7 Pieces of Archery Gear Every Beginner Needs to Get Started Bowhunting

If you are new to archery, this list of gear beginning archers need to get started bowhunting will help you learn what you need and what you don't.

When it comes to any outdoor pursuit, it’s easy to get bogged down in gear. Especially when you are new to the sport, it’s hard to know what you really need and what is just fluff. The recent boom in archery popularity had given way to a boom in gear as well. As a result there is a myriad of gear out there for to choose from. While a good portion of this gear can help increase your odds of success, some is just overkill. That being said, every bowhunter needs a few things.

If you are just diving into the world of archery and bowhunting this list was made for you. This list will get you outfitted with the essential gear every beginning archer needs to get started bowhunting.

1. Bow

Obviously the first piece of gear every beginning archer needs is an adequate bow. There are really two types of bows you can consider; traditional and compound.

Traditional bows are bows that use only the energy produced by the limbs to propel an arrow. Up until the last 40 or so year, these bows were the only option. Traditional bows are generally lumped into two subcategories; recurves and longbows. Recurves offer a little more speed and power, while longbows are the purest of the pure traditional bows. While a lengthy dissertation could describe their differences in more detail, that conversation is better left to another story. No matter what style you choose traditional bows take lots and lots of practice to become proficient with. If you have the time, and love to shoot, a trad bow might be right up your alley.

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Compound bows have come to dominate the archery world the past 40 years. These modern bows use a cam system to generate significantly more speed and power than a traditional bow. Compound bows also offer another major advantage over traditional bows in that they have what is called “let-off”. As you pull back a bowstring you are increasing the weight the farther back you get. With a traditional bow, this means you are holding the heaviest weight while you are aiming. Not an easy task. With a compound bow the draw weight increases until you hit a point in the draw cycle where the cam “let’s-off”. This point significantly decreases the archer’s holding weight. Most bows run around 80% let-off. That means a bow with a 60-pound draw weight will only force the archer to hold 12 pounds while aiming. This allows the archer to hold much steadier and take a more careful aim. This makes the average archer much more accurate with a compound bow. If you are looking to get a weapon you can get accurate with quickly, the compound bow might be the way to go.

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Checklist

_______Traditional Bow

 

_______Compound Bow

2. Release

The second piece of gear every beginning bowhunter needs is a release. Again, the type of release you’ll buy depends on the type of bow you get.

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Traditional releases are very simple. Trad archers almost universally grab the string with their fingers. The release is simply a heavy layer that protects the archer’s finger while drawing the bow. Shooting gloves and tabs are some of the most common releases for traditional bows. Shooting gloves are gloves that cover only the inside 3 fingers of your shooting hand. Tabs are small leather devices that also cover the 3 insider fingers of your shooting hand. Tabs are easily removed, while gloves are generally strapped on from the start of a hunt to its end.

While archers with compound bows can use traditional releases, most shooters use mechanical releases. A mechanical release has the advantage of making very little contact with the string, and ensuring a consistent release each time. These attributes make them the most accurate. There are several different styles to choose from including back tension release, index finger triggered releases, or thumb triggered releases. The style you choose depends on several factors, but each can be a good choice.

Checklist

_______Traditional Bow

_______Glove/Tab Release

 

 _______Compound Bow

_______Mechanical Release

3.Bow Sight

At this point the conversation will focus on compound bows only. Traditional bows have methods of aiming, but there are seldom aiming aides mounted on the bow. Compound bows however have a few different styles, and most compound shooters use them.

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The biggest consideration when picking out a bow sight is determining the number of pins you’ll want to use. Multi-pin sights allow the archer to set several pins for various yardages. For example, an archer might have pins at 20, 30, and 40 yards. At those yardages the archer will put the pin right on the target and the arrow should strike the center. The downside of this system is that archers may get confused about what pin they are supposed to use. Some archers also complain about having too much clutter in the sight.

The other approach is to go with a single pin sight. Single pin sights allow the archer to set the pin on the target, and then adjust a dial on the side of the bow to make the arrow strike true. For example, if you want to shoot a target at 20 yards you turn the adjustment knob to 20 yards. Then you place the pin in the center and the arrow should strike the middle. If you want to shoot a target at 40 yards, you adjust your knob to 40 yards and shoot again. The big advantage is having only one pin to look at. The downside is having to make adjustments on the fly.

