Buying Your First Bow
Archery is an equipment sport. A good set of golf clubs or a good tennis racquet is expensive. A good quality bow is no different. At some point you will want to buy your own bow.
Don't rush to buy a bow, take your time, or you are at risk of wasting your money buying the wrong bow for you. Join a club and talk to the club coach who can guide you. There are several considerations to be made before you buy your first bow.
Target or Hunting Style. Decide what you are shooting at. There are two main types of archery, depending what you are shooting at, targets or hunting. These styles are not the same. There are several differences between them. Target bows use lighter arrows, lighter arrow rests, and lighter "draw weights" etc. Target bows tend to go faster, travel further and are more accurate than hunting bows. It is not always possible to convert a hunting bow to shoot well at targets. At the Archers of Greenwood archery club we shoot target.
Left or Right hand bow. Most people are right handed, many people are left handed. Coaches see people who are either left handed or right handed but their eyesight is different. Don't be surprised if the coach recommends you buy a left hand bow when you thought you would buy a right hand one.
Three types of bow. Decide if you are shooting a "recurve bow", "compound bow" or a "long bow". If you are not sure what these terms mean then do one of our beginner's courses to find out.
Recurve Bow. A person’s "draw length" usually varies in the first 12 months of shooting and a recurve bow can easily accommodate this change. Compound bows are usually set at a fixed draw length for target bows and are not easily changed. If you change your draw length on a compound bow, you may have to buy another bow. I would reccomend that a person shoot, for the first 12 months or so, using a recurve bow.
Compound bow. If you do decide to buy a compound bow, there are further decisions to make. Will you use fingers to draw the bow or will you use a release aid. Your "draw length", type of arrow rest, arrow "spine" as well as the "division" you can shoot in during competitions will all depend on this decision. If you decide to use a compound bow and shoot at targets, I would encourage you to use a release aid.
Longbow. The "form" (or technique) used to shoot a longbow is similar to shooting a recurve bow. However longbows do not shoot an arrow as fast or as far as the same draw weight recurve or compound bow and they are not as accurate. It is easier to teach a person how to shoot longbow after they can shoot a recurve bow.
Cross bows are another type of bow. Cross bows are used in some clubs and come in two varieties; sporting cross bows and target cross bows. They are not recommended for beginners.
Good form. At the Archers of Greenwood archery club, we emphasize "good form" (or good technique) regardless of the quality of the equipment an archer uses. The reason is simple; you will shoot far more accurately, with any type of bow, if you have good form. Only an accredited coach can help you learn good form. It will be good form that gives you the most points, not high quality (and expensive) equipment. This can be summarized as follows;
- Good form + high quality equipment = very high scores
- Good form + low quality beginners equipment = good scores
- Bad form + high quality equipment = very low scores
- Bad form + low quality beginners equipment = dismal scores
One of the biggest problems the club coaches see is people who buy a bow that is too strong for them ("over bowing"). If the draw weight of your bow is too strong for you, you will not be able to learn good form.
High powered bows don't mean more accurate shooting. You could damage your sholders, beyond repair, if you purchase a bow beyond your physical capabilities.
In your first year as an archer, expect to buy a bow that can only shoot to about 40 meters. (You may only shoot less than this.) Many beginner bows can shoot much further than this, but not accurately. After your first year expect to buy a new and more expensive bow and arrows to match the bow. You may want to buy a bow capable of shooting to 90 meters, but by then you will know what type of bow you want and your good form will allow you to shoot a heavier draw weight bow.
Where to buy your first bow Buy your first bow from a reputable local archery shop that specializes in target equipment and knows the rules governing our sport. Some shops sell mostly hunting style archery equipment and do not know how to correctly sell and set up beginner target equipment. We know this at our club because we often see the results of purchases made at a predominantly hunting shop and have to attempt to set up a new archer's hunting bow for target shooting or even advise people to take their new bow back as they have inadvertently bought the wrong equipment.
Some shops sell equipment over the internet. Only buy from these shops if you know exactly what you need. If you don’t know exactly what you need or are not sure, go to a local target archery shop. Some internet shops are located in a different country than Australia. If you buy from them, the money you thought you were saving may have to be paid out by you in freight or customs tax when you bring the equipment into Australia.
Consumer laws are different in different countries. The protection of consumer law in Australia is not available overseas. Guarantees and refunds are difficult, or impossible to claim when you buy from an internet shop that is based in a different country than your own.
Some people buy equipment from a sports store or from a second hand dealer or from mates. Be very careful. Unless you know exactly what you need, you may be buying the wrong equipment for you. Talk to your club coach before you make any purchases from these places.
Too often someone buys the wrong equipment from some dealer thinking they are getting a bargain when, in fact, they are making an expensive mistake.
What do I buy for my first bow? As an accredited club coach, I am often asked, “what should I buy for my first bow”. What new archers really mean is “what do I buy for my first set of archery equipment that I can use for target archery.” I recommend you buy a recurve bow that conforms to "free style" rules (i.e. sight, stabilizer and the bow is drawn by using your fingers).
I have left many things off this list as they are things to improve the quality of the bow (such as adjustable cushion buttons, vee bars, etc.) or things to use to carry out regular maintenance (spare strings, screwdrivers, etc.) many of these things can be made or purchased when they are needed.
