Albert 888 Posted June 20, 2016 Report Share Posted June 20, 2016 Always been interested in doing a bit of archery. Done it a few time and the Mrs also enjoys it. Done a quick look on eBay and I'm a bit confused. Im 6ft 1" and the Mrs is 5ft4". What lb, length arrow and draw bow is best for me and the mrs. We have used samic recurve 18lb with 30" arrows. Both right handed. If I draw a tape like I would a bow to my nose it's 31". We are both novices and may be best off with two bows and two sets of arrows. What do you girls and boys suggest. My mates uncle is an instructor only 0.5 mile away,so we will get lessons first. Just want to know roughly what to look for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
team tractor Posted June 20, 2016 Report Share Posted June 20, 2016 I've just treated my boy to his first set Can't wait until his birthday Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albert 888 Posted June 20, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 20, 2016 I bet he had a good one.Are little one is only 14month old so we have wait. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lloyd90 Posted June 20, 2016 Report Share Posted June 20, 2016 Samick sage pick one up off merlin archery for about £99. You may need someone who knows what they're doing to make your arrows, not sure if they sell em already done ? A bloke at my work is Archery mad and set mine up for me, I was looking at a 40-50lb Samick Sage as I'm a big strong bloke do a lot of weight lifting. He talked me into getting a 35lb draw and to be honest I wish I'd started with something like a 20-25lb as its quite tough to get it accurate doing long sessions. You can always go up but if you start too high it can be a bit off putting. Good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stumfelter Posted June 20, 2016 Report Share Posted June 20, 2016 Buy a compound! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
team tractor Posted June 20, 2016 Report Share Posted June 20, 2016 I bet he had a good one.Are little one is only 14month old so we have wait. He doesn't know yet. 5th July . I hope he loves it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaptainBeaky Posted June 21, 2016 Report Share Posted June 21, 2016 (edited) Don't buy off eBay! At least, not until you have more of an idea what you need. If your mate's uncle is an instructor, he should have access to some light training bows to get you started. The surest way to get put off is to start with a bow that is too high a draw weight - you will be amazed how tired your muscles get at the beginning, until you get the technique. "Buy nice, buy once" doesn't really apply to bows. You need a light draw to start with, then move up in weights as your technique develops. Expect to go through three or four bows as you progress - this is where club membership is useful, as it can give you access to cheap second-hand gear, and a ready market to offload stuff you have grown out of. Your instructor friend can help - ask his advice before spending any money. Hope you enjoy it Edited June 21, 2016 by CaptainBeaky Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deker Posted June 21, 2016 Report Share Posted June 21, 2016 might be worth getting along to a local club as they'll probably have inductions were you can try a few types and also learn some safety (stringing bows etc correctly), I went along to one last year to try as it's a hobby I'd like to take up, unfortunately for me the day that they shoot is the same day as the local clay club shoots and also when I do other hobbies so it's on hold. what I did find though is that I found I was more interested in recurve bows than compound and it was the compound type which initially got my interest Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albert 888 Posted June 21, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 21, 2016 I'm lucky the club days appear to be on a Sunday,all my shooting is on Saturday's and mid week. I will pop along and see how it goes. Thanks for the info. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrM Posted June 22, 2016 Report Share Posted June 22, 2016 (edited) Before buying anything go and join a club - you should start with a light poundage till you know how to draw properly - otherwise you'll end up wrecking yourself. They will also help you on what your draw length is (determines arrow length) and whether you want to go recurve or compound. Arrows - they are either carbon fibre (top end) or aluminium (beginners/indoor). You can buy the components and assemble them but until you have the right jigs etc I wouldn't bother. Joining a club also gets you insurance from Archery GB. There are 2 main disciplines - target (as in the Olympics) or field (with 3d polystyrene animals or targets set amongst trees!) beware - if you get hooked a top notch set up will be around £2k (I only know because my daughter shot for England Juniors when she was 12 and guess who had to fund it all !) Edited June 22, 2016 by MrM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul1440 Posted June 22, 2016 Report Share Posted June 22, 2016 All affiliated clubs will require you to do a 6 week beginners course before they will allow you to join or shoot with them. The course is not expensive and teaches all the basic things to know. I see that you're from around North Wales. There are some very good clubs and facilities in the area. Visit the archery gb website where there's a guide to clubs and contacts. Don't be tempted to just set up and fo it on your own by imitating Legolas, the girl from Hunger games or The bloke the the Avengers.. you will struggle and possibly injure yourself with poor technique or inappropriate equipment. Good luck.. its a brill thing to get into. The sight of seeing an arrow hitting the middle is very satisfying. