Youth Compound Bow Reviews

The Bottom Line:The Bear Persist is a machined-aluminum hunting flagship that trades the last ounce of weight savings for a shot that is genuinely silent and dead in the hand. At a $1,249.99 launch MSRP it sits a clear step below the Mathews and Hoyt flagship tier while delivering the things that actually matter on... read full review

The Bottom Line:The Bear Species EV was the quiet, simple, made-in-USA single cam in the budget ready-to-hunt field, launched at $449.99 and aimed at the hunter who would rather have a hushed, dead-in-hand shot and a comfortable 80% hold than the last few feet per second. Its 320 fps IBO translates to a real-world mid-260s... read full review

The Bottom Line:At a $749 launch MSRP, the Diamond Carbon Knockout answers a real gap: a genuinely purpose-built women's carbon bow rather than a recolored men's model. The full carbon Knight riser keeps it to 3.2 pounds, the ladies-tuned Synchronized Binary Cam holds a real valley across its 22.5 to 27 inch range,... read full review

The Bottom Line:The Mathews Lift 33 is the do-everything member of the 2024 Lift platform - a 33-inch aluminum flagship that weighs like carbon, holds like a target bow, and shoots quieter than anything in its class. At $1,429 launch MSRP it sits at the top of this three-bow field and earns the spot with a real 310... read full review

The Bottom Line:The Bowtech Justice is the value entry to a real Bowtech: a $1,099 launch-price hunting bow that trades flagship tuning hardware for proven binary-cam engineering and delivers the brand's signature quiet, low-vibration shot. It is not a speed bow - hunting-arrow speeds sit in the 250-to-275 fps range... read full review

The Bottom Line:The Phase4 29 launched at $1,199 as the more accessible, compact half of Mathews' 2023 flagship line - the everyman's flagship, $100 under its longer sibling. What that money buys is the quietest, deadest-in-hand shot Mathews had built to that point, wrapped in a maneuverable 29-inch frame that reads... read full review

The Bottom Line:The Bowtech CP30 is a compact hunting bow that punches above its 30-inch length where it counts - steadiness, quiet, and shootability - and stays honest about where it doesn't, which is raw speed. At a $1,199 launch MSRP it delivers the full Bowtech tuning toolkit: press-free DeadLock cam adjustment... read full review

The Bottom Line:At $1,199.99 launch, the Execute 32 is the long-axle Execute - the one built for a steady hold rather than tight-quarters quickness - and it makes a strong case at Bear's new flagship price. It carries the same redesigned EKO cam with an unusually wide 75-to-90-percent let-off range, the same 340 fps... read full review

The Bottom Line:The Bear Resurgence LD is the long-draw specialist of Bear's DHC era, and at a $429.99 launch price it holds up well as a used or closeout buy years after its 2022-2024 run. It reaches a full 32-inch draw while dropping to 25 inches, runs a smooth single cam with a fixed 80 percent let-off, and pairs... read full review

The Bottom Line:The Hoyt Eclipse, launched at roughly $1,099 in 2021 and carried over unchanged through 2024, answers a real frustration: it is a premier hunting bow built for the short-draw and smaller-framed hunter, not a full-size flagship shrunk down and cheapened. It pairs a machined TEC aluminum riser, zero-tolerance... read full review

The Bottom Line:The Mathews Prima is a genuine flagship-grade hunting bow scaled for short-draw archers, not a starter bow with a women's badge - the same Crosscentric cam, bridged riser, and 3D Damping as Mathews' top hunters, in a 30-inch, 3.93-pound frame that drops to a 21.5-inch draw. At a $1,099 launch MSRP it... read full review

The Bottom Line:The Bear Whitetail Legend Pro takes the smooth, value-minded Whitetail Legend platform and elevates it with the EKO cam, and the result is a bow that punches well above its $559.99 launch price. It backs up its up-to-339 fps IBO claim with a real 333 fps chronograph reading, holds a quiet 97.1 dB shot,... read full review

The Bottom Line:The Bear Resurgence is a lot of ready-to-hunt bow for its $629.99 launch price, and it holds up well as a used or closeout buy years after its 2022-2023 run. It pairs a 335 fps IBO rating - a real 291 fps on a 400-grain hunting arrow - with a draw that rolls over smoothly, a shot that reads a hair over... read full review

The Bottom Line:The Mathews V3X 33 is the steady, forgiving half of the 2022 V3X platform - a 33-inch flagship that holds like a target bow, shoots like a hunting bow, and whispers like nothing else in its class. At $1,299 launch MSRP it sits squarely in the flagship field and earns its place with a dead-solid hold,... read full review

The Bottom Line:The Mathews V3X 29 is the compact half of the 2022 V3X platform, and it fixes the one thing that divided shooters on its predecessor: the draw. At $1,199 launch MSRP it lands in the heart of the flagship class and earns the spot with a real 326 fps at 30 inches, one of the quietest shots on the market... read full review

The Bottom Line:The Bowtech CP28 is a compact hunting bow that solves the short-bow problem instead of just accepting it. At a $1,199 launch MSRP it delivers the full Bowtech toolkit in the shortest DeadLock frame the brand makes: press-free cam tuning on the shooting line, a FlipDisc that swaps between a smooth 87%... read full review

The Bottom Line:At a $1,299 launch MSRP, the Bowtech Revolt XL is one of the few hunting bows that treats a 32- or 33-inch draw as a design target rather than an afterthought. Its 358 fps IBO is measured at a 33-inch draw, and the real-world numbers are honest, from the low-340s at that long draw down to the low-300s... read full review