Checklist

_______Traditional Bow 

_______Glove/Tab Release

 

_______Compound Bow

_______Mechanical Release

_______Bow Sight

4.Arrows

No matter what style of bow you get you’ll need arrows. Today the vast majority of archers use carbon arrows for all their shooting. Carbon arrows are inexpensive, durable, and allow for interchanging points. They are super accurate and really are hard to beat.

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The biggest detail when buying arrows is to make sure the spine meets your bow’s needs. This is very easy since most arrow manufacturers make a chart that tells you exactly what arrow you need to be shooting out of your bow. A full dozen arrows is a good number to start with if you can afford it. If not, a half-dozen is ok.

Checklist

_______Traditional Bow 

_______Glove/Tab Release

_______Arrows

 

_______Compound Bow

 _______Mechanical Release

_______Bow Sight

_______Arrows

5.Arrow Points

Another essential piece of archery gear for a beginner is having the right arrow points. For practice you’ll need to get field points. These points don’t have sharp points and cannot be used for hunting. However they can easily be removed from foam or paper targets.

[Shop Points & Broadheads] 

Broadheads are hunting points. There are several different types of hunting broadheads including fixed blade and expandables. Fixed blade broadheads have either 2,3,or 4 blades and they are the more traditional type of broadhead. Expandable broadheads keep the blades tucked away until striking the target, then they deploy. Advocates say the expandables are more accurate, while opponents say they may not deploy on impact. Whatever style you get, make sure they are the same grain weight as your practice points. The grain weight will generally be either 100 or 125 grains.

Checklist

_______Traditional Bow 

_______Glove/Tab Release

_______Arrows

_______Practice Points

_______Broadheads

 

_______Compound Bow

 _______Mechanical Release

 _______Bow Sight

 _______Arrows

_______Practice Points

_______Broadheads

6.Quivers

Another essential component of a beginner’s gear guide is a quiver. Quivers are what archers carry their arrows in. They come in many different styles but can be lumped into two categories; bow mounted or carried quivers. Almost all compound bows have the ability to mount a quiver. Traditional bows are different and not all will allow you to mount a quiver to the bow. However, there are quivers made that can slide over your limbs on a traditional bow. Bow mounted quivers seem to be most popular with compound bows. The advantage of a bow mounted quiver is the convenience of having your arrows right on your bow.

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Carried quivers include all varieties of back and hip quivers. These quivers are more traditional and generally used by traditional archers. The major advantage of using a back or hip quiver is the ability to transport many arrows at once.

Checklist

_______Traditional Bow

_______Glove/Tab Release 

_______Arrows

_______Practice Points 

_______Broadheads 

_______Quiver

 

_______Compound Bow

_______Mechanical Release

_______Bow Sight

_______Arrows

_______Practice Points

_______Broadheads

_______Quiver

7.Camo Clothing

The final essential piece of gear for beginning bowhunters is a little camo clothing. Camo helps to break up the hunter’s silhouette while out on the hunt. There are many different camo patterns out there today, each claiming superiority to fool animal’s eyes.

[Shop Jackets]

[Shop Pants]

In reality it comes mostly down to personal preference. The biggest consideration when selecting camo is to select a color that matches the habitat your hunting in. I can assure you that you don’t want to wear dark woodlands camo when hunting on the barren prairie. If you hunt multiple habitats choose clothing that will do well in each. Lastly, don’t be afraid to go old school if your heart tells you to. There have been many animals taken by archers wearing plaid shirts and dark jeans.

Checklist

_______Traditional Bow

_______Glove/Tab Release

_______Arrows

_______Practice Points

_______Broadheads 

_______Quiver 

_______Camo

 

_______Compound Bow

_______Mechanical Release

_______Bow Sight

_______Arrows

_______Practice Points

_______Broadheads

_______Quiver

_______Camo

If you have checked off on the gear mentioned in this article you would be good to start practicing for the hunt. Remember, this is just the basic gear. As you progress and learn the sport, you’ll see what else you may need. After a few years of practicing, learning, tweaking, and hunting, you’ll soon figure out what else you need personally. As you do, you’ll be surprised how much those choices say about you as a person. Until next time, happy hunting.

Up Next: Determining Your Bow Draw Weight; Top 3 Considerations

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