TopArchery 56″ Recurve Bow Review

TopArchery is a company that is passionate about providing archery and outdoor hunting equipment to experienced hunters and novices alike. While searching for the ideal hunting bow, we stumbled upon this takedown recurve bow. 

This bow is marketed as an ideal hunting tool for beginners, so we wanted to try it out. Here we’ll be reviewing the TopArchery Takedown recurve bow. 

What We Like 

Firstly, this inexpensive right-hand bow fit together nicely and was easy to assemble but didn’t include any stringer tools – which could be an issue for beginners and potentially contribute to other problems that we’ll discuss later on. Stringing a bow for the first time is quite the learning curve, too. 

The bow was well packaged, and in the package, there was.

  • 1 x Strong Fiber Glass Recurve bow
  • 1 x Bowstring
  • 1 x Metal Bow riser
  • 2 x Bow limb
  • 1 x Arrow Rest
  • 1 x Bow Case
  • 1 x Instruction manual

It is a laminated bow made of maple (core) and coated in fiberglass. Lamination like this lends itself to being resistant to dust and degradation while remaining lightweight (though this bow isn’t the lightest option on the market). Maple wood is durable and can last a long time, too. 

Using the bow for target shooting was a great experience, too. It is high quality and feels sturdy, too. It has the feel of something that is 3 or 4 times more expensive. Its strong maple and fiberglass structure gives the impression that you’re handling a very advanced, expensive piece of kit. 

 Draw weight varies from 18lbs up to 50lbs, increasing in increments. This makes it an excellent option for newer hunters and those who want to fit in a bit of target practice in the backyard. 

Youths and smaller archers can use a bow with an 18lb draw weight, though due to the 56″ bow length, it isn’t going to be recommended for those with a longer than average draw length. 

The riser is comprised of quality high-strength aluminum alloy, superior to the usual plastic risers that I often see on bow sets in this price range. The price is a big plus as it’s one of the few bow kits you can get for under $100. 

 You can upgrade this takedown bow, and you can choose to add on new risers, arrow rest, stabilizers, etc., or even upgrade it to use for bowfishing. There are pre-drilled holes to allow for easy upgrade. 

40lbs is the minimum ideal draw weight for hunting big game, and this recurve bow is supplied in up to 50lbs sizes, meaning you could hunt with it if you made some upgrades to it. It’s a good upgradable base if you’re looking for a cheap starting bow. 

This isn’t the quietest bow that we’ve tested, so it would be advisable to buy a string silencer with it if you intend to hunt, but this isn’t necessary for target shooting. Add a carbon arrow set, and you’re good to go. 

We named this our top pick for youth bow in our best recurve bows list.

What We Wish Was Different 

While this is an excellent piece of kit for a right-handed shooter,  left-hand orientation isn’t catered to. 

While we didn’t have this issue, many customers reported a twisted lower limb, which is quite disappointing. This is something to be aware of. A twisted limb can result from improper storage or from stringing it without a stringing tool. 

Since TopArchery doesn’t provide a stringer tool, this may be why this problem seems disturbingly prevalent. A twisted fiberglass limb is sometimes fixable, but if your brand new bow arrives needing repair, it’s easy to see why this is offputting. 

Despite the durability of maple and fiberglass, some users also report that limbs snapped within a few uses. These issues of twisted limbs and snapping may be linked. 

While there’s no telling quite how prevalent this issue is in reality, it’s certainly disappointing that customers report difficulty getting in touch with TopArchery for customer support, with several having given up and remained out of pocket. 

What Other Customers Say 

We had a look at customer reviews on Amazon to see what other customers think of this takedown hunting recurve bow. 

“Seriously disappointed with this purchase. I was looking forward to getting back into archery as a way to blow off steam between meetings but I found this to be a very disappointing purchase. I followed all of the directions, removed the string after each use, purchased a bow stringer separately, everything. But within the first 3 days the whole bow had warped and it became unsafe and unusable. 
Total waste of money. Total waste of time. And I had purchased a number of products (arm guards and a target, arrows, everything) that are now rendered useless.
Horrible product.” – Jason L. 

“Great bow. Just be sure to purchase the bow stringer so that you can protect the limbs. Be sure to unstring the bow between uses to keep the spring in the limbs.
Mine (50#) came pretty quiet right out of the box, which was great. It could be more quiet, but it suits my needs just fine.
My only quirk about the design of the bow is in regards to the riser and the rubber grip. I just feel that  the grip would have been better secured with two screws instead of one. But if you allow the pressure of the bow draw to keep the bow in your hand, you won’t need to worry about the grip tearing off.
For a $100 bow, it’s great.” – Benjamin M. 

”I got the 50lb version of this bow for $88 (there was coupon) and I couldn’t be happier. This may be an inexpensive bow from a manufacturer I had never heard of, but I feel like this is a good product, especially for the money. I’ve made very few modifications to the bow: string silencers are a must to dampen the noise a bit and since I shoot off the shelf, I added a strip of bear hair. I have not used the included arrow rest at all. Other than string nocks, the bow shoots very consistently stock.

Packaging was nicely done, it DOES come with a string and was simple to assemble. Make sure you give the string a few good twists to raise the brace height a little bit for a little better performance. I also appreciate the extra threaded holes in the riser for sight pins or other accessories that you may wish to use if you have/need them.My old Bear Grizzly doesn’t have anything like that 😉

All in all, this is a great purchase for the money if you are looking for a decent takedown recurve bow.” Mc F. 

Wrapping Up 

Recurve bows are one of the most popular archery bows against the crossbow, compound bow, and longbow. We are always on the lookout for the best recurve bows at MOTO and we’ve come to the conclusion during this recurve bow review that while Top Archery does provide a decent all-rounder however there are concerns regarding the bow limbs and also customer support. While we didn’t have any significant issues, it’s definitely a mark against TopArchery if they cannot be contacted when a significant issue does arise. 

[aawp box=”B09151H2CD”]
Trey

About the Author

Trey is a lifelong hunter and avid camper. He lives outside Denver, CO with his wife Kaci and their lab mix Ziggy. They spend as much time as possible outdoors - hunting, fishing, and camping.

Leave a Comment

Master of the Outdoors

© 2024 master of the outdoors