What type of arrows, bows and protective equipment are the best for archery?
HoTaRu=) asked:
E.g. longbow, recurved bow etc.
single, dual, hybrib cam bow etc.
E.g. Aluminium, carbon, wooden arrow etc.
E.g. Finger tab, chest guard etc.- are they necessary?
this is for the training in the olympics=)
E.g. longbow, recurved bow etc.
single, dual, hybrib cam bow etc.
E.g. Aluminium, carbon, wooden arrow etc.
E.g. Finger tab, chest guard etc.- are they necessary?
this is for the training in the olympics=)
targetbutt posted: 22 May at 11:00 pm
If your goal is to get to the Olympics, you can only go one route, that is the recurve bow. Longbows and compounds are not allowed in the Olympics.
It then boils down to your budget. Olympic style recurves vary in price from $400 for a complete set to over $3000.
If money is no object this is the complete setup of my dreams
Riser: Hoyt Helix or Win&Win Inno
Limbs: Samick Masters
Sight: Shibuya Ultima RC carbon
Plunger: Beiter
Clicker: Beiter
Rest: ARE
Stabilizer: 30″ Doinker Quadraflex with V-Bar, 10″ side rods
Arrows: Easton X10 with Tungsten points or Carbon Express Nano Pro.
Finger Tab(and yes it is very necessary): Win&Win 360
Chest Protector: Angel
Arm guard: Beiter
String: 20 strand 8125 string with Majesty center serving
Now when you’re building your rig, here’s my first advice. Get together with a coach. Choosing a coach is like choosing a doctor, they’re not all built the same. Even coaches with the same certification level doesn’t usually have the same knowledge level. So shop around and find out each coach’s teaching style.
Here’s another advice about equipment, the riser is the one thing that you can keep forever. So get a good one, one that you like. With risers nowadays, most of the mid to top tier risers will outperform just about anyone alive. So it boils down to feel and looks. Some risers come with narrow grip, some with fat grip, it’s all a matter of preference. Some riser like to jump out of your hand, some just rolls off, also preference. But at the beginning, find a riser that you like and then get yourself some cheap, light weight and crappy limbs. Practice with the cheap limbs and slowly get to your target weight. Don’t jump up too high as you will destroy your form in the process.
As for the finger tab, it’s mandatory. I’ve seen what shooting without a finger tab does and it ain’t pretty. A fellow I was shooting with at a tournament had never used finger tabs, he’s a construction worker so a pretty tough guy. Well, problem is he usually never shoot more than 20 arrows at practice. At this tournament you need to shoot 144 arrows on the first day and another 100 arrows on the second day. I was surprised he made it through all the way. But at the end of the tournament he had quarter sized blisters all over his finger and string hand was shaking from the pain.
Chest guard, is there just in case. If your form is good, you will need one to keep the string off your shirt. Most beginners don’t have the perfect alignment yet, so they usually don’t wear chest guards.
archerdude posted: 23 May at 5:52 pm
targetbutt has nailed it, and he has many years’ experience in Olympic-style archery, so listen to the advice given.
The only thing I can add is about protective equipment: It is there for a reason. If you send more than twenty arrows to the target in one session (that’s one practice or competition per day), you might be able to get by without a glove/tab — but your fingers ***will*** get chewed up eventually. If you can keep the bowstring from contacting your upper torso area, you won’t need a chest guard — but most women, especially those who are just starting out in archery — will benefit greatly from wearing one (they keep the bosom “out of the way”). No, the Amazons did not have their breasts removed….
As for what kind of bow/arrow, in the Olympcs recurves are required and I believe aluminum arrow shafts are most often used (I **think** carbon-fibre shafts are allowed, but I’m not sure of this). I don’t know of any Olympic archers who will even consider using wood shafting.
Just for the record, wood shafting is extremely effective in specific situations — it’s just not the best choice for Olympic-style competition. I am glad that you specified that you are asking about the best choices for Olympic-style archery.