Compound Bow Comparator

The Bear Ultra Light is a focused answer to a question most hunting bows skip: how do you give a short-draw shooter a genuinely light, compact, ready-to-hunt bow without capping their performance? At 3.2 pounds and 29.75 inches, with a Perimeter-Weighted Modular Single Cam that squeezes 280 fps out of just 50 pounds at a 28-inch draw, it delivers real arrow speed in a package a smaller-framed hunter can carry and hold all day. The 2010 refinements, a 6-inch brace, 80-percent let-off, beyond-parallel Max Pre-Load limbs, and added string and axle dampening, made the better of the two years quieter and more comfortable to hold. It belonged to Bear's value ready-to-hunt tier, and on today's used market it is best viewed as an affordable complete package rather than a collector's piece. In my view its sweet spot is unmistakable: the teenager growing into hunting weights, the woman stepping up to her first real deer bow, or the experienced hunter who wants a featherweight backup. An excellent bow for short-draw and small-framed hunters, particularly strong as a light, maneuverable treestand and ground-blind rig. Buyers who want maximum grow-with-you adjustability or a path to 70 pounds should also look at the Diamond Infinite Edge Pro. Read full review...

This bow has "let me show you how" written all over it. It is smooth, forgiving, light, and highly adjustable for any sized youth archer. It fills a niche along with the Craze in Mission's line up, however, the Menace will fit a smaller shooter. The dual cams give it good speed even at lighter and shorter draws. Mission has good quality like Mathews, but no quite as flashy. It is comfortable to shoot and shouldn't put a bad taste in a new archer's mouth. The color options available on the Menace should be enough to excite most youths itself. Its enormous range of adjustability should satisfy a huge range of kids and adults. The MSRP is $269 and should fit the price range of many, but may be a little too high for others. Read full review...

The Infinite Edge Pro came back for a reason: it does one thing better than almost anything at its price, and that is stretch to fit whoever picks it up. The 2026 Legacy edition keeps the formula - 13 to 31 inches of draw, 5 to 65 pounds, an 80-percent let-off and a smooth, quiet shot - and wraps it in a complete ready-to-hunt package at around $330, less than the model cost at its 2015 launch. It gives up five pounds of peak weight and ten fps against the original, trades that are invisible to the beginner, youth archer, and shared-family buyer this bow is built for. In my time around bows like this, the ones that get a household actually shooting are rarely the fastest or the quietest - they are the ones that fit everyone and are cheap enough to shoot without worry, and the Infinite Edge Pro is squarely that bow. It is an excellent choice for youth archery, new adult hunters, and any family that wants a single adjustable rig, particularly strong as a first bow that will still fit years later. Buyers who want more top-end poundage or speed for big game should also look at the Bear Cruzer G3. Read full review...

• Built for short draws: the 22-28 inch range at a huntable 50-pound peak fits small-framed adults, women, and teenagers moving up
• Genuinely light and compact at 3.2 pounds and 29.75 inches axle-to-axle, so it carries all day and turns quickly in a treestand or ground blind
• Ships as a complete ready-to-hunt package with Trophy Ridge rest, sight, quiver, stabilizer and sling, so it shoots out of the box
• Modular single cam adjusts draw length across most of its range without a bow press, making it easy to set up and re-fit as a shooter grows

• Smooth
• Quiet
• Perfect youth/beginner bow
• Easy to adjust draw length without bow press or module change

• One set of limbs covers 13-31 inches of draw and 5-65 pounds of weight - genuinely one bow for a young beginner and the adult hunter that beginner becomes
• Smooth draw cycle that rolls over the peak with no lope and settles into an easy valley against a solid back wall
• Quiet, low-shock shot for the price tier - the arrow is in the target before the riser finishes settling
• Forgiving to tune thanks to a double-yoke setup - cam lean comes into line quickly and a bullet-hole tune is easy to reach
• Complete ready-to-hunt package - sight, rest, quiver, stabilizer, peep and sling - at a price below both its main rivals and below its own 2015 launch

• Some owners have noted the included Velcro wrist sling shifts position shot to shot and can nudge consistency; a standard sling or strap swaps in cheaply and fixes it
• The 28-inch draw ceiling and 50-pound peak make it a dedicated small-frame, light setup; taller archers or anyone wanting a 60-70 pound hunting weight will top out and should look at a full-size platform

• Slide type cable guard

• Changing draw length means pressing the bow to reach the module screw and re-timing the cam afterward - set it to your draw once at a shop and it is a non-issue day to day
• Some owners find the grip a touch bulky in the hand though the shape stays comfortable - an aftermarket grip is an inexpensive swap for anyone who wants a slimmer throat