Target to field - who has made the move

Kernowlad

Supporter
Supporter
Me and my son have recently joined an NFAS field archery club - for various reasons we wanted to do something different. So far we've only shot in an indoor field archery range but really enjoyed it - we'll be outside soon and need to get full membership by proving we aren't complete halfwits and follow the rules; as we have been shooting for a year and a half and competed a bit, hopefully that should be okay.

We both have compound bows - I'm a Mybo Origin (52lbs) with a Shibuya compound sight and Cartel scope, one basic long rod and a wrist sling plus a Trophy Taker SS2 rest. I have about 10 XX75 Genesis arrows (6 are good, 4 need shortening, bigger nocks and re-fletching) and what might well turn out to be total overkill, 11 Easton ACGs. Considered selling them but I'd lose a lot on them.

My son has a Hoyt Ruckus (about 22lbs), Easton XX75 Jazz arrows (about 6 good, two need sorting), a very basic long(ish) rod, a wrist sling and a 5 pin sight.

We both use wrist releases.

Any glaring errors in our kit? I'm loathe to spend much as I've poured a silly amount into our current setup (and we just don't shoot often enough; took me a while to admit to myself!) but if there's anything worth changing, I can change it.

Very much looking forwards