Compound Bow Comparator

The Athens Protege is a 25-inch, 230-plus fps IBO youth growth bow made from 2010 to 2012, and its whole case rests on reach: a 5-pound, 11 3/4-inch floor low enough to start a toddler, climbing to 29 pounds and a 26 1/4-inch draw as the child grows, with heavier limbs to extend it further. Unlike the single-cam kid bows it competed with, it runs a true dual cam with a rotating draw module, sealed cam bearings, a solid-wall stop and rear-pivot limb pockets - real construction that owners consistently rank a cut above discount-store youth bows. What stays with me about the Protege is that it refuses to treat a small child's first bow as a throwaway: it adjusts lower than almost anything else, holds together through hard backyard use, and keeps fitting the same archer for years. It comes as a bare bow in a Boys or Girls colorway, so plan on adding a sight, rest, and arrows, and on a quick pro-shop press visit each time you step up the draw. Discontinued now, it is a used-market find, but a clean one restrung by any pro shop is a lot of genuinely-built growth bow. It is an excellent choice for the parent who wants to start a very young child on a real bow and keep it in service as they grow, and it is particularly strong at that low-weight, small-draw starting point most youth bows can't reach. Buyers who want an inexpensive ready-to-shoot package should also look at the Diamond Atomic; those whose child is already heading toward hunting weights should look at the Bear Apprentice. Read full review...

The Diamond Atomic is the bow to reach for when the archer is genuinely small, and it solves that job better than anything near its $269 price. Its 12-to-24-inch draw and 6-to-29-pound range adjust at home without a press, so one 1.9-pound bow follows a child from a preschooler's first backyard arrows toward the day they move up to a full-size bow, and Diamond has kept the formula in the catalog continuously since 2012 for good reason. The all-aluminum riser, cams and limb pockets are the heart of it - on a bow that will be dropped, shared between siblings and left out in the yard, building it out of metal instead of plastic is the choice that keeps it shooting for years. The 191 fps rating marks it plainly as a learning and backyard bow rather than a hunting rig, which is exactly what a first bow should be, and the deep 70 percent let-off keeps a small child steady at full draw. What I keep coming back to is how low it starts: a 6-pound, 12-inch setting puts a real compound in the hands of a four or five year old, and very few bows at any price genuinely do that. It is an excellent choice for the parent putting a durable, real first bow in a small child's hands with room to grow, particularly strong for households sharing one bow between siblings. Families who need the range to reach a full hunting weight should also look at the Bear Limitless, and those who want one bow to carry a child from youth archery all the way into adult hunting might prefer the Mission Menace. Read full review...

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• Starts a genuinely small child - the 5-pound, 11 3/4-inch floor drops lower than almost any youth bow, low enough that one owner began a two-year-old on it
• Grows with the child for years - the rotating draw module spans 11 3/4 to 26 1/4 inches and 5 to 29 pounds, with heavier limbs available to extend the range further
• Built like a real bow, not a toy - a true dual cam, sealed cam bearings, a solid-wall draw stop and rear-pivot limb pockets are why owners rate it a cut above discount-store kid bows

• Reaches the youngest shooter of any bow in its class - a 6-pound, 12-inch-draw floor lets a four or five year old shoot a real compound, then grows to 29 pounds and 24 inches on the modules as they do
• Adult-grade all-aluminum build - aluminum riser, cams and limb pockets where most youth bows use plastic, so it shrugs off being dropped, leaned over and left out in the yard
• Feather-light at 1.9 pounds - light enough that a small child can actually hold it up and keep their form through a full backyard session
• Complete ready-to-shoot package including arrows - out of the box to the first shot the same afternoon, with nothing else to buy to get started

• Very universal and adjustable bow for the youth, women, and small-frame men
• Will grow with a young shooter due to a lot of adjustability
• Very lightweight bow - important aspect for smaller kids
• Easily adjustable draw length - no bow press is required
• Good value for money

• Sold as a bare bow, so budget for a sight, rest, and arrows - rival youth bows like the Diamond Atomic ship as ready-to-shoot packages
• Changing draw length or swapping limbs needs a finger-style bow press, which Athens requires - plan a quick pro-shop visit as your child grows rather than an at-home tweak

• It is a backyard and learning bow, not a hunting rig - 191 fps at a 29-pound ceiling is built for form and fun, and a child ready to hunt has outgrown it and should step up to a bigger bow like the Diamond Radian

• Could be a bit faster