Bear Odyssey II Review

Editors' review

Most bows aimed at a 13-inch draw are cast-riser toys built to a price. The Odyssey II is not one of them. Bear built its intermediate grow-with-me compound on a machined 6061-T6 aluminum riser with compression-molded limbs and pivoting limb pockets, the same construction language as its adult hunting bows, then sized the whole package down to a youth-and-short-draw draw range. Bear's own catalog called it a bow with "all the features of Dad's bow" in a lower draw-weight setup, and the description holds up. The single cam carries 15 draw-length positions spanning 13 to 27 inches, every one of them changed by hand without a bow press, which is the feature that lets a parent buy one bow and keep it fitting a growing kid for years. It sold from 2007 through 2008 as the higher-poundage member of a two-bow platform it shared with the lighter Pioneer II. The question worth answering is not whether it shoots like a flagship, but how far one adjustable youth bow can stretch before a shooter genuinely outgrows it.

Finish

The Odyssey II wore one camo per model year, and the pattern changed across the run: Realtree Hardwoods Green HD in 2007, then Realtree APG in 2008, both all-purpose green-and-brown patterns from Realtree's late-2000s lineup. A single finish per year is normal for a youth package bow, where the buyer is choosing a first real compound rather than curating a color, and either pattern's neutral palette suits a bow that will see backyard targets as often as a treestand. The camo covers the full riser and limbs, the same treatment Bear applied across its adult bows of the era. There is no anniversary or blackout variant to hunt for and no per-color upcharge to weigh, which keeps the buying decision to the two things that actually matter on this bow: draw weight and package level.

Riser

The riser is the Odyssey II's headline. It is machined from 6061-T6 aircraft aluminum, the same alloy Bear used on its adult risers, rather than the cast metal or reinforced polymer that defines most bows at a youth draw range. That choice is what earns the "Dad's bow" comparison: the geometry is a genuine compound-bow riser scaled to a shorter shooter, not a downsized recreational frame. Pivoting limb pockets seat the limbs and let the draw weight back down cleanly, and a Teflon cable slide handles the cables off to the side. The 32-inch axle-to-axle length (the distance between the two cam axles) is long for a bow with a 13-inch minimum draw, and that extra length is deliberate: it keeps the string angle manageable and the bow forgiving for a beginner still learning to anchor. In my experience that longer riser is the difference between a young shooter grouping arrows and simply flinging them.

Grip

Bear fitted the Odyssey II with an Elasto-Polymer grip designed to damp vibration as much as to fill the hand. The profile is narrow, which matters more here than on an adult bow because the intended shooter often has a smaller hand and less strength to fight torque. A slim, low-torque grip helps a new archer set the same hand position shot after shot, which is the foundation of the consistency this bow is built to teach. The polymer surface stays comfortable in cold weather better than a bare-aluminum grip would, a small thing that keeps a kid shooting into late-season practice. There is nothing exotic here, and there does not need to be; the grip does its job and gets out of the way.

Limbs

The limbs are compression-molded and run flat off the pivoting pockets rather than splitting into a quad, a durable and simple design that tolerates the knocks a first bow inevitably takes. Bear offered the Odyssey II in two peak-weight builds, one topping out at 40 pounds and one at 50, and each backs down a broad range through the limb bolts so the effective floor sits well below the peak. That spread is the point: a lighter shooter can start soft on the 40-pound limbs, while the 50-pound build gives an older kid or a short-draw adult enough energy for real intermediate hunting weight. Backing the weight down needs only an Allen wrench, no press, so a parent can retune the bow at the kitchen table as the shooter gains strength. It is a limb system built for years of adjustment, not for chasing the last few feet per second.

Eccentric System

A single rotating-modular cam runs the show, and it is the reason the Odyssey II adjusts the way it does. Bear marketed it as the Inner-Cam Shooting System in 2007 and the Rotating Modular Cam System by 2008, but the mechanism is the same: 15 discrete draw-length positions from 13 to 27 inches, each set by rotating the module rather than swapping parts or pressing the bow. That no-press adjustment is what separates a grow-with-me bow from an ordinary youth compound, and Bear claimed more draw positions than any competing system of the day. Let-off is 70 percent, meaning at full draw the shooter holds only about a third of the peak weight, which helps a young archer settle the pin without shaking. Bear rated the bow at 283 to 287 fps, but that number needs context: it was measured at a 27-inch draw, 50 pounds and a 250-grain arrow, not at the 30-inch, 70-pound, 350-grain setup that defines the adult IBO standard, so it is a youth-relevant figure and not comparable to the IBO speeds printed on hunting flagships. For its class and draw range, that is quick.

Draw Cycle/Shootability

Drawing the Odyssey II, the cam rolls over its peak without the abrupt dump you feel on cheap youth bows, and it settles into a usable valley behind a defined wall. Hands-on time at a pro shop confirmed the impression: it draws smoothly and, for a bow this size, it genuinely feels fast on release. The trade-off is at the shot. There is a bit of hand shock and audible noise when the string lets go, more than a padded flagship but about what the price and era predict. The fix is designed into the bow: the riser has a rear boss for a string stop that Bear did not include, and adding an aftermarket stop for around forty dollars quiets the shot and smooths the feel to a striking degree. At 2.9 pounds the bow is light enough that a smaller shooter can float the pin without the front end diving, which is exactly what you want in a bow meant to build good form. Shot to shot, it behaves like a real compound teaching real technique, not a toy tolerating it.

