Q
- Michelle H.
A
Q
A
Archery Questions
1. What poundage should I start with? I know that some bows are harder to
pull back than others, which should I start with the easy ones or the
hard ones?
2. Where can I get archery equipment?
3. Can I make my own bow? I have seen some videos on YouTube and I would like to try it out.
Answers
1. You should start with a lower poundage.
If you're an adult I usually recommend people starting with either 20 to 25 lbs, depending upon their physical strength. You want to start with something easier so you can practice proper archery form - which is an ENDURANCE activity - and not being physically exhausted after only doing a few shots.
People who start with 30 lbs or more often do so out of ego (or lack of knowledge), but their form suffers from it because they are frequently shooting too quickly before they have adjusted their form properly. This develops into a bad habit of sloppy form and equates to sloppy accuracy.
What you want to do instead is to think of your bow(s) like dumbbells. You start off with the some lower weight dumbbells and build your endurance/strength, and then as you get stronger you start getting some heavier dumbbells.
You want to use that same philosophy with your bows. You start with an easier 20 or 25 lb bow and then progressively get stronger bows. So if you start with a 25 lb bow then your second bow might be 30 lbs, your 3rd bow might be 40 lbs, etc.
Also when buying a beginner bow I recommend getting a 3-piece bow where the limbs can be removed and swapped out. This way you can start with 25 lb limbs and when you want to go to a higher poundage then you just buy extra 30 lb limbs.
This then gives you the option of switching to harder or easier limbs when you go to the archery range as you might have 2 or 3 different sets of limbs to choose from.
"What limbs do I want to use today?"
2. There are archery specific stores you can go to, or you can try hunting/fishing stores that also sell archery equipment (although they might have a limited selection and only sell compound bows or crossbows).
ArcheryToronto.ca has a list of recommended stores in the GTA and southern Ontario which you can look into at http://www.archerytoronto.ca/Archery-Equipment-in-Toronto.html
With respect to specific brands and models I usually recommend the Samick Sage. It is an affordable bow, usually costing $150 to $180 CDN, it isn't bad to look at, and it offers everything that a beginner archer will want in their first bow.
Eg. A flatbow made out of oak, ash or hickory may be the easiest thing to make and a good thing to try when making your first bow.
Think of it like a progression, a learning process. Make something simple for your first bow.
A normal flatbow is a very good way to start off.
A pyramid bow is a bit more complicated, but the handle looks more interesting.
And there are other more complicated bow designs that you can look into, but I recommend practicing making flatbows and pyramid bows first.
I also recommend getting a book:
"The Traditional Bowyer's Bible, Volume One"
Technically there are four volumes of this book series, but the first book is the most important book that anyone who wants to do bow making should definitely read. So if you read the first book, especially the section on bow design, and you make several bows and decide you want to learn more then you can look into buying books II, III and IV.
In my case I also went a step further than just buying the books. Years ago I also invested in getting bow making lessons from a local bowyer here in Toronto, which is certainly more expensive than just buying some books and doing it yourself, but for me I felt it was important to see what other bowyers were doing in their workshops so I could perhaps learn some tips and tricks to bow making that I wouldn't necessarily learn from a book or from a YouTube channel.
I also habitually watch woodworking episodes of "The Woodwright's Shop" from PBS, which isn't about bow making, but certainly informative in other ways. Many of those episodes are now available via YouTube.
There are lots of YouTube channels out there on making bows too. One of my favourites is Mick Grewcock from the UK. I find his videos very relaxing and enjoyable, and there is a lot of quality effort put into his videos.
Below I have included a video from Mick Grewcock's YouTube channel in which he makes an ash flatbow in a day.
Q
"Hey fellow archer! I saw your post and was wondering if you had any advice. I'm looking to get a new recurve but not sure where to buy them. Do you know any good online places or do you get them in person?
I'm looking to replace my 60" recurve. I got two of mine from an antique store and one is still going but barely. I ordered a horsebow for my wife but I really want something closer to what I saw in your post. Not a huge fan of take downs. Sorry, I don't know a lot of archers I can ask."Jarin H.
A
I usually buy my bows in person from stores in Toronto, but I also buy vintage bows off eBay.
I would NEVER buy an eBay bow if it has very few photos of it (or the photos are of low quality) and you cannot tell if the bow limbs are straight / undamaged.
