Barnett Outdoors Lil Banshee Jr. Compound Youth Archery Set

This was bought for my 8 year old son, he has been 8 for 2 weeks. My son has autism and therefor he is not interested in much at all. This was an amazing gift for him. I add that information to let you know how fun shooting a bow and arrow really is for kids. Here is what happened.He checked several times during the day to see if the package had arrived at the door. It was raining that evening but when it can he wanted to play, and we did. We have a over hang so it was dry to shoot but he had to run out in the rain to get the arrows. I opened the gate to go myself but he ran past me to go grab the arrow. That is awesome in itself! My son hates the rain, and actually most things lol!! So anyway, we shot targets until the evening closed. We lost one arrow to the forest and I am on amazon now to buy more. I will also buy bright colored tape to put on the arrows to find them easily.So Xaviar loves his first archery set. He is learning how to hold the bow and aim. He is 4' 8" tall and slender build with (what I've just learned) basically no arm strength. He can not pull the arrow back to fire it by himself. He gets help each time and we count to three to release it, I make him aim himself. He was initially discouraged by this part but I'm telling him he will get better and better and soon be able to pull it back like dad. He is thrilled.It has been cold, very cold, and rainy folks and my guy is insisting he do some archery. I would have paid much more.

After reading all the reviews, had some concern especially about the arrows, but decided to take the chance for my 12 yo daughter's birthday. Her desire for one escalated after Hunger Games came out so, even though I had no clue what to get, decided to get an inexpensive starter set.Firstly, the bow quality and power. Works very well, very good quality for this price in my book. Was slightly concerned that it would be too weak for her, but it's perfect - not too hard to pull, and not too toyish either. It doesn't have so much power that I have to be as worried about an errant arrow flying over the fence, given at least that she's a pretty responsible girl (I told her that if just one arrow went over the fence even once, I'd take the set away for good). Turned out the arm guard I got was a good purchase as she showed me how her arm got scraped pretty good when she had it in the wrong place. With it in the right place, no problems.Secondly, the arrows. Zero problem. Now then, I'm using a bale of straw with a target on it, so even after lots and lots of shots over the past couple of weeks, not one tip has been lost. And I know darn good and well she's had to have hit a tree or the fence at least a time or two. Sure, they're cheaply made, but I'm not looking for high quality or even that much accuracy on them, just enough use so I don't have to go thru dozens of them.After lots of use she still says she loves this set a lot, so if you're looking for a happy kid around that age, get it, you can't go wrong.

This is a great bow. We bought this for our 9-year old daughter as a present for passing Hunter's Ed. Here's some more in-depth thoughts:Pros:- This bow is very easy for my daughter to use. She's 9 and small to average size and has absolutely no problems holding, drawing, and shooting it. The 18-pound draw weight is perfect for her to be able to stick the arrows in her target, but not too heavy for her to shoot a bunch without getting too strained.- The cost for this bow is awesome. At ~$25 this is a great deal for a beginner.Cons:- I wish it had a whisker biscuit style arrow rest, but this would drive the cost up as well. I would probably be willing to pay another $5 to get this rest. This is no way a deal breaker, just something that I think would be good for a kid just beginning in archery.- Arrows that come with it are not great. Not total junk, but not the best.- This is almost impossible for an adult to shoot. I've tried to help her get her pin set for the distance she's shooting, but it's nearly impossible for me. Taught her to learn how to sight in though...Overall, this is an amazing beginner set, especially for the price. It has enough power to stick the arrows in the target, so it's fun for the kids. I absolutely would recommend this for someone looking to get their kids kicked off in the sport of archery.I hope I have helped your purchasing decision of this product. I am not affiliated with the manufacturer, seller or any other product related company nor am I under any obligation to write this review. I do this for my own fun and to help others in the Amazon Community! Feel free to comment and let me know if I have helped you, and please note below if this review was able to help. If you should have any questions, please post them below in the Comments. I try to answer all inquires in a timely fashion to the best of my ability.