11 to 70 pounds iirc. Buying from a dealer is important, I screwed up and managed to "unstring" it at one point and I had to do the walk of shame to the Archery shop to have it repaired and although I told them it was absolutely my fault they didn't charge me a dime to fix it. I'd like to give this one to a youngster starting out as it should last them for many years.
Hey Justin, Gonna get a bow for my 8 year old grandson. Think it will be the Radik. I'll equip it with a wisker bisket but was wondering about having him use a release or go with finger tab?
I would start him with a release sooner than later so he can get used to it. I know guys who started their kids on thumb triggers and hinges at 5 and 6 years old. The sooner they learn the right way to shoot, the better! I got my son a Scott Hero X release and it works great.
Thanks for the quick reply. I'm headed to the shop right now. I assume I can cut down some of my old arrows and he can fling them for a year until he is ready for his own spined arrows?
Yeah, that's what I did at first. When they are that little it doesn't really matter all that much. They can barely hit the target most of the time anyways.
