Compound Bow Comparator

The Gamekeeper Jr is one of the more honest one-bow-for-years propositions on the market: a genuinely light, easy-drawing compound that adjusts with a hex wrench from a five-year-old's 5-pound, 12-inch backyard setup to a 50-pound, 27-inch rig that will legally and effectively take a whitetail, all in a coordinated Mossy Oak Bottomland outfit that arrives ready to hunt. The binary cams and offset string suppressor make it more consistent and quieter than the single-cam youth bows a tier below, and at well under four pounds a small shooter can actually hold it on target. What I keep coming back to is that this is a Bear Royale in Mossy Oak clothing, and the $40 over the plain-chassis version buys the Gamekeeper collaboration, the Bottomland finish and quiver, and the specific hunting bundle, not a different-shooting bow, so the value call is really about whether that look and kit matter to you. At its low-$400s launch price it is an excellent grow-with-me hunting bow for the household raising a young archer toward their first deer, and especially for the family that wants the little shooter's bow to match dad's. Buyers who want the widest possible range to carry a shooter into a full adult draw should also look at the Diamond Infinite Edge Pro, and those happy to build up a bare, maximally adjustable chassis should look at the Mission Craze. 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...

It is hard to not get excited about the Mission Craze when looking at the design. The bow, retailing for just under $300, shoots well, has lots of adjustability, looks like a high end bow with the reflexed cut out riser, parallel limb design, and the flawless Lost Camo AT. Mission does offer three different packages of accessories based on price of accessories; the Pro Hunter, the Bow Hunter and Basic. Any of these packages can be purchased separately for the Craze. The bow would be ideal for any young archer as the bow could grow the archer into adulthood due the adjustability in both draw length and draw weight. The Craze could also benefit any new archer who wants some shootability at a very affordable price. It is difficult to find any real flaws with the Craze due to the simplicity of the bow, how it shoots and the price of this model. The Craze, like many of the other Mission models, is an outstanding bow for the money. Read full review...

• Adjusts from 5 to 50 pounds and 12 to 27 inches with a hex wrench at home, no bow press, so one bow follows a shooter from small child to hunt-capable
• Ships hunt-ready out of the box: containment arrow rest, three-pin sight, peep, D-loop, five-arrow quiver, stabilizer and wrist sling all included
• Light enough for a small shooter to hold steady on target, with the chassis coming in well under four pounds
• Binary cams with yoke tuning top and bottom keep nock travel consistent as the draw weight is dialed up over the years

• 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

• Adjustability
• Relatively quiet without a silencing package due to design
• Smooth shooting for a low end bow
• Fast for a bow that has this much adjustability
• Very affordable

• Draw tops out at 27 inches and 50 pounds, so a full-size adult with a longer draw or a shooter wanting heavier hunting weight will outgrow it and should size up to a full adult platform
• Offered only in Mossy Oak Bottomland, so a shooter set on a different camo or a solid color will not find one here, though the same chassis appears in other finishes elsewhere in Bear's lineup

• 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

• Small amount of recoil and vibration when shot without accessories