Selecting The Correct Archery Equipment
By Martin Evans - martin@audcoarchers.co.uk
Contents In A Nutshell:
- Don't buy kit until you know what you need.
- You need to know your arrow length before you choose a bow.
- You need to know your draw weight before you choose arrows.
- Buy a bow first, then use the clubs arrows before buying your own arrows.
- Think Think Think before you Spend Spend Spend
Introduction
One of the main factors which contributes to people leaving archery is the disillusionment
and loss of enjoyment caused by incorrect or poorly set-up equipment.
This was actually identified as a threat to the growth of archery throughout the
country in the latest Grand National Archery Society Strategic Development
Plan (SDP).
In response to this, the following information offers advice on how to select, set-up
and tune your bow to gain maximum performance and enjoyment from your hobby.
Arrow Selection
There are many different types of arrows available on the market today to suit all
budgets. The more economical types are generally made of aluminium and are great
for those who are just starting out. Aluminium arrows are priced from just under
£40 to £60, for 8 arrows fletched, nocked and ready to use.
The more advanced arrows are made of carbon or a mixture of carbon and aluminium.
Carbon arrows are normally a much smaller diameter arrow and are much lighter. This
results in a much faster arrow, capable of greater consistency over the longer distances.
Prices for carbon arrows can go up to over £200 for a set of twelve.
Once you have picked which type and brand you want to buy, there are two fundamental
aspects of your arrows that need to be considered before you buy them:
The
length of the arrow is very important from a safety perspective, as obviously you
don’t want to pull the arrow all the way past the arrow rest. Also, you don't
want too much of the arrow in front of the bow, as this will result in the arrow
being too heavy and although it may fly, you may have to aim much higher than you
need to with an arrow of correct length.
The arrow length can be successfully calculated by using an extra long arrow with
inch marks written down the length of the shaft. The arrow length is then calculated
by adding 1" onto the length read from the part of the arrow next to the pressure
button when the archer is at full draw. An arrow of correct length will look like
the picture on the right.
NB THE ARROW LENGTH IS MEASURED FROM THE BOTTOM OF THE NOCK GROOVE TO THE END OF
THE ARROW SHAFT - NOT THE END OF THE POINT
Younger Archers
Selection of all archery kit for juniors is about as rewarding for parents as buying
them clothes. One minute you’re telling them they'll grow into it, the next
minute you’re out shopping for them again. I can only sympathise on this matter
and recommend that parents use their best judgement as the budget and situation
dictates. Younger archers may have to change their technique as they physically
grow as well as their equipment. I'm trying to create a good second-hand archery
kit network in the county to enable juniors (and parents) to access quality second
hand kit from other clubs, as well as the kit we've got available at Audco.... (Watch
this space). As far as the arrow selection goes, if you're expecting a rapid growth
period for junior over the coming year, an extra inch on the arrow is acceptable
...they'll grow into them!
Once you have decided what length of arrow, you need to pull, you must then ascertain
what spine rating the arrow needs to be. The spine rating of the arrow is an indication
of stiffness, which translates to how much power is needed to propel the arrow out
of the bow in a straight line.
If too much power is used to propel the arrow, it is said to be too whippy! The
arrow will effectively collapse while moving through the air and will generally
drift to the right (for a right handed archer).
If too little power is used to propel the arrow, it is said to be too stiff. The
arrow will not bend enough when clearing the bow and will generally drift to the
left (again for a right handed archer).
Signs and Symptoms of Incorrect Arrow Spine
- Poor arrow flight
- Inconsistent grouping patterns
- Fletchings hitting the arrow rest/shelf, leaving a mark on the riser
- Frustrated archers packing up, going home and selling their kit on e-bay
As you can imagine, choosing an arrow is a pivotal decision that will govern how
much enjoyment you will get from your shooting. So the first thing we need to do
is to figure out how much weight you'll be using to "launch" your new
arrows with. To do this, you must consider the bow you are going to use.
Bow Selection
As you can see, it's a bit of a chicken and egg situation: you must have a bow before
you get some arrows and you need to know what arrows you need before you get a bow.
