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Samick Sage Recurve Review

ricky racer

Well-Known Member
Joined
Aug 8, 2016
Messages
2,423
Location
Niles/Buchanan, MI
As I get older things just seem to get harder to do. Back in my compound days I always hunted with a 70# bow. After getting bored using a compound and looking for more of a challenge, I made the switch to traditional gear. That change elevated my love of bow hunting and has made me a much better hunter, in my opinion.

For years my bow of choice was a custom made Green Mountain Longbow with a 58# draw weight. A few years ago I found myself struggling with the bows draw weight (it sucks getting old) and realized I needed to drop draw weight. I picked up a Robertson Vision Falcon recurve off of a used bow rack and fell in love with it. It drew 51# @28" and I could handle it easily. That bow proved to be deadly and racked up a number of whitetail bucks. Towards the end of last season I noticed I was having an issue with my left shoulder when drawing the bow. I put the bow away thinking that I must have strained my shoulder and it would get better.

Fast forward to May of this year. I took my recurve out and tried to draw it and couldn't. The pain I felt last December was still there. The times that I could draw the bow back I struggled to get to full draw. I wondered what I was going to do to get back to being able to shoot again. I got thinking. I've got a bunch of bows down in the basement so I started looking for a light weight bow to start building my shoulder back up. I found a 30# Hoyt recurve and started shooting that. I had to very careful drawing it back to shoot. Sometimes I would feel the pain as soon as I started drawing back. Those times, I had to just put the bow away and try again another day. When I would shoot the bow, the first few times I'd shoot it, sometimes the shock from the bow would hurt my shoulder but after a few shots that pain would go away. I started looking for another bow maybe 40-45# to see if I could work up to it.

On Craigslist I happened to find a 62", 45# Samick Sage recurve. The Sage is a three piece take down bow. I did an internet search on the Samick Sage and found nothing but great reviews. I was able to pick it up for $75. These bows sell online in the $100-$150 range. Dirt cheap for any bow but after shooting this bow for the last few weeks I've got to say the Sage is a steal at that price!!

My Sage was in great shape when I got it. I had a hard time finding any shafts that would shoot well out of it because everything I had here was spined too stiffly. It also had an endless loop dacron string which that didn't let the bow snap to life like the flemish fast flight string I replaced it with. It also came with a Bear Weather rest that I replaced with a Bear hair rest and strike plate so I could shoot off of the shelf. I added some brush buttons and string silencers as well. The arrows that I found that shoot best out of the bow are carbon Gold Tip Hunter XT 3555 with 145 gr. field points that match the weight of the broadheads I will be shooting this fall. Yes, I've decided to hunt with this bargain bow this year.

I contacted Robertson Stykbow about the cost and delivery of replacement limbs in the 45# range and was told that they could make me a set of replacement limbs by August but wanted $600 for them. Keep in mind the cost for a new bow like my Vision Falcon is $1100-$1200. They said that they could reduce the poundage of my existing limbs by up to 5# for $250 if I wanted to go that route. That may be a possibility down the road but as well as this Samick Sage shoots, I'm going to use it hunting this year, maybe from now on...

There are quite a few guys on this site that want to make the move to traditional bowhunting but the cost of most quality bows is prohibitive unless you are REALLY sure you want to make the move. I can recommend the Samick Sage as a cheap way to get into traditional archery and a good enough bow to hunt with as well. Extra limbs are readily available if you want to get lower poundage limbs to start with and switch to heavier limbs for hunting.

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After watching eBay for recurve deals ... I decided to buy the samick sage and I am totally impressed with it, especially at the price. $109 to my door



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I also wanted to get into trad shooting and have a Black Hunter sitting at home waiting for me. I ordered it with 30 & 40 pound limbs for $200. Don’t know if I’ll use it to hunt this year but pretty excited about getting started.
Any thoughts on three under tab and arm guard. I need to buy some.

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If the Sage looked a little better I'd be willing to bet very few people could actually tell the difference between it and a $1200 recurve. I think it's biggest downfall is it's price, most people think a bow that cheap can't possibly shoot good. It's a really good bow.

Bongo, I shoot a Safari Tuff tab. Nothing fancy but does everything it's supposed to and gets the job done.

Ricky Racer, have you tried drawing with a "rotational draw"? It really helps you get into your back muscles and may relieve some of your pain. Bowhunter15 has a youtube video of a session he did with Arnie Moe that will better explain it. Might be something to look into.
 
Any thoughts on three under tab and arm guard. I need to buy some.

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I've spent considerable amount of time shooting this bow both split finger and 3 under. This bow seems to shoot much better shooting split finger than 3 under. I prefer a shooting glove to a tab but that's solely a personal preference thing.
 