Usage Scenarios

Picture the classic timeline this bow was built for. A 10-year-old starts on the 40-pound limbs set soft and short, punching foam in the backyard after school. Two summers later the same bow is cranked up and the module rotated out a few positions, and the kid is shooting a 3D course at a club night. By the mid-teens the 50-pound build and a 26- or 27-inch draw put them in a treestand for whitetail at sensible ranges. That is three or four seasons on one bow, and it is the whole reason the Odyssey II exists. It also fits a short-draw adult or a smaller-framed shooter who wants a genuine machined-aluminum compound without an adult bow's draw floor, and it makes a capable, inexpensive backup or loaner around a hunting camp. What it is not is a long-range elk rig or a bow for a full-grown adult who wants 70 pounds and a 29-inch draw; those shooters have simply aged out of its range.

Versions

The Odyssey II was sold two ways. The Bow Only SKU is the bare bow, string and cam, for a buyer who already owns a rest and sight. The with-Accessories package (Bear's ready-to-shoot configuration) adds a Whisker Biscuit arrow rest, a 3-pin fiber-optic sight with metal pins, a two-piece camo quiver and three Satellite carbon arrows, so a first-time owner can leave the shop able to shoot; a peep and kisser are cheap shop add-ons often already fitted on used examples. Each package came in the two peak-weight builds, 40 and 50 pounds. Both the 2007 and 2008 model years are the same bow mechanically; the changes across the run were cosmetic, the cam's marketing name and the camo pattern (Realtree Hardwoods Green HD in 2007, Realtree APG in 2008). Bear did not publish a launch MSRP that survives in the record, and the bow has been discontinued since 2008; on the used market complete examples typically trade around $70 to $100, which for a machined-aluminum grow-with-me package is a lot of bow for the money.

Bear Odyssey II vs Bear Apprentice, Diamond Infinite Edge

Bow	Bear Odyssey II	Bear Apprentice	Diamond Infinite Edge
Version	2008	2011	2015
Picture
Brace Height	5.5 "	6 "	7 "
AtA Length	32 "	27.5 "	31 "
Draw Length	13 " - 27 "	15 " - 27 "	13 " - 30 "
Draw Weight	30 lbs - 50 lbs	20 lbs - 50 lbs	5 lbs - 70 lbs
IBO Speed	283 fps - 287 fps	265 fps	310 fps
Weight	2.9 lbs	2.9 lbs	3.1 lbs
Let-Off	70%	70%	75%
Where to buy Best prices online	$119.99 to $599 Compare prices	$52.1 to $220 Compare prices	$99.99 to $600 Compare prices
	compare more bows

Three adjustable grow-with-me bows, three ways to solve the same problem. The Bear Apprentice is the closest cross-shop and effectively the Odyssey II's own successor concept: a 27.5-inch, 20-to-50-pound single-cam youth hunter that Bear sold as a ready-to-hunt package in 2010 and 2011. It shares the Odyssey II's 50-pound ceiling, 27-inch draw cap, 2.9-pound mass and 70-percent let-off, but its shorter axle-to-axle makes it handier in a blind while the Odyssey II's longer 32-inch riser is more forgiving to aim. The Diamond Infinite Edge answers the same grow-with-me brief with far more range: a dual-cam bow adjustable from 5 to 70 pounds and 13 to 30 inches, it reaches full adult hunting weight the Odyssey II cannot, at the cost of a more complex cam and a higher price tier. The Odyssey II splits the difference, offering true machined-aluminum construction and no-press adjustment in a package that stays firmly in youth-to-intermediate territory. The decision comes down to priorities: the Odyssey II or Apprentice for a shooter who will stay inside a 50-pound, 27-inch envelope, and the Diamond Infinite Edge for a parent who wants one bow that never gets outgrown, all the way to a 70-pound adult setup.

Summary

The Bear Odyssey II is a discontinued 2007-2008 intermediate compound that did something most youth bows still don't: it put a machined 6061-T6 aluminum riser, compression-molded limbs and a 15-position no-press cam into a package sized for a 13-to-27-inch draw and a 40- or 50-pound peak. That construction is why it earned the "Dad's bow" comparison, and why it stretches across three or four seasons of a kid's growth instead of one. Bear's 283-287 fps rating is a youth-setup figure, not an IBO number, but on the bow it feels genuinely quick, and the 70-percent let-off keeps a new shooter steady on the pin. My one caveat is the bare shot: it carries a little hand shock and noise until you spend forty dollars on the string stop the riser is already drilled for, after which it settles noticeably. With complete examples trading around $70 to $100 used, it is one of the better-value ways to put a real compound in a young or short-draw shooter's hands. An excellent choice for the household where a growing kid or a short-draw adult will share and re-tune one bow across several seasons, particularly strong as a first genuine compound that teaches real form. Buyers who want a single bow that scales all the way to a full 70-pound adult hunting setup should also look at the Diamond Infinite Edge.