I also sometimes buy archery equipment (but never bows) off of Amazon. The problem with Amazon is I don't exactly trust the third party sellers on Amazon, whereas with eBay I know that I am deliberately buying a vintage bow and that it is used, and it comes with the territory. Amazon in contrast doesn't sell used/vintage bows.
Other websites to consider:
I have browsed those websites many times, but never actually ordered from them. Given the choices I usually buy locally as much as possible. Due to COVID/Coronavirus I get that many people these days might prefer to order online, but it is important to note that both Basically Bows Archery and Canada Archery Online do accept online orders. (BBA basically ONLY accepts online orders and pickups currently. The owner Gary doesn't allow people to come in the store and browse any more.)
So it is still possible to shop locally and order online.
Happy Shooting!
Sincerely,Below is a circa 1974 Shakespeare Sierra Model X18 which I recently shot on November 7th.
I got the vintage recurve bow for xmas in 2018, but it sat on the shelf for almost 2 years because I kept delaying getting a new bowstring for it. I finally got a new fleming twist bowstring and a new arrow rest (from CAO) for it recently and took it to the range to do some shooting. Despite being a vintage bow it shoots beautifully, and it looks like it is practically brand new.
Xmas 2018
Every year some silly person brings a pumpkin to the archery range, makes a mess shooting at the pumpkin, and then leaves their stinky mess behind.
Also they make a huge mess on their arrows and then have to clean their arrows with rubbing alcohol, otherwise their arrows will smell like rotting pumpkins.
There is a better however!
And it is reasonably frugal...
#1. Halloween Skull from the Dollar Store
Your local dollar store sells a wide variety of Halloween items which makes for a fun (and less messy) archery target. It doesn't have to be a skull, but that is certainly an option. It could even be a glow in the dark skeleton suitable for night shooting.
#2. Zombie Archery Target
Sometimes your local archery stores sell a variety of zombie themed archery targets. Below is a zombie pizza man. They're pretty inexpensive too.
#3. Old Halloween Decorations
Chances are likely you have some old Halloween decorations you should throw out. But before you throw them out, why not reuse them as an archery target?
#4. Halloween Archery Target
Print out the following Halloween Archery Target using your printer or take it to Staples / Kinkos to print out a larger poster.
Or make/decorate your own archery target.
Want to improve your archery form and accuracy? Pay attention to these 4 tips that will help to improve your form/accuracy.
Also see my old post from March titled "4 Ways to Improve Your Archery Form". If you read both then that is 8 tips on how to improve your form / accuracy.
1. Align your Torso / Bellybutton to 90 Degrees
It may sound weird, but when you begin pulling back you want your bellybutton to be aligned so it is 90 degrees away from the target. Doing this aligns your torso and allows you to use your upper back muscles (rhomboids) more efficiently, and it allows you to relax your shoulders more.
If you don't do this it results in your shoulders being more stressed and that extra strain on your bow shoulder will often result in a midshot "arm jerk" that will cause your arrow to go to the side. This is obviously bad for accuracy.
Likewise if your drawing shoulder isn't relaxed you are more likely to get a backwards pluck when you release, which will typically make your arrow go higher to the side.
Lastly, if you're not aligned then you aren't using consistent back power. You want to be using consistent back power with your rhomboids so that your arrows are shot with the same amount of power each time.
2. Keep your Drawing Fingers Perpendicular
Avoid drawing back the bowstring with your fingers on a diagonal angle. What you want is to keep them perpendicular so that they release evenly. If they're on a diagonal angle then you will release the bowstring unevenly, often resulting in the arrow flying in a "whale tailing" or "porpoising" manner, which reduces accuracy. The bowstring during the release will also make a more "snappy" sound and will sound weird.
3. Pull your Fingers Evenly
Often beginners will put less power on their third finger on their drawing hand. This likewise effects having an even release. What you need to do is pay attention to giving the third finger and little extra power so it matches the other two fingers.
Beginners aren't used to using the third finger so much and it is weaker compared to the other two fingers, but there is an exercise you can do to increase the strength in your third finger: Snap your third finger 50 times per day on days you are not doing archery. (Hand grips don't work to build muscle in your fingers, that is more for forearm strength. You want to target building muscle in your third finger.)