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lloyd90 Posted June 23, 2016 Report Share Posted June 23, 2016 All affiliated clubs will require you to do a 6 week beginners course before they will allow you to join or shoot with them. The course is not expensive and teaches all the basic things to know. I see that you're from around North Wales. There are some very good clubs and facilities in the area. Visit the archery gb website where there's a guide to clubs and contacts. Don't be tempted to just set up and fo it on your own by imitating Legolas, the girl from Hunger games or The bloke the the Avengers.. you will struggle and possibly injure yourself with poor technique or inappropriate equipment. Good luck.. its a brill thing to get into. The sight of seeing an arrow hitting the middle is very satisfying. As with rifle clubs, some can be off putting by arsey club members. Mate I mentioned taught himself with practice, YouTube and pure passion. He has a YouTube video at a fair distance putting an arrow through two wedding rings spaced about a foot apart. He went to a club and out shot everyone there, he also stated he found their attitudes stank and were not very welcoming. He said he would never go back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Savhmr Posted June 23, 2016 Report Share Posted June 23, 2016 As with rifle clubs, some can be off putting by arsey club members. Mate I mentioned taught himself with practice, YouTube and pure passion. He has a YouTube video at a fair distance putting an arrow through two wedding rings spaced about a foot apart. He went to a club and out shot everyone there, he also stated he found their attitudes stank and were not very welcoming. He said he would never go back. I agree. I dislike most target clubs as they can be a little elitist and some I've attended have put down those with leanings towards field archery or instinctive archery poo-hooing it as a poor relation to target shooting (with its bows be-decked like Christmas trees) which is why I started my first club back in 1985, catering specifically to teach people instinctive archery (ie without the aid of sights or other aids) traditional style. I ran that for a number of years and started another some years later, taking a group to an international shoot back in 1996, competing in the instinctive archery classes and barebow classes where we came away with the trophy, accumulating a points score which beat the target class! (the shoot was over various distances and you had 4 arrows to each target plus a ranging arrow, but you weren't told the distance and had to guess the range. Instinctive archers tend to be quite good at this as it is part of the practice taught). Instruction is necessary to iron out bad habits and faults. With the best will in the world, it is not something that lends itself to being taught off the internet as there's a fair bit to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deny essex Posted June 23, 2016 Report Share Posted June 23, 2016 My wife always fancied archery. On a shopping trip one day in a store they had some junior bows, so on impulse and me saying we can take it to one of my farms for target use we bought one. After sorting targets and stand etc we went to the farm , the results were as expected but she enjoyed it and was a laugh. The second time went much the same for an hours fun. This was while my wife was waiting for her lung transplants. She woke up with pains in her chest the day after archery , emergency services were called ( as pains in the chest are treated as such now) and she was rushed into hospital, lots of tests and the conclusion was , yep drawing the bow . Her surgeon at Papworth hospital cracked up with laughter when he read the report and it went round the hospital and is still a leg pull when she goes for check ups. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stonepark Posted June 23, 2016 Report Share Posted June 23, 2016 Plenty of compound bows now adjust quite simply from reasonable to silly draw weights. If you fancy a compound, you can set it up light to begin and up the draw as required from 10lb to 70lbs with some such as Diamond Infinity series to name one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbiep Posted June 23, 2016 Report Share Posted June 23, 2016 A friend of mine is treasurer at Wrexham bowmen, and they run regular starter courses. His wife is also a member there, and holds 2 Welsh records for longbow Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toxo Posted June 23, 2016 Report Share Posted June 23, 2016 I did try to reply to this post. It's where my username came from. Got half way through and it got wiped with no autobackup. Not gonna keep doing it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albert 888 Posted June 23, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 23, 2016 I did try to reply to this post. It's where my username came from. Got half way through and it got wiped with no autobackup. Not gonna keep doing it.What toxo virus, as in the cat one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toxo Posted June 23, 2016 Report Share Posted June 23, 2016 What toxo virus, as in the cat one As in Toxophilite. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coyotemaster Posted June 23, 2016 Report Share Posted June 23, 2016 I am in total agreement with the boys who say not to buy until you know more about what you want. I have been shooting a bow for about 25 years and it is crucial to have the proper draw length. There is no doubt you and the Mrs. will need different bows and arrows. On draw length one thing to remember is you are better a bit short than long. If the draw length is too long you will strafe your bow holding arm on the inside of the forearm with the bowstring-- a few of those and you will want to quit the sport entirely. I shoot a compound and prefer carbon arrows(either broken or perfect/ no worry about bent aluminum arrows). Look toward a string loop that extends the life of the string where the release attaches should you go compound. PM me if I can help further. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrM Posted June 23, 2016 Report Share Posted June 23, 2016 (edited) Not always. You can self teach to a high level if you have the right mindset or natural talent for it but it is a lot harder than shooting a rifle and can be a lot more dangerous to the user if done badly. If you really are totally green then yes, go to a club but take it in with a pinch of salt, good archery coaches are very few and far between at any more than beginner level and like most sports, it is mainly just safety oriented. Those are fair comments, although there are some really good coaches around - you would need to check with each club as to whether they have senior or county coaches there. Level 1 and 2 coaches are good to get you past beginner level - however don't forget that archery is run by volunteers so pretty much all coaches are giving their time free. Additionally most clubs will have beginner equipment to rent to save you buying something that won't last very long. Certainly once you have mastered the technique then the rest is practise. Also remember if you turn up at a club with the attitude that you know everything of course you will get their backs up - same would happen in shooting to be honest! Edited June 23, 2016 by MrM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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