AF Archery Tatar Recurve Bow, 54" Traditional Laminated Horse Bow for Mounted Archery and Precision Shooting Longbow Left Right Hand

I've shot archery for over 3 decades, have taught archery, managed and judged sanctioned competitions. This bow itself is one of the finest bows I have ever shot, hands down. It is light weight, a real pleasure to shoot, and accurate.Note that the price seems to jump from $130 to $330 and back again. This identical bow is regularly available on Amazon for $130 and under, so note the current price before hitting the buy button. ;DThis is Mongolian / Turkish (Tatar) design. It is more difficult to string than normal recurves or longbows... even with a professional stringing device. So be VERY careful when stringing, every time. Those thin-width, significantly-curved tips could cause the bow to flip-n-strip very easily.Two solutions: I made my own bow stringer out of paracord, with two large-loop pieces of leather on the end. Instead of stringing off a tip of the bow, I place the leather strips on both limb centers, which stabilizes the bow during stringing and minimizes the chance of twisting and de-layering. I would not use a tip-based stringer; these tips are too curved and too unusual.Second solution: Once I got used to the bow, I use the standard step-through, brace on the shin and string method. One still has to be very careful. Make sure the braced limb is very flat and firmly placed on your shin. Hold the free limb close to the tip, bring the string up and under your palm, to the tip and into the anchor hole. VISUALLY CHECK the other end to make sure the string is centered on the string guide before releasing tension on the bow. This method works well if you're careful and attentive. With this type of bow the stringing process is most critical.The bow itself fires well if you enjoy traditional shooting (there's no shelf, no sight provision). I don't hunt so I ordered the 25# 'target bow' size (for $130), and am very pleased with my purchase.MODIFICATION: I shoot 'Olympic / Mediterranean' style (three finger, left side) rather than traditional thumb release. On a whim I made my own 'shelf' out of a bit of plumbers epoxy putty, painted black and added a brass nocking point on the string. This improved the accuracy significantly, as the arrow fires exactly the same way off the shelf every time. While not exactly traditional, this is an excellent modification to consider. My accuracy with this bow is excellent. (You can use wrapped, tied and glued string instead of a brass point... but such tends to be permanent thereafter.)I recommend 700-spine carbon arrows with feather fletchings. The bow itself is made of modern materials so there's no real need for traditional wood arrows unless your club requires it. Carbon arrows are much more consistent and accurate. I do have a set of 400 spine bamboo arrows and they're both fun to shoot and fairly accurate... but the carbons are lighter and more accurate.STANDARD TIPS: Always use arrows with feather fletchings, not vanes. Vanes are plastic and bounce off the bow, causing inaccurate results. Feathers bend and give. Investing in feathered carbon arrows is well worth it when it comes to increasing accuracy. I use Mediterranean (Olympmic) 3-finger shooting style... but that's just my personal preference.Beginners tip: If you're new to archery, shoot at 10 yards / meters. You can extend your range as your aim improves. 'Canting' the bow (leaning it a bit sideways rather than straight up and down) will improve accuracy. Watch videos for suggestions on all shooting styles and realize: every archer has their own preference and some can be very opinionated. Do what works for you. ;DQuality-wise, this bow can't be beat if you are looking for a Tatar / Mongolian-style bow. Otherwise my choice would be a thin-center shelf bow. But I specifically wanted a Mongolian style bow, so I opted for this quality Tatar model. The light weight of this bow make shooting it a delight. A friend who has the pro model of this bow (a lot more pricey) agrees it's one of his favorites.Again beware of different-seller price-hikes. But as for the bow itself, it's shiny.

Edit: the seller responded to my feedback and resolved my issue immediately and satisfactorily. As I said in my original review, the bow is amazing and I highly recommend it for someone looking to try thumb draw. I've been shooting it every couple of days and have a blast every time.Original review: I was skeptical when the box arrived cut in half and taped back together with a 1" gap. The bow was undamaged in a tied bow sleeve and then taped bubble wrap. But no string. There's a rubber band around the one of the bow limbs where I suppose the string would be but no string. The only reason for the 1 star review since I could not shoot the bow out of the box. I don't think the damaged box is to blame since the bow was still "sealed" in bubble wrap and the bow sleeve. Very disappointing to not be able to shoot the bow right away. I have two other bows, but they western recurves so I did not have a compatible spare string. Amazon's policy for a missing item is to contact the manufacturer or do a return. I reached out to AF Archery's contact page, but have not yet heard back. If I do, I will edit this review and my 1 star rating.I ended up ordering another string from Amazon, thankfully they carry a string specifically for this bow. Received the string today and yes, I fell in love with the bow on day 1. This is my first tatar, my first time trying thumb release and it has been great. The bow is #28 at 28", close enough to the #30 I ordered. at 32" it's very close to #35. I use a wall mounted jig to string my recurves and this bow fits as well, although the limbs are much more forward from the handle. You can really feel all that stored energy when you string it. I shot about 120 arrows with a thumb ring and had an absolute blast. Only missed the target twice at 10 yards, which I consider an accurate bow for a first time thumb shooter. I've been shooting instinctive for about 2 months and it translated very easily to shooting thumb release on this bow. Draw is very smooth up to 32" inches. I shot mostly from 31" since my form needs work, but it was very comfortable. I shot about 10gpp (340 grain arrows, 600 spine) and yes there's some hand shock. Not terrible and didn't feel overly uncomfortable in the 120 shots I took. Fit and finish look perfect. The glossy coat is a fingerprint magnet, but looks beautiful after being wiped down. The handle takes some getting used to coming from "pistol grip" recurves. I highly recommend this bow for a beginner or someone wants to try out thumb release. Very intuitive bow. Sounds amazing on release, much more satisfying then my western recurves.I would buy this bow again in a heartbeat, may get a second one in higher poundage after I get my form down. You can't beat the price for a well made laminated tatar. Such a shame it was missing the string.

tl;dr: Beautiful bow (40#). Correct poundage. Could be a better string (but they're nearly interchangeable with other bows). Smooth shot, surprisingly quiet.First impression: It's a beautiful bow. It's well lacquered, the emblem is under the lacquer so it'll hopefully stay clean and lustrous. The loops of the string are quite large such that while stringing it can be difficult to keep the bottom loop engaged because the top can slide so far up the limb. But strings can be swapped out and one can always crimp or twist the loop to make it as small as necessary. String comments are kinda moot though because they don't reflect poorly on the quality of the bow and strings are (very nearly) interchangeable. To anyone who happens to care, if I pluck the string with the bow strung, it sounds a perfect G3 (196 Hz). I hope it stays in tune.Draw weight: After measuring with a handheld strain gauge, it's 40# within the error of my gauge so good!After 100 shots: Surprisingly quiet shot. I think it's because of the lovely string offsets but I'm not completely sure. Either way, pleasantly surprised there. Smooth shot for a recurve so the limbs have pretty consistent draw weight per inch.I'll try to update this review after the first 1000 shots to see if the bow has changed.At this point, good bow, accurate poundage, quiet, fun to shoot.