4. Three Fingers is Stronger than Two
Beginners sometimes try to shoot with just two fingers, because that is what little kids do... Or maybe they saw it in a poorly made movie... What you want to do is use three fingers and half your fingertips. Do not pull to the joints because that will result in more plucking during your releases and can also lead to joint pain in your fingers.
Bonus Tip
Also doesn't hurt to get archery lessons. Get archery lessons in Toronto from Cardio Trek.
In somewhat related news... I have started giving my 3-year-old son archery lessons. He is really enjoying it.
Also in somewhat related news, check out the cover of the September issue of Archery Focus Magazine.
"If it feels wrong, just start over."
Have you ever done an archery shot and it just felt wrong for some unknown reason?
This is the point when I tell students to just start over. The saying goes "If it feels wrong, just start over."
The execution of a shot should feel normal/natural. If something feels weird, odd, off... Just start over.
You could be doing everything you can think of technically correct, in terms of technique, but if something feels off - even if it is purely mental - I will still argue it is better to start over than to shoot a shot that feels wrong.
It is possible that an archery could be doing something weird with their neck or shoulders and they become aware that something feels off. They wouldn't necessarily notice that something is a bit off if it is something unusual that isn't on their normal checklist of things to do before releasing a shot.
Technique Vs Good Habits
Ideally what archers want to do is to chip away at their bad habits and replace them with good habits. You do this by fostering techniques (and technical knowledge of form) so that you can add it to the checklist of things you do before performing a shot.
Being aware of the technical issues of form is necessary to become self-aware of your form. You don't necessarily need to know the name of what you are doing correctly/wrong, it is more important that you simply know the issue exists and can add it to the things you are checking before shooting.
As an archer's form technique improves likewise they start to develop more good habits, habits which eventually effectively replace technique and you stop consciously thinking about it because it is "just habit".
The problem exists however when an archer persists in a bad habit because they're not aware of it. If they're aware of it then they can consciously work to correct the bad habit, but if they're not aware of it at all then they are hampering their progress because they don't know what they are doing wrong.
If an archer doesn't know what they are doing wrong that is a good time to consult an archery instructor or ask a fellow archer to watch them shoot and hopefully they will spot what they are doing wrong.
Eg. I had an Olympic archer approach me years ago who couldn't figure out why his shots were going erratically to the left. I watched him shoot just a few shots and determined he was unnecessarily tensing his anterior deltoid (also known as the front deltoid) and that this was causing his arm to jerk to the left during shots. This isn't normally a muscle archers even think about when shooting, and with beginner archers it is usually the posterior deltoid (rear deltoid) that they end up tensing by accident. He was doing the opposite and wasn't aware what he was doing wrong, he just knew that something "felt wrong".
A beginner archer learns technique, and keeps doing it until they chip away their bad habits and replace them with good habits. Learning the various aspects of form can be technically challenging, and a beginner cannot learn everything all at once. It takes time. It takes practice. Eventually, with ample time, the habits start to take over.
An experienced* archer shoots based upon feel. Everything they do when performing a shot should be based upon habit and feel. If something feels wrong then they remember the technique and double check what they might be doing wrong.
* Obviously there are different levels of experience when it comes to archery. An archer who has been shooting for 30+ years (like myself) will be shooting (and feeling) their shots differently from someone who has only been shooting for a year or two.
An "experienced archer" may have different fortes (things that they're good at). Some might be better / more experienced at shooting longer distances. Some might be more familiar with shooting at moving targets. Some might also be more versatile. My goal during my archery lessons is to give students a comprehensive knowledge of archery so that they are more versatile and can reach higher plateaus of excellence by having constant challenges.
It has been my experience that stagnation happens when an archer stops looking for challenges and is no longer pushing themselves to get better. There is nothing necessarily wrong with this. Some archers are simply content with their current level of skill and want to maintain it through practice, and if they happen to get better over time due to regular practice then they are content with that too.
I would argue therefore that sometimes even so-called "experienced archers" should try to challenge themselves / learn new things in order to become better archers.
The learning process only ever reaches a plateau when you stop trying to reach new heights.
Q
"I shoot down to a temp of just above zero but my hands get cold. Do you know of any cold weather gloves I could try?"
- Mark M.
A
Hey Mark!
GOT AN ARCHERY QUESTION???
JUST EMAIL cardiotrek@gmail.com AND I SHALL ANSWER IT FOR YOU.
HAPPY SHOOTING!
Q
Frequently Asked Question:
"Why can't I just do archery in my backyard?"