Ricky Racer, have you tried drawing with a "rotational draw"? It really helps you get into your back muscles and may relieve some of your pain. Bowhunter15 has a youtube video of a session he did with Arnie Moe that will better explain it. Might be something to look into.

Thanks Jake, I'll check it out.
 
I bought the southwest archery spyder in 35# which was designed by the engineers of the samick sage and the limbs are interchangeable. I gave it a quick shot when I got it over the winter and then put it aside. I just set it up last week and started shooting and I'm extremely impressed with it. I don't know if I will hunt with it or not this year, we'll see how the next month goes. If it goes well I'll buy some 45# limbs. I'm putting all of my arrows into my block target at 15 yards and most of them are into the pie plate sized replaceable center.
 
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His review is spot on for the Sage.

I killed these two bucks, two gobblers and a doe over the last two seasons with my Samick Journey which is a longer version of the sage @ 64 inches. The bow is a straight killer and will shoot as good as you can i assure you. I recently sold the Journey and I'm now shooting a $900 custom, but it doesn't honestly shoot any better than the Sage/Journey. They are great bows and a wonderful way for you to get into traditional archery if you are interested.
 
I've spent considerable amount of time shooting this bow both split finger and 3 under. This bow seems to shoot much better shooting split finger than 3 under. I prefer a shooting glove to a tab but that's solely a personal preference thing.
Glad I am not the only one. I switched to Trad last year because I am determined to kill with it. I shot 3 under for a year and switched last week to split finger and Have already overcome a ton of issues I had prior. Great bow for the price!
 
Almost makes me want to buy one for other people to shoot instead of my warfs.
 
I used to sell them to anybody who would listen to me. Nothing better to start off on than a 40lb Sage. Take the money you saved and buy some proper arrows is what I used to tell folks.

I just did the rough math on how much I have spent on arrows since I took up trad bows (6 years)... disgusting.
 
Full disclosure here. The Samick Sage has been rebadged and sold under several different names. Mine carries the OMP, October Mountain Products name. 3Rivers Archery offers the Sage as a Fleetwood brand. The Sage may also be sold under other brand names as well.
 
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I've spent considerable amount of time shooting this bow both split finger and 3 under. This bow seems to shoot much better shooting split finger than 3 under. I prefer a shooting glove to a tab but that's solely a personal preference thing.

Thanks @ricky racer that settles it I’m getting both. See which one I like better.


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Shot my biggest buck with sage samick. Still have it but I’m shooting a great northern fireball it’s just a touch more forgiving for me.


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Well so far this hitch. I have bought a Black Hunter Recurve #30 & #40 pound limbs,Three under tab, Glove, Mantis, Predator , Kite, A dozen wood arrows. I need a bow stringer. I still have two weeks left. I think Christmas might be a little slack this year.
How about broad heads do most guys use two blade heads on trad bows. Think I was reading Zwickey or something like that.
Oh ya mustn’t forget the Kiwi’s.
 
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Well so far this hitch. I have bought a Black Hunter Recurve #30 & #40 pound limbs,Three under tab, Glove, Mantis, Predator , Kite, A dozen wood arrows. I need a bow stringer. I still have two weeks left. I think Christmas might be a little slack this year.
How about broad heads do most guys use two blade heads on trad bows. Think I was reading Zwickey or something like that.
Oh ya mustn’t forget the Kiwi’s.
I've been shooting single bevel for several years out of my 52# recurve and I've had great results. Shot Eclipse single bevs and they were fine except I didn't like how the very tip of the head sharpened. I switched to 150 gr Samurai single bev and I have no complaints except maybe they hiss a little in flight because they are vented heads.
 
I've been shooting single bevel for several years out of my 52# recurve and I've had great results. Shot Eclipse single bevs and they were fine except I didn't like how the very tip of the head sharpened. I switched to 150 gr Samurai single bev and I have no complaints except maybe they hiss a little in flight because they are vented heads.

Thanks for the reply. Just don’t think I’ll be ready this year for the Trad bow but want to get my ducks in a row for next year.


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Thanks for the reply. Just don’t think I’ll be ready this year for the Trad bow but want to get my ducks in a row for next year.


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You're welcome.
Hey, IMHO, trad bowhunting is a journey not a destination. It isn't something that is an instant purchase, followed by instant proficiency, followed by instant gratification. The "instant bowhunter" concept is more reserved for the tech crowd. That equipment and mindset is all about the destination and get there as quickly and easily as possible.
I predict that during this bow season, you will look at the mechanical device you carry and feel like something is missing. I like feeling connected to the arrow. The more moving parts between me and my broadhead, the less connected I feel.
Trad is where its at

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