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My 20 year old son wants his first bow. I havent bought a bow in 20 years. Any advice on a good starter bow? He is left handed if that makes a difference.

Thanks

I don't know buddy. I'm a stick bow guy,but the one thing I do see with compounds is huge depreciation from one year model to the next. It seems bows with multiple strings and cams go out of date as fast as electronics. The industry only survives because it pushes the need for the newest,latest, greatest.

All that said,I think I would educate myself as to what was considered some of the best a couple years ago and learn how to check over a used bow and buy a used model at considerable savings. You will need to know his draw length and know what lengths a particular bow will accommodate. Check on expense of replacing cables and how to tell if they need it,and I guess go from there. Some of the other guys cal better tell you what to look for in a used bow if you decide to go that route.

Go with an old compound bow, as it's easy for beginners.

Check out this page: https://archerytopic.com/best-compound-bow/

I just sold an older PSE at a yard sale for $15. It did have a quiver, sights and a rest. Yes they do depreciate in value!

Go to a pro shop and shoot several bows, new or used and find one that fits him.
Having a bow with the right draw length and one that feels good to the shooter is important.
Nobody can tell you which is best for your son.
There are lots of very good compounds these days.

I would recommenced a Mission bow , made by Matthews. Very affordable and highly adjustable. I started out my sons with them. I myself wouldn't go the used route unless I had a reputable bow shop check it over very well. That's my .02 worth

Archery talk . Com. With him being lh, he will be able to pick one up cheap. No sense in spending a grand only to find out he doesn't like it or can't shoot it.

Yep. I’d look on Archerytalk classifieds.

Lots of really nice bows for a fraction of new cost. I bought my first bow there 12 or 15 years ago! Id look for a nice midrange bow in his draw length. I like a bow with a longer ATA length. 34” or more. Makes it a bit easier to shot well, for me anyway.

yes archery talk is the better solution and you would save a ton of money,i purchased I used compound bow for my son a hoyt 2009 katera, this year 2017 in Montana my son shot a huge typical bull elk that will score 360 -380 B.C. the reason I told you what my son shot is to say this :the bow cost me $325.00 on archery talk,you don`t need a new bow to shoot a animal, rather its a trophy or just a meat animal for the freezer.if I was a bet`n man: son`s bull elk will probably be one of the biggest shot with a bow in America in 2017 and he did it with one shot thru the lungs with a old 2009 compound bow,but it won`t be in any books either,we don`t believe in it. save some money buy a used bow first time.

Close outs are also a good option. I bought a new bow last year., it was a 2013 model on super close out sale. Quite a few available for about half of retail at the shop I bought it at. LH might be tougher to find though.

Bought a rest for it on Archerytalk

Get a middle of the road PSE

Ford, chevy, dodge. There are so many quality bows out there , you can't make a statement like that. With all the binary bows out there, there's not a meaningful difference between them.

I bought a Mathews Drenalin used, for not a lot of$. I don’t see a need to ever buy another. Very forgiving and smooth.

MM

A Hoyt Powermax will set you back about $600. They are excellent rigs and will last a long long time. Buy it new from a reputable pro shop and get it fit to him to start with. A cheap bow that does not fit is a waste of money and even worse no fun to shoot.

U hunting elk or deer?

Tree stand deep woods? Or field edges? U going 2 be scent conscious?

For tight , close work, scent free, get a bear recurve. One that fits his hand. I prefer the grizzlies.

For compounds ( boat hoists) I luv them Hoyt's!

I got 2 rampages....most wonderful boat hoists I ever been around!

Head over to archerytalk.com as mentioned above.
There's a whole left handed for sale section, linked below
http://www.archerytalk.com/vb/forumdisplay.php?f=21
Good group of guys with plenty of depreciation as they like to share old good stuff!

This, it's well worth getting a bow setup for him.

With a bow setup for him, he can put his effort into learning to shoot the bow accurately. With a generic used bow that isn't setup for him, he'll have to learn to tune a bow and learn to shoot it at the same time. Which can easily lead to a lot of frustration and not knowing if accuracy problems are due to him, or the bow being setup wrong or using the wrong arrows or...

Don't spend a ton of money on a bow, a good used bow is fine, or a new Mission Ballistic 2.0 or Hoyt Powermax are just fine to hunt with. Spend a little more on components and have a shop set him up and get it tuned for him.

i am a lefty as well i have a Diamond Archery Edge SB-1 package it was a great price and it shoots awesome it is also adjustable from 7 - 70 lbs ive bowhunted for years and this is a great bow for a beginner or seasoned
just m2c