A
In theory you can, but it is a problem of how safely can you do it.
If
you own a farm, a cabin in the woods, or a similar large property
nobody is going to complain about you shooting on your own property in a
safe and reasonable manner.
If you own a property in a town or
city you need to be taking precautions to make certain what you are
doing is still being done in a safe manner. Eg. Higher fences, using
some kind of a backstop, shooting on a downward angle so the arrow is
certain to be hitting the ground or the backstop, etc.
Now we
could imagine if you don't do these things what might happen, but
instead I am going to tell the story of an incident which was told to me
via word-of-mouth by another archer.
It involves a 12-year-old
boy shooting a youth compound bow (depending upon the poundage youth
compound bows can still be used for hunting and are still deadly) in his
parents' lane way near the garage beside their suburban home. The father
meanwhile was cleaning the backyard and while the son normally shot in
the backyard in a safe manner due to the backyard being busy the father
gave his son permission to shoot in the lane way, but he wasn't
supervising what his son was actually doing.
What happened next is a bit predictable.
The
child began shooting in an increasingly reckless manner. He started
shooting from further away, walking into the street and shooting across
the street and into the lane way. He also started shooting higher and
eventually nearly straight up to see where the arrow would land. One of
the neighbours complained, asking the child to please shoot in a safer
manner.
The father still wasn't paying attention and was unaware
his son was shooting so recklessly. He was also unaware of the exchange
with the neighbour.
The son ignored the neighbour and continued
to shoot in this dangerous manner. Eventually one of his arrows came
down and hit a passing motorist's car in the front windshield, giving
the driver quite the fright and causing hundreds of dollars in damages.
The driver, under the impression that the child had shot at his car deliberately, immediately called the police.
Police
arrived to find the driver in a shouting match with the father, with
the driver wanting to be paid for the damages to his car and threatening
to sue, plus accusing the son of attempted murder.
The neighbour
stepped in and gave a statement to the police, confirming that it had
been accidental, but that the son had been behaving in a reckless manner
by shooting arrows straight up, etc.
Police then arrested the
father (not the son) for Reckless Endangerment with a Firearm, and fined
him $4000. They also confiscated the compound bow and arrows as
evidence and took photographs of the crime scene/damages.
The
father tried to initially plead ignorance of the law, claiming he didn't
know it was illegal, but ignorance of the law is not a defense. If someone accidentally kills someone due to negligence or by behaving recklessly they are still considered to be guilty in the eyes of the law even if they claim that they didn't know that being negligent or reckless was illegal. Why? Because it is common sense that if you're doing something dangerous that someone could get hurt. He
later pleaded guilty, served one month in prison, paid the $4000 fine,
and was forced to pay for the damages to the driver's car.
The
son received a weapons ban, prohibiting him from owning any kind of
firearms. It is unknown when or whether the weapons ban would expire*.
* I looked it up. In Ontario a weapons ban is 10 years for a first offense. For life if it is a second offense.
The father was lucky he didn't get sued and his son was lucky not to be charged with something worse.
Assuming
that the son doesn't get into additional trouble in the future, he
would be allowed to own weapons when he reaches the age of 22.
Now
this is admittedly an extreme example of why people need to be careful.
Shooting in the backyard is certainly safer than shooting in the front
yard, and any children shooting should definitely be supervised.
After
hearing this story I tried looking it up to see if it was the media,
but it was not. Instead I found similar stories, usually involving
people getting injured or killed. Which I kind of understand why those
stories would get more media attention. "If it bleeds it leads" and so
forth. A damaged car doesn't seem that newsworthy in comparison.
And
certainly this doesn't happen very often because most people have
common sense, but it does happen and there are reasons why Reckless
Endangerment with a Firearm carries a prison sentence and a fine, and
likewise there are reasons why bows and crossbows are considered to be
firearms in the eyes of the law.
I know of multiple people who do archery in their backyards or on their private property. Most archers have built their own mini archery range in such circumstances, not just for safety reasons, but also because they don't want to damage or lose arrows.
You're not limited to your backyard either. Some people build a private range in their garage, in their basement, or even in their attic like the photo on the above right. Owning a large property is certainly ideal, but for those who don't having a small space in their attic or similar location is what works for them.
I have also heard of people renting a tractor trailer or a storage unit and building a private archery range inside such a space.
