Question, I see these all over the place , seems every pawn shop or what have you had a few of these hanging up. Think there a cool retro thing in the same arena as 20" carry handle A2 M16's. Anyhow wouldn't mind having one or two but was curious if they can be adjusted? By a bow shop of course but can the draw lengths on these be shortened up a good bit or does it just depend on the model and brand? Sorry if it's a dumb question

Don't waste your money.

X2

I have an old Darton I bought 20 +/- years ago new. It came with different cams for draw length and you can adjust the weight from 35-60 I think, It' been awhile

$10 Indian compound turned into a 50# recurve with 60# Samick sage limbs($60-70) for under a $100. “Frankenbow”

I agree. Waste of money.

I'm all in for buying old, broken and cheap guns, but old compound bows aren't gonna be any fun.

One of my favorite bows was a Pearson Renegade. That's probably going back a good thirty years. It was smooth, whisper quiet and slow. I'd like to have it back.

I've got 2 of them hanging around, one you can adjust somewhat. Doesn't matter I can't draw a bow anymore....I can't even give them away.

Old compound bows were like 15% let off when they first came out that was a big deal I still have the original Bear Alaskan from when they first came out. Had the Polar II for carping and small game hunts ot a backup on hunting trips.

unless you your outfitting summer camp for wayward MS NG guys, have one good bow maybe one for bow fishing and keep those up

if your going all out a hunting bow , a target bow , a bowfishing bow maybe a recurve and straight hand carved bow to dive into the traditional side

but having a dozen 1990s-2000s tech compounds doesn't do anything new or different or better.

it is a little like having a dozen single shot 12ga with no choke sure it may be handy to have one in the house one in the truck but after a while it is work to keep them all from rusting in the MS humidity for nothing new or different the first 2 didn't do and they are not even enjoyable to shoot.

There’s better things to waste your money on. If I remember correctly, back in my early years, they were length and draw weight specific. If you grew you needed a new set up.

Some of those old bows are more forgiving to learn on than the newer short axle high let off bows. Most are adjustable to some extent. You could probably look up the model you were interested in on the internet to learn more about it. I wouldn't be afraid to drop a few bucks on one if it looked good.

I happen to like old compound bows. I've got a handful of beautiful Browning compounds that date early 80's that I enjoy shooting. There's a nostalgia to shooting fingers with a low-letoff bow. Adjusting them is not easy as the steel cables are usually molded into the cams. There aren't many archery shops that will work on them, either.

No such thing as a "dumb question" wolfie...especially if it is by those who want to broaden their knowledge. There could be something these old bows would be good for ...but probably not using as a bow. I have an original BearWhitetail compound... around 1980 give or take. Slow, heavy, clumsy and outdated. But being a hoarder (I been told) and also a tinkerer I just can't bring myself to throw it away!!! I just know it's good for something...WHAT THAT IS...I ain't figured out.....yet!!!

If I had $1200 in a hunting bow I’d look for an old compound for bow fishing or better an old stick bow.

Some of those older bows could be adjusted for draw length and weight. The main problem is finding spare parts for them if you needed anything (cables, pulleys...). I hunt with an old American Archery compound bow I bought new in 1984-85. It's as nice now as the day I bought it. It's a short limb bow with a maple riser and maple and glass limbs. I have never upgraded to the modern compounds and the bow I have is deadly accurate at 10-30 yards (my comfort zone). Have shot lots of game with it over the years.

I had some nice older bows in the past; PSE Nova, York STO (cool shoot through bow), and a Martin Firecat. Killed a lot of deer with them all. In fact I think I traded the Martin in on the Mathews I bought in 2000 and still shooting it.
I know PSE is still producing bows, but I don’t think Martin and York are any longer. Supposedly my Mathews is warranted for life on the limbs. I finally had the cables and string replaced a couple of years ago.

Long enough to shoot with fingers ,no release needed

If you are going to buy "vintage" spend your money on recurves and longbows

Do you see the cables on those bows are actually cable ?
A lot of those had little lead or metal ends made on them to attach string to. Can't find replacements any more and if the cable end comes off it can launch like a bullet (more like a pebble out of a slingshot) and damage you or your property

If it is not modern enough to have synthetic cables I would not waste my money. Synthetic cabled bows have posts on the wheels/cams and the right person can build you a set even if you can't walk in somewhere and buy them pre made

ol compounds make good bowfishing bows that's about it