Recommendations .....

Looking for a little insight, been thinking about a trad bow for a couple years now. Wondering if any of you have any experience with the samick sage. Dont want to spend a ton to get started but dont want a piece of junk that dont shoot worth a darn and puts a bad taste in my mouth from the get go. If there are other bows you guys would recommend for a beginner i would love to hear about them. Also what should i be lookin for, should i be lookin at brace heighth like a compound as far as it being forgiving. Are there other things i should be lookin for...... thanks guys

Draw wt is important.
I started out with 45# @ my draw length and to be honest, for a little while it was tough!
Don't go too heavy at first because your form will suffer and you may end up getting hurt.
Coming from a compound to trad is a little different because in trad there is no let off. If it is 45# it stays 45# through out.
I have heard good things about the sage, but have not ever shot one.
I shoot a Bama Bows Hunter longbow, by Nate Steele, and I love it. (Under $400.00) My hunter is a D shaped longbow. I ordered another from Nate, and this one is a Expedition Hunter reflex/deflex style at a heavier draw wt of 52#. Should be getting it within the next month or so
Hope this helps

I just want to add, I am no expert.
I am a PE Teacher by trade and I am a certified NASP instructor. We teach archery in our classes and we use Genesis Compounds in our classes. They are fun to shoot and they are great teaching bows because of the let off. It allows students who are not very strong the ability to draw and hold to aim.
That said, I really, really, LOVE Traditional bows. For me that is where IT is at.
Be patient. It is different than compound shooting. Aiming is different as there are no pins to sight with. Find out how YOU aim and work that. Some people shoot instinctive, some shoot Gap style, some use a combination of the two (split vision). Find out what works for you and work it!
I like Rick Welch's third video on instinctive shooting. That has helped me an awful lot.
We start our students relatively close to the target. 7-10 yards away and then when they master that we back up. About a yard or two at a time.
Work on good form. Video yourself if you can, that helped me a lot.
Most importantly be patient. It can be frustrating but it can be a ton of fun too!

to answer your question specifacally...the sage bow would be a great way to start...45# is a great starting place...dont go to heavy until you know how to shoot.

I have given archery lessons for quite a while, along with owning an archery shop geared to traditional bows...The biggest mistake made is starting out with a bow to heavy...so many bad habits are started because the bow was to difficult to shoot.in reality shooting instinctively most dont draw the full 28" if they are canting the bow which is indicative of that style. so 45# is really a bit less...(2 lbs and inch about)

some 45-50 cedar arrows and that bow you should have a minimal amount of $$ invested, and be on your way to the fun of a lifetime!

plus you can buy extra limbs for the sage very inexpensively if you want to go up in weight a bit...t

Cliff notes version for my 2 cents.
I've heard good things about the samick sage. (google top recurves)

Don't over bow yourself. 45# will kill anything on this continent.

Blank bale, blank bale, blank bale. Groove your shot to the subconscious. Do not focus on aiming, until form is solid.

Enjoy.

Thanks guys, i been trying to decide between 40 and 45lbs to start. Leaning toward the 45lb or do you guys think thats to much? I plan on lots of practice in fact probably wont hunt with it this year, i would rather build some confidence first.

I went with 45# and I am happy I did.
Like backwaters said you can hunt pretty much anything with a 45# bow.
At first it was a little tough for me to be honest but after shooting for a while you get stronger and you get used to it pretty quick.
What I did that helped too was when I was done shooting the bow, I would do sets of five second draw and hold. I started out with five reps of five second holds and then increased the number of of reps until I felt comfortable with being able to hold at draw.
Don't be afraid to ask questions! If you come to something that you are not sure about especially....
A lot of people on here are more than willing to help.
Wandering mink and backwaters Bowhunter are more experienced than me, but I will help when I can too...

Been where your at, went through the internet upsidedown and sideways, I shoot a quinn stallion recurve , 51lbs at 28 in and it is one of the sweetest shooting bows i ever shot, and i went through ah bunch, i shot it back to back with a black widow and id rather have tha quinn, excellent bows and u can usually find them for under 300$ sometimes under 200, just look around and you'll find one and if u get one never get rid of it cause they dont makem anymore and everbody wants one.

Well today i acquired two older bear bows, one is a bear polar 38# and the other is a bear kodiac 52# both are in mint condition and didnt cost me a penny. Going to take them and get new strings arrows and what ever else i need and then let the fun begin on learning to shoot them. I 'm expecting it to be alot different than my compound.........

That's great!
And at such a great price
I am sure it will be different than compound shooting for sure
Have fun, I am sure you will.
Shooting traditional has a certain romance to it that is hard to explain, but I am sure you will understand after shooting these two fine bows you have acquired
Let us know how it goes
Enjoy!

Well its official........i suck with trad bows! Lol got a new string for the kodiac got set up and started shootin, lots of practice in my future.........

It's all good young'n, don't be so hard on yourself. With trad gear remember this, regarding the learning curve, "Slow & steady wins the race!"

Is there someone close to you who really is knowledgeable about shooting/setting up trad gear?

Yeah i got a couple people givin me pointers and answering questions. I think the biggest thing is after shootin compounds for thirty years its a huge change. I 'll get it its just gonna take alot of practice before i feel comfortable enough to go after an animal with it