Archery

Here's a brief,ha ha, venture into archery equipment and uses.



Below are two different styles of bow, the top is a recurve the bottom a compound. The first thing you might notice is how cluttered the compound is, and you're right there is a lot of extra gear hanging off it. But the basic parts are the same, the hand grip or riser, the limbs, and the string. The compound adds cams (wheels) and cables which reduce the amount of weight one has to hold back at full draw. They can also increase speed and make drawing, or pulling it back, smoother.

If you'll notice the angle of the limbs, the compound is more horizontal as opposed to the more vertical recurve. This has made the bow remain more stable and moves less in your hand when shot. If you imagine the limbs on the recurve moving back as the bow is drawn and how they snap back forward to their original position, the main movement has been back and forth. The energy from the limbs snaps them forward, this makes the bow jump forward and out of your hand. To stop this, your grip must be somewhat firm, and these tight muscles may cause the bows position to change from shot to shot as muscles tire out.

The compound's limbs are more horizontal, so their force is up and down which cancels most of that jump. Because it moves less, a more consistent and looser grip may be used, which helps accuracy. It also tends to be quieter with less vibration to cause noise. Noisy bows make animals react, usually a jump or a duck, which can cause a miss or worse, a poorly placed shot.

Here is the recurve riser, no frills, just a shelf to rest the arrow on. Fletched or feathered arrows are used because the feathers bend back and return to shape as they hit the shelf. Plastic fletchings are harder and kick the back end of the arrow up as they hit the shelf and effect accuracy.
You can see there are no sights on this bow. You can be very accurate with a sightless bow, but it requires a lot (daily) practice. You are basically building your instinct or reflex shooting skills, and these can be very handy in quick shooting situations, draw as you pull up and release at the top. Many also like the "old school" aspect of this type of bow, better stalking skills because of decreased ranges because this bow shoots slower. It shoots the same arrow at 150 feet per second compared to 300 feet per second for the compound.
Here's the close up of the compound, I'll name the white objects from left to right. The circle is the glow ring on the sight, then the two bent arms is the arrow rest, the last is the nocking loop on the string. You can also see a bar where the cables cross and it keeps them out of the way. below the hand grip is a stabilizer/shock absorbing bar to the front and a wrist loop to the back.
You can see the gap in the rest, this is where one of the fletchings passes through insuring that the only contact is smooth, even contact with the shaft (long part) of the arrow.
This is the cam, the rounder the cam the smoother the draw, the more elliptical the shape, the sharper the snap and therefore more speed. Compounds use cables that are anchored on one cam and loop around through the string to the other cam. By using the weight reducing properties of the pulley, the amount of weight one has to hold back at full draw is reduced. Once the point of resistance is passed, the draw becomes lighter. In modern compounds the reduction in weight being held back can be as high as 85%. So if the peak point of resistance took 100 lbs to overcome, the hold weight would be 85% less, or 15 lbs. My compound has a 70 lb peak draw weight, but holding it back is pretty easy, for a while. The higher the draw weight, the faster the bow shoots, generally speaking. Inefficiency can rob a heavy draw bow of its speed, so the best match of weight and efficiency, along with shooting comfort is what you look for.

Having a good mechanical release can also reduce using the small, easily tired muscles of the hand to hold the weight.
Left to right, the old three finger glove, (top) a loop hook release, a thumb trigger release, and a caliper release. Originally I started with the glove, but higher draw weight really cut through the leather's protection. I also found a totally clean release, the string leaving all fingers evenly and consistently, difficult to achieve. Moving to a mechanical release was more mentally difficult than physically. How was I supposed to trust this little thing to not let go mid draw? Repetition helped me to overcome my worries and now I shoot far more accurately and consistently because of the release. Different designs all do the same basic thing, they hold the string or loop by internally locking, and release when the trigger is pulled or the button pushed. I use the one on the top. I like the wrist strap with a buckle so I use the same notch every time. It also is small and light and doesn't get in my way. They all help you shoot accurately as long as you put the same part of your hand, string, release, to the same part of your jaw or cheek or other landmark on your face. This is called an anchor point.
This is a fiber optic sight. The pins each represent a different distance, the top is closest (30 yds), the bottom is the farthest (70 yds), my "pretty good" conditions max. Each are for ranges 10 yds apart. On the string there is a fixed peephole, by looking through that hole (which lines up with my eye when I draw back to my anchor point) and then aligning the pins and my target. So here's the process: I spot the target, I estimate the range in my head or use a range finder (46 yds lets say), I nock the arrow on the string, I draw back to my anchor point, looking through my peep I get the pins on the animal, and knowing that it isn't exactly at one of my pin distances, I use the space between the 40 and 50 yd pins and put that space on the vitals of the animal, lined up with the others and making sure I'm pretty level, then I squeeze or pull back on the release until it lets go. I let my arm continue backward and I let the bow fall naturally forward ( hence the counter weights and wrist strap, one tips it forward, the other keeps it from eating dirt.)
These are different quivers, l to r, over the shoulder, one that can clip onto the bow limbs, and one that can quick release from a mounting point attached to the bow, which also encloses the sharp points.
These are two types, though there are several other kinds. The top is a carbon fiber, which is light, strong, and as long as it is not broken, straight. They are also very expensive, a dozen can run over $140. The bottom one is an aluminum, less expensive and can be bent back into shape, and when unbent can be very straight. There are now blends with a very straight aluminum core wrapped with carbon fiber to give strength at a lighter weight than an equal thickness of aluminum. Those are some of the most expensive. You also have wood and fiberglass arrows. There are arrows with three fletches or four, and you choose primarily based on the rest you use.
These are different types of arrow points or heads you can use. The top is a field or practice point, and you want it to weigh the same as your hunting heads. Next comes a broadhead, its blades are always out and ready to cut. Unfortunately they can be influenced by wind and require more tuning work than others. The last two are mechanicals which open up on contact and are sleeker meaning they shoot more like your field points, once again consistency.
The mechanical on the left is held shut by rubber band which is pushed back as the target forces the forward pointing blades out and back. The blades on the right are pushed straight back past a retaining o-ring until they are fully open. I have used the ones on the left on game and they worked just like they should, but the retaining rubber band can deteriorate and fail to hold it shut. I've decided to give these new ones a try and see how they work. But both of these choices are expensive as well, both around $30 for three heads. That hurts when you watch $30+ dollars go shrieking into the thick summer foliage, never to be seen again.

I love archery, you can shoot in your back yard almost year round without disturbing the neighbors. You can reuse a set of arrows indefinitely and an excellent target can be made from old clothes or plastic shopping bags stuffed into a big burlap pillow case backed up with a couple bales of hay. I think one of my favorite things is you get to watch your shots all the way to the target. But best of all anyone who can draw a bow ( and they have weights down to 10-15 lbs) can do it and have immediate gratification from a well placed shot. I recommend archery to everyone, whether they hunt or not, because its fun for the whole family.