So we're going to break the cycle rightly or wrongly by saying don't buy the
bow and arrows at the same visit to the archery dealer. Buy the bow
first, then bring it to the club. Get some help determining your arrow length and
draw weight, then a view can be made on what spine arrows you need.
I'm going to talk about recurve bows in this article, as this is what the majority
of the club members shoot. Also, I wouldn’t do the long bow and compound bow
shooters any favours if I fed them inaccurate information.
Bows are normally sized in 2" increments from 62" to 72". The length
of arrow you shoot governs what length bow you should consider. The following table
is a guide for selecting a suitable bow length.
|
Draw Length
|
Suitable Bow Length
|
|
26" and under
|
64"
|
|
26"-28"
|
66"
|
|
28"-30"
|
68"
|
|
30" and over
|
70"
|
If you shoot a bow that is too short, the bow limbs will be bending a lot more than
they were designed to. Although this would result in a fast arrow, the angle that
the string makes in your fingers when you pull the string back to full draw will
be very acute. This may result in your fingers becoming very sore after a day's
shooting. Further to this, the bow will be less forgiving, which means that any
slight differences you make in how you shoot an arrow (errors which we all sometimes
make!) will become more critical and your groups will open up.
If you shoot a bow which is too long, the limbs will not be bending enough when
you pull the arrow back to full draw, and the arrow will not get enough power from
the bow to propel it through the air. It won't literally fall out of the bow, but
it certainly won't work as hard as it can for you.
Remember, this article is all about equipment that works as efficiently as possible
to enable you to get the most from it.
Once a suitable bow length has been decided, we can then move on to bow weight.
This is another pivotal decision that governs your arrow selection later on in the
process. Bow weight is measured in pounds of pressure and is in effect a measure
of the "stiffness" of the bow limbs. A bow with a heavier draw weight
will feel stiffer to pull back than a bow with a lighter draw weight. The weight
rating of the limb is found written somewhere on the bottom limb along with the
limb length.
Pictured
on the left is the bottom limb of my bow. As you can see, there are two sets of
numbers written on it. The 42 denotes the draw weight and the 70 denotes the bow
length in inches when it is assembled in a standard 25" long riser (handle).
The value of 42lbs is calculated as how much pressure is generated when the bow
is pulled back 28". i.e. if you pull the bow back 28", you will be pulling
42lbs.
This is where people sometimes go wrong when calculating their draw weight, so take
note of this bit if nothing else:
If you pull a bow back more than 28", you will generate more draw weight
than written on the limb. Likewise, if you pull a bow back less than 28", you
will generate a draw weight lower than the value written on the limb.
We've got some bow scales at the club that will tell you your bow weight. As you
can see, it’s very important when matching arrows to your bow.
Back to arrow selection..
Now that we know what length of arrow and draw weight we're shooting, we've got
all the information we need to make an educated guess of the spine of arrow we need.
Download the Easton selection chart from here and go to page
five. Using the table on the top right hand side of the page, read your bow weight
in from the right and look for your arrow length to the nearest inch from the top
(pictured right).
I have used my arrow length and draw weight in this instance just to illustrate
the point. The corresponding cell gives a T-Value, which you then use to select
your recommended arrow size. Look for the respective table lower down the page and
note the values in that table:
Look for the model of arrow you want then read off the size of arrow you need. If
there are two values of the arrow type you want, note the lower value one.
Right then, don't go anywhere. Don't pick up the phone to the archery shop, don't
get in the car and certainly don't browse to an archery dealer's site and buy a
set of arrows online!
The value you have just selected is only a rough guide. The best thing to do now
is when you're next down at the club, ask about and see if anyone has a set of the
arrows you need and if you can borrow them for a couple of ends. The length doesn't
have to be perfect - we're only looking for a pointer to see if we're on the right
lines. If no one has any arrows you're after, try the club arrows, as there's quite
a selection there.
Once you find a set to try, shoot a few dozen with them and see how your bow reacts
and how the shot feels. Seek advice from other club members, but don't get your
money out and head for the shops until you're happy that you have an idea of the
length and spine of the arrow you need.
If and when you finally have your new bow and arrow, it will be a lot easier to
set up and tune if the equipment you have bought is properly selected and matched.