Compound bows are a part of my life. I have been involved in archery forever. I made this site to help beginners get introduced into the sport. Below is a list of everything you'll need to start shooting.
Compound bow- Obviously you are going to need a compound bow. Compound bows can range in price from $200-1000. I recommend beginners to get a bow around $400. This is because it is still a high quality bow, but not too expensive to the point where you will be out tons of money if for some reason you decided to not follow through with the sport.
Arrows- Arrows are almost as essential as your bow. Check with your local pro shop on tips for selecting the right size arrow. As a rule of thumb, you want about 1 inch of left over arrow after the shaft. This is to ensure you don't shoot yourself in the hand. I like to measure my arrow length by taking an over sized arrow and pulling the bull to peak let off, at that point mark where the arrow is and that will be your arrow length.
Target: You will definitely want a target for your bow. This is one of the reasons why I prefer the sport to soothing because I can simply walk out to my backyard and start shooting. This is not a possibility however if you do not have a target. A simple box target like the one below will work just fine.
A simple target like this only runs about $40, which is a great long term investment.
Broad-heads: Broad-heads are also a very important aspect in your compound bow set up. These will determine your arrows flight path and speed. Depending on your use (hunting or target practice) broad-head selection will vary. You also want to match up your broad-head weight to your compound bows draw weight and arrow size. If you able to match all three perfectly and have an accurate shot, you are destined for success.
Compound Bow Packages: Many beginner bows are offered as packages. I recommend you taking full advantages of these. They are offer everything needed to get shooting and are usually worth around $400 themselves. Trust me if you are a beginner that last thing you want to be doing is spending another $500-700 on sights, peep sights, and slings. Especially if you do not what to look for in each of these. These package deals only costs about $100 more most of the time and are well worth the money.
Range Finder: Eventually you will need a range finder. A rage finder let's you find the distance your object is from you through lasers. If you do not have the funds for one right away, I recommend manually measuring how far your targets are when setting up your bow and shooting. If you plan on doing any hunting, you should really look into getting a range finder. You also need to start memorizing distances now, as when you are in the field hunting you will not always have time to grab your range finder and see how far your target is. I have also included a picture of a range finder. Keep in mind this particular model runs at about $350. This is considered pretty high end in terms of range finders. Price usually does mean quality however. So the better the quality the pricier it's going to be. You can start out with about a $100 one and be fine in my experience.
