By: Trevon Stoltzfus
In archery and bowhunting the next generation is truly our future. Recruitment of new archers will ensure that in ten or twenty years the sport will still be strong. Research has shown that kids that are exposed to archery early in their childhood or much more likely to continue the love of the sport on into adulthood.
When bowhunting.net asked me to review the Barnett Lil’ Banshee for the website I had a perfect family of in mind to test it out on. My pastor has four awesome and active kids, 2 girls and 2 boys. This crew was the perfect test group as they had had a combination of genders and ages.
The oldest girl is Ryene at 12, Hudson is 10, Mac a mature 8, and Whitney, the youngest is 5. When I first brought the bow over their excitement was evident. Right out of the package Hudson the elder brother, who had been previously exposed to archery, was zinging arrows at 15 paces and hitting the paper targets that came with the bow. He had no problem drawing the bow, finding his anchor and releasing on target.
Whitney lets one fly.
Ryene stepped up for her turn and although lacking the previous archery experience that Hudson had, with a little coaching she too was hitting the target consistently and enjoying this new found skill. Next I had Mac step up and he nocked an arrow and easily drew the bow. After a few shots to get dialed in Mac was also hitting his mark most of the time. Last up was Whitney the youngest of the family at 5 years old and on the small side for her age. Being resolved not to be “outdone” by her siblings, Whitney shot 5 arrows as fast as she could load them in the Lil’ Banshee. Although she lacked some accuracy her enthusiasm hit the bullseye! I was truly impressed to see how easy and adaptable the Lil’ Banshee was, given the wide variety of the ages and stature of my pastor’s kids.
This great starter bow, the Lil’ Banshee, features a reinforced handle and ambidextrous soft-touch grip designed just for young archers. With an 18-lb. draw weight and smooth-drawing wheels, the Lil’ Banshee puts the performance of a full-sized bow into the hands of any young archer. The cut-out, high-impact riser gives a true center shot and boasts a single sight pin to keep your youngster on target. Set includes bow, adjustable sight, armguard, finger tab, multicolored target face and two arrows. In my opinion this is a great first bow to peak a child’s interest in archery that will hopefully light a fire for the love of the sport that will stay with them for the rest of their life.
From the youngest at 5 to Ryene at 12 the Lil' Banshee was accurate and fun to shoot.
Lil’ Banshee Jr. Compound Archery Set
The Lil’ Banshee Compound Set is a 18 pound compound bow featuring an all new soft touch grip, an ambidextrous reinforced handle and is offered in an eye catching color for the beginner. The set includes a multi-color target, 2 target arrows, finger tab, arm guard and adjustable sight.
- Available in Team Realtree Camo, Black or Pink
- Compound – 18 Lbs Draw
- 18-22″ Draw Length
- Ambidextrous Riser
- Soft-Touch Reinforced Grip
- Adjustible Pin Sight
- Includes two Arrows, Finger Tab, Armguard & Multi-Color Target
For more go to: Barnett Crossbows or shop Amazon below!
My daughter just got one of these Lil’ Banshee Jr. bows and within about 30-40 shots the fletching got ripped off of the arrows that came with the bow and three more similar arrows we bought. She was nocking the arrows correctly, and it was the same fletching on every arrow that is damaged, all of them from the rest. Any ideas what might be wrong or what I can check?
The bow is very high quality and I can tell it will last quite a while. The arrows themselves are very nice, but the fletchings are not durable. They will hit parts of the bow while flying out and over time will begin to tear. I suppose you can always insert your own feather fletchings though.
I’ve used this bow with about 20 other kids at a camp and they all loved it. In fact, they couldn’t put it down! I recently bought one for my friends who are ages 15-22 yrs old and they all enjoyed it. You can always stand closer if you have trouble hitting or you can stand farther for more of a challenge.
For those who are getting hit by the string when it recoils after shooting, you can always bend your arm at the elbow a little so that it doesn’t touch. This way I have no problems at all with the recoil. You can also make your own arm guard by using a long sock and cutting the end where the toes go for a thumb hole and 4 finger hole–it’s an excellent substitute!
This bow/arrow kit doesn’t come with a target, but I made my own using the very same box the item came in and it has been fantastic. The bow/arrow will come in a large and long box. What I did was stuff the box full of newspaper while taping a few old magazines inside to the back for some added weight and armor. I then taped the whole thing shut and use markers to make targets in the front. I’ve gotta say, it saved me quite a lot of money rather than having to buy a styrofoam target that will rip, fly around, etc. Everyone loved the idea and it has been holding up quite well. I can easily pull the arrows out without damaging them as well. Give it a try and have fun!