I ordered this bow to get into archery, so for me it is the first I have personally owned. I spent a good while doing some research on what to look for in a bow and why I should get one over another and finally I came across this one and decided to take the plunge and give it a shot. I am very happy that I did because this is a magnificent bow, the riser is very beautiful and it’s not just looks, this bow offers some good performance. I ordered my bow with the 40lbs limbs since I am just starting out and did not want to go too high up in draw weight since I wouldn’t be able to take the time to learn aiming and technique. It may be worth mentioning that I am probably above average in physical fitness levels so this weight may not be a good place to start for others, I tried out a friends 50lbs longbow before purchasing this and felt good about it, but also felt that I couldn’t hold it for very long to take aim so I decided a lower weight would be appropriate to start with. I am satisfied with this weight and I believe it was the appropriate amount for me to begin with. The bow shoots very well and I can hardly feel it once I loose an arrow so it fires very smoothly. I will say I did not go with all the standard pieces that came with the bow such as the string or rest because of past reviews scaring me away from giving them a chance. I went to a local store to purchase a new string (and seemingly much better too, but I didn’t try the original string so for all I know it may have been fine). The string was very cheap and less than 20$ as was the rest, I purchased a cheap adhesive rubbery rest and am very satisfied with the way the bow works with all of these devices. So for the manufacture I do have some feedback I’d like to give, your product is amazing and I am very happy that I decided to go with this model, however, having said that there were a few small things that really disappointed me and made me unable to give this product 5 stars. If it were not for this I would be jumping with joy over this bow and would give it more than 5 stars if I could. So first of all when I received the package it looked a little shoddy, but no big deal, right? I mean stuff happens with shipping and handling. Well it wasn’t just that since when I opened the box to look at my bow I was met with immediate displeasure once I saw rust on the nuts and bolts on the riser. Seriously? I received a new product right out of the factory and it’s already began to rust? There is no excuse for this and I honestly am astonished that they didn’t take any measure to prevent these devices from rusting. I tried my best to clean it up with a little sandpaper which does take off the black finish on the hardware, whatever. But I am concerned now for the longevity of my bow because once rust starts it’s not really something you can be rid of entirely. I plan to use this bow for as long as possible and the whole reason I got this model was because it was supposedly the higher quality model from the seller with the best materials (without going into the crazy stuff that costs 300$+). I understand you get what you pay for, but this is a pretty standard price for a starter/intermediate takedown recurve. The whole reason I went with a takedown bow was so that I could upgrade the weight in the limbs down the line a ways so I can continue to grow as I get better and eventually use it for hunting, but if the bolts get jammed due to rust I’m going to have to purchase a new riser altogether, which is what I wanted to avoid with this purchase. Literally, I looked all over on dozens of sites from various manufacturers, I went to a bunch of stores and saw the products in person. It’s a good price for a good bow, but there is no reason for something like that to happen. I for one do not think customers should have to bite the bullet due to some silly negligence like that seeing as how there is so much competition for these products. I also wanted to mention the stringer tool seems fine to me and I have had no issues with it so far, but have only had to use it a few times or so. In closing, maybe I just got unlucky and received the one dud in the warehouse. It is what it is, truly and even after this I would still recommend this product to others provided they wouldn’t be receiving blemished goods such as I did. If you are looking to get into archery and you want something that’s better than some goofy bottom line starter kit from a store look no further. This may be the bow for you, just be sure you never dry fire it, string/unstring it properly, use string wax and have fun with it!Update: the company sent me a whole new riser that is sparkling clean and new with not a sign of rust. 5/5 quality and customer service I absolutely recommend this product and company to others. If you’re looking for a great bow and above and beyond customer support you’ve come to the right place!