Here are my recommendations for beginners target shooting (freestyle) recurve . Buy (or make) yourself;
1 x Finger tab
1 x Armguard
1 x Bowsling
1 x Recurve Bow
1 x Bow sight
8 x Arrows
Spare fletches, knocks and glue for the arrows
1 x Quiver
1 x Long rod stabilizer
A good target equipment shop will have the items you need and be aware of the "free style" rules. They should be of similar quality to each other. I will go through each item in more detail.
1. A good Finger tab will have multiple layers and a block on the back to stop you pinching the arrow. Many finger tabs also have a built in shelf but shelves can often get in the way of developing a strong "anchor". Do not add the shelf. Shooting gloves are ok but are not widely used in target archery except by long bow shooters.
2. Armguards come in two basic varieties, long and short. Buy a short armguard. The long armguards are good for people in the first few weeks of learning but shooting with good form should prevent any bow string hitting your upper arm. Some of the short arm guards are very narrow and are good for experienced archers who always shoot with good form. Buy a wider one for your first armguard.
If you need to use a long arm guard for any length of time talk to your coach as you may need help with your shooting form.
3. Bowslings can come in three main varieties according to where they attach; finger slings, bow slings and wrist slings. I think the cheapest and best is the finger sling as it can easily be made using an old shoelace. Start with a finger sling.
4. Recurve Bows are recommended for beginning archers as they can easily accommodate changes in draw length as the new archer learns good form (or technique). There is also less to go wrong with recurve bows and they are often cheaper than other bows. Each bow manufacturer makes several models raging from lower quality beginner bows to fancy high quality bows used to set new world records.
Beginner recurve bows usually come in two varieties, and both varieties are suitable for beginners to use. One variety uses a wood or plastic "riser" (or handle). The other variety uses a metal riser. The bows with a wood or plastic riser often cannot be “tuned”. The bows with a metal riser are of better quality and can be “tuned”. I recommend a metal riser.
There are two pieces of information that is needed from the beginner archer themselves before they can buy a bow. The first is the archer’s height and the second is the draw weight the archer needs. This translates to the bows draw weight (e.g. 20#, 25#, 30# etc.) and the "bow length" (e.g. 62”, 64”, 66” 68" etc). This information is usually marked on the lower limb of each bow. A club coach can make recommendations for a new archer’s bow length and draw weight before they buy.
5. A Bow sight is used on free style recurve bows, used for target archery. Bow sights are usually an extra but are necessary to learn good form. A bow sight will help you shoot more accurately. Buy a sight that has been made for target recurve archery. Hunting style sights are not suitable for target shooting.
6. Arrows are fundamental for archery. Buy target arrows, not hunting style field arrows as they are often too heavy. You will need at least 8 arrows for target shooting. Some manufacturers use a "XX75 aluminum alloy" to make arrows from. This is the best material for beginners. Carbon fiber or hollow fiberglass arrows fly well but are usually very expensive and not usually suitable for beginning archers.
All arrows have a unique size marked on them. The combination of the length of the arrow and the draw weight of the bow determines the "spine" of the arrow. (There are other considerations but they do not affect beginners). There are charts for determining the correct spine (or size) of arrow you need. A good target archery dealer will have these charts available to use. (Or you could download one for free from various arrow shaft manufacturers).
7. Spare parts for the arrows. When you buy your arrows make sure you also buy spare "fletches", "knocks" and glue for your arrows. You will need spare fletches, knocks and glue to repair damaged arrows and keep them all useable. Make sure you get the right glue for your arrows.
In your first year of shooting, expect to buy new arrows to replace the ones you lost or broke beyond repair.
8. Quivers to put arrows in come in two varieties. One variety is a ground quiver. The other variety is a quiver you can wear on your belt. Both work well and both styles can be bought or be made at home.
9. Long rod stabilizer. Many people do not consider a long rod stabilizer to be beginner equipment, but I do. Let me argue why. A long rod stabilizer, when fitted to a recurve bow, will change the bows center of gravity to allow the "top limb" of the bow to tilt forwards away from the archer and toward the target when the arrow is released. Bows, with out a long rod (or other stabilizers) fitted, tilt the other way, or backwards towards the archer. When the bow tilts forward, a strong follow through can be taught. Usually, by the time a person has done the short introductory course without using the long rod stabilizer, they are ready to learn the next part of good form (ie strong "follow through").
The effect that is wanted is for the top limb of the bow to tilt forwards when the arrow is released, not the additional stabilizing effect. Cheap aluminum long rod stabilizers (or even home made ones) are quite suitable for achieving this effect.
A good target archery dealer will be aware of the rules governing our sport and will help you select equipment that can be used in freestyle target competitions.
The club has a stock of beginner recurve bows that club members can borrow. It may be possible for a club member to use one of the club bows beyond the initial beginner course, until they can get their own bow. See a member of the club committee for details. The club also sells armguards and finger tabs. Bow slings you can make yourself.
Club coaches see many beginners who buy bows that are too strong for them. Don't be one of them. Buy a bow with a lighter draw weight than you think you need (or want) and learn to shoot with “good form” at a target club from an accredited coach.
More information. I have used some archery terms and enclosed them in quotes. You can read the rules of our sport at the Archery Australia website. You will also find a very helpful glossary of terms in this rule book. If you want more information talk to your club coach.