Buying your first bow (and arrows)
Here we have developed a very simple guide to help people understand what they are doing when they go to buy their first bow. The guide is written mainly for Recurve and aimed at novices (those in their first year of shooting). If you have any questions about this guide or would like any more information then please email us. We do also run various equipment workshops throughout the year as well as trips to Merlin Archery, to help our Archers buy their kit.
The Bow
First thing to consider is eye dominance. You should have been told which this is at your beginners course. If you are right eye dominant then shoot a right handed bow and vice versa.
If you've done a beginners course then you should know your draw length. This length is best measured by a coach as it is important that you have good form when being measured. This length impacts everything. The image on the right depicts a draw length measurement.
Once you know your draw length then you can work out two things:
Bow length (draw length in inches + 40" and rounded to the closest even number)
Safe arrow length (draw length in inches + 2")
Now you need to decide what the draw weight of your bow will be. On the beginners course you will have been using bows from 14 lbs all the way to 24 lbs. Recommended starting weights for 18+ beginners are 20 lbs to 24 lbs. The big mistake most people make will be to "over bow" themselves. This is when you get a bow that is too strong and the potential is there for you to hurt yourself.
It's not quite as simple as picking a weight though as there is a difference between "draw weight" and "limb weight". Limb weight is the measured weight of the bow at a 28" and it is usually written on the limbs. Draw weight is the weight felt by the fingers of an archer at their draw length. If your draw length is over 28" then you will feel a heavier draw weight than is written on the limb, and conversely for draw lengths below 28". The rule of thumb is that for each inch you go above/below 28" the weight increases/decreases by 2 lbs. Bows are always sold by limb weight.
You must also consider how many arrows you shoot at a club session. Archery is all about technique, and this can only be gained through repetition. Here are some facts on the main rounds we shoot:
A single indoor round (Portsmouth) is 60 arrows plus 6 sighters
This is shot in 20 timed ends of 3 arrows
You may shoot multiple of these in a single day competition
An outdoor round (York) is 144 arrows plus 6 sighters
This is shot in 24 timed ends of 6 arrows at multiple distances
Everybody is different. So we recommend speaking to a coach for more advice on these four areas.
Now you have 4 things:
Eye dominance
Bow length
Arrow length
Limb weight
You now have all the information required to buy a bow.
Arrows
Arrows are a little more complicated. There is one warning that I can make: Don’t buy fibreglass. They may shatter and go through your hand (google “fibreglass arrows hand” if you dare).
A resource you should use is the Easton arrow and Easton shaft selection tool (note that it asks for draw weight, not limb weight): https://eastonarchery.com/shaft-selector/
For your first arrows I suggest an aluminium shaft such as the Easton Jazz, Platinum Plus, or Tribute. We have already worked out your arrow length. Using the Easton chart you can then get a correct spine for your arrow, you will then need to determine a point weight, a nock size, and a fletching type. Alternatively you can let a shop do this for you, I highly suggest this for your first set as getting the correct arrow set up is not trivial. There's plenty of resources on the net but there's also a lot of opposing opinions!
brands
Arrows I have already suggested Easton.
For risers there are really three main manufacturers you should consider; Win and Win, Mybo, and Hoyt. Another brand you may have heard of is SF but they are now called Winners and are part of Win and Win. When buying a bow you will basically be deciding between these three.
At the beginner level there is not much to differentiate. Win and Win are very expensive (you should not be buying a Win and Win bow as your first bow) but their Winners (SF) range is perfect. The three bows you want to consider are the Axiom, the Premium, and the Forged+. They also have some variations such as “plus” or “light”. There are 6 Axiom and Axiom light bows at the club if you wish to see them in the flesh. Some members have the Premium and the Forged+. In general the build quality of these bows is great.
Mybo are the rebrand of Merlin Archery equipment. They are a UK based company who run two large archery shops in the UK. I have a Mybo Origin compound and it is a very well made and very responsive bow. I've never used a Mybo recurve but they have a very good write up. Similar to the Winners/SF Forged+ in most respects.
Hoyt. They are the big corporate name in archery. They make the most expensive everything. Their tagline is “get serious, get Hoyt”. Their beginner risers are the Excel or the Horizon. I have experienced some issues with the Hoyt bows being incredibly hard to tune and therefore being quite noisy with harsh vibrations. Some may see you as “one of those Hoyt fanboys” but you should be safe unless you start walking around with the free lanyard they give you in which case expect some minor banter. They start at the top end of the price scale you should be looking at, and when compared to the Winners/SF bows they don’t stand out as anything special. One thing to be aware of; the more expensive Hoyt bows do not have universal fitting limbs. You may be stuck with Hoyt limbs. I would personally recommend the Winners/SF/Mybo risers first unless you're willing to spend significant cash on a higher end Hoyt.
While we are on limbs… The limbs I recommend, without a shadow of doubt, are the SF premium or Axiom Plus limbs. They are good limbs, and considering that you have just started archery, you do not want to be spending any more on limbs. I say this because as you shoot more you will be able to handle a higher poundage. If you shoot often enough you should be aiming to go up about 4lb in draw weight every 4 months. This will slow down, but at the start getting expensive limbs just to replace them is not something you want to be doing. Remember that people will have been beginners once and may still have their old limbs knocking about so ask around and see what you can scavenge.
The other things you will need:
Quiver (personal preference, but back quivers are not useful)
Bracer (personal preference)
Tab (remember to get the right size. Usually best done at a shop)
Finger sling (shoelaces work)
A bag (Legend do good bags)
Stand (personal preference)
String (essential, kits will come with one)
Pressure button (essential, SF bows come with one but others might not, let a shop help)
Arrow rest (essential, Hoyt super rests are fairly standard among Olympians and you can't go wrong at that price)
If this all looks confusing, it's because it is! I fully recommend that everybody buying their first bow visits a shop. The club will try and organise a visit to a shop before christmas and our coaches will be on hand to offer advice.