At this time I am still accepting new archery students, but I am being pickier about who I am accepting with respect to students.
Depending upon what happens with future lockdowns I may end up suspending lessons until after any such lockdown. I am expecting the schools to get shutdown any day now because it is obvious that the province of Ontario has not figured out a safe way to reopen schools.
If they shut down the schools but maintain Stage Three then I will continue to offer lessons. If the province decides to do another big lockdown, going back to the same conditions we had in March then any remaining lessons might end up being delayed until Spring 2021.
Knowing this I totally get why some potential archery students might just decide to delay their archery lessons until 2021 in the first place... Whilst some others might prefer to have them now because they're hoping to learn archery for hunting purposes, in which case the argument is the sooner-the-better. A percentage of my students these days want to learn bowhunting because they're worried about the COVID shutdowns causing the equivalent of the Great Depression and food shortages.
Basically everyone has their own reasons for learning archery. Some people are just bored of being at home all of the time because they work from home these days and they just want to get outside and do something fun.
Fun and potentially useful? Yep, good to go.
Of course there is also the people who just have always wanted to do archery and they just keep procrastinating. Always a new excuse for procrastinators. If you're a procrastinator then you're probably thinking of an excuse right now while reading this.
But if you cannot think of a good excuse maybe now is the time to do.
Email cardiotrek@gmail.com to sign up for archery lessons in Toronto today. :)
♣ ♦ ♥ ♠ ♣ ♦ ♥ ♠ ♣ ♦ ♥ ♠ ♣ ♦ ♥ ♠ ♣ ♦ ♥ ♠ ♣ ♦ ♥
In unrelated news check out the interesting and cool decorative arrowheads below. One of the archers I know makes them as a hobby.
Also kudos to fellow Toronto archer Crispin Duenas for his review of the BOWdometer.
An one year subscription to Archery Focus Magazine is $32 USD and gets you access to their back catalogue of magazines. Learn more by visiting archeryfocusmagazine.com.
Happy Shooting!
Q
"Hi Charles,
A
Sincerely,
Charles Moffat
CardioTrek.ca
Q
"Can I ask you an archery question for research/my thesis?
- J. E. T.
A
"Hello! My wife weighs 115 lbs and isn't very big. What kind of bow should I get her for getting into archery?
Matt M."
"Thank you very much. This has been a big help. She is 5'3" so I am probably gonna go with a 3 piece so I can get her stronger limbs when she improves.
I was thinking the Samick Sage for her, but I'm worried the riser might be to big for her hands any other good starters you can recommend?"
"Thank you very much again. Very helpful."
The lesson plan for Compound Archery differs dramatically compared to that of traditional recurve, Olympic recurve and other archery styles. This is because Compound Bows are so fundamentally different in their structure and design that it necessitates teaching it in a different way.
There are some things which are similar or the same when compared to the other lessons, but much of what a compound shooter learns will be focused on issues and aspects that are unique to compound bows.
Lesson Two
Lesson Three
Lesson Four
Lesson Five & Beyond
Varies upon the needs of the archer. Might include topics like shooting at moving targets, shooting long distances, shooting while sitting or kneeling, etc.
Sometimes archery lessons may include other topics like equipment maintenance, installing new equipment, answering the student's questions, issues related to bowhunting, etc.
Lessons can vary from student to student and are often modified to meet the needs of students.
The Bear Cruzer Vs the Diamond Infinite Edge, Two Excellent Beginner Compounds |
What Should You Buy If You're New To Compounds???
Let's say you're new to archery (or new to compound shooting) and you don't know what you should buy.
The answer is that you want to buy a good beginner compound, something that is:
The answer is that there are two compound bows on the market which fulfill these requirements:
Both of these bows from competing manufacturers offer everything a beginner compound shooter is looking for, and if they take good care of it then it will serve them well. There is only one downside, each of these bows top out at approx. 310 fps for arrow speed. Which is still plenty fast, but you're not going to breaking any speed records compared to more expensive compounds offering fps speeds of 330 to 380.
In contrast most traditional recurves top out at about 200 fps, and people still hunt with them. So having a fast compound is not a necessity.
It is more important that you learn how to shoot properly and accurately, and buying the wrong bow which doesn't suit the user would be a step in the wrong direction.
Got an archery question about compound bows? Just ask! Email cardiotrek@gmail.com.
See Also