Gear & Guides

Field Guides

How-to, form fixes and the wider world of archery & bowhunting.

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A first-person view down a forest shooting lane racing toward a sunlit clearing

Can You Catch an Arrow at 200 MPH?

Reaction time vs. arrow flight time, kinetic energy on bare skin, and a free interactive catch test.

A compound bow drawn at a target, seen from behind the shooter

How to Aim a Bow Without Sights

Gap, string-walking and instinctive aiming, explained simply.

A tear through paper left by an arrow, showing nock-high flight

How to Paper Tune a Bow

Read the tear, fix the flight — a step-by-step method.

A crossbow resting on a fallen log in bare winter woods

How to Carry a Bow in the Woods

Carries that save your arm and keep the bow ready.

Schematic diagram comparing a compound bow's IBO speed rating to its axle-to-axle length, with string angle geometry highlighted

IBO vs ATA in Compound Bows

Why advertised IBO speed runs 60–80 fps hot, and how axle-to-axle length actually changes string angle at full draw.

A camo compound bow mounted on a wall with arrows fanned above it

How to Hang a Bow on the Wall

Display it safely without stressing the limbs.

Three arrows grouped in the gold of a target face beside a recurve riser

Types of Archery

Target, field, 3D or traditional — where to begin.

'Am I Legal?' equipment audit panel showing ASA, NFAA/Vegas and IBO marked legal and USA Archery marked illegal for an oversized stabilizer

Am I Legal? ASA, NFAA, IBO & USA Archery Checker

Check your bow against ASA, NFAA, IBO and USA Archery rules instantly.

A compound bow archer at full draw with the arrow already in flight toward the target

Are Bows and Arrows Legal?

Federal law, backyard rules, felony status and hunting age, state by state.

A red deer stag standing alert in a forest clearing

Minimum Draw Weight by State

Every state’s actual legal draw weight, broadhead rule and crossbow status, cited to the code.

A hunter silhouetted at sunset carrying a pack and antlers

Draw Weight & Kinetic Energy for Deer

What actually kills — the energy, momentum and FOC math behind a legal minimum.

An archer aiming a bow down a narrow indoor corridor toward targets

Can You Use a Bow for Home Defense?

Axle-to-axle width, setup time and real noise numbers, checked against a hallway.

How-tos we've actually tested, not repeated

Most technique advice online gets copied from guide to guide without anyone checking it against a bow in hand. These are written from actually shooting the method — paper tuning a bow, aiming without sights, carrying a rig safely through the woods — and adjusted where the common advice didn't hold up in practice.

Some guides here are pure technique: tuning, aiming, storage. Others are broader context for the sport itself — the different disciplines of archery, why people hunt. Pick a starting point from the cards below, or use the search bar to jump straight to a specific fix.