Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Kids at the Campfire Advice on Bow and arrow for 8 yo GD.

Don`t see an archery forum on the fire so thought maybe this one would be place to go. Grandaughter has 8th birthday coming up. Very active girl with good strength and agility. She told me the other night she doesn`t want toys but wants a bow and arrows for her big day. Recurve or compound . Looking for recommendations of brands that I should be looking at. $100-$150 range maybe a bit more if the quality justifies it.

Thanks, Joe

go to the local bass pro and get some advice from their Archery assoc. or an archery shop.

The Bowhunting Fourm is a catch-all for archery.

The topic of a kid's bow has been discussed on there several times, I've got a 9 year old shooting a vertical bow and x-bow - she's having fun.

I went with Mission bow (Craze) that will adjust from 10 pounds at 17 inch draw to 50-60 at 28-30 inches - she can, and has grown with it over the last three years.

I'd suggest the Archery Pro Shop - most will let you try out a demo to see what she likes.

Based on Ed-too-many-letters, I got my son a Samick Sage Takedown when he was 7 or 8. It's a 25LB, and now that he is 10, he can draw little bit better. I don't know much about bows, (what I learnt through this purchase) but the advantage of the Samick is that over time you can replace the limbs for longer/stronger ones, as long as the riser fits the hand size. BTW my younger kids (9, 6, 4) still have some trouble with the draw weight.
I agree with an archery shop trip. Ed had seen and taught my son how to shoot when he made the recommendation, so it wasn't a blind rec.

My 8 year old grandson participated in the 4-H archery program last school year. He was only able to go to one tournament before Covid shut things down, but this is what they recommend for him.

https://www.cabelas.com/product/Genesis-Colored-Compound-Bow-Kit/712382.uts?slotId=1

I borrowed a bow from my niece that he used last year, but if he decides to participate again this year I'll buy him one of these. They are available a little cheaper on Amazon.

Some info and regulations about the bow regulations here. Because the bow we borrowed was set up with sights and a release he was not able to compete at the Novice level. We didn't find out about that until 2 weeks prior to the tournament and didn't want to change anything at that late date.

http://georgia4h.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Archery_Outdoor.pdf

Thanks all for the responses. Got some homework to do and visits to make. Joe

Check out the Little Tiger, and the Tiny Tiger.

https://www.southwestarcheryusa.com/collections/all-bows

Dryad bows makes wonderful bows for young ones: http://dryadbows.com/Youth%20Bows/youthbows.htm

I bought my daughter A Diamond bow when she was 10. It has since been passed on to my 28 yr old niece since my daughter didn't shoot it anymore. It is a bow a child can grow with. As I recall it can be set as low as 5 lbs. and goes up to 65 or 70 lbs. with pull lengths to match.

My son started shooting an adjustable diamond when he was 6, it was set at a little over 5 pounds. He's hit a pretty good growth spurt in the 3 years since then since then and has added a couple inches to his draw length and is closer to 20 pounds now. No problems with any of the adjustments. I've been very happy with the bow

Diamond Infinity Edge. A little more expensive, but she will never outgrow it.

PSE Mini-Burner and Uprising. I’m leaning toward the MB for my 9 y/o.
Mission Hammr
Bear Cruzer Lite

Bear Crusader or maddogarchery.com if you want something extra nice.

honestly, whatever your local bow shop supports. Ours sold Missions by Matthew, adjustable...got ours when my sone was 6 or 7, adjusted it a couple times and he's still shooting it at 11.

My son's using one now. Highly recommend it.

Good selection, trade in as the kid grows (I'd just keep them), bows for grown ups too, >>>made in USA<<<...

Black Rhino

Whatever you do do not get draw weights beyond the shooters ability.
A coworker went through several back surgeries that were supposedly based on his father insisting on heavy bows and competition shooting when he was younger.

A few years back I took a 7 year old out to buy him a new compound bow. I picked a more exspensive bow off the shelf and handed it to him, he said no and chose a lesser priced bow. I asked why and he said "I have to carry it and this one is lighter". I'd have never thought of that, they were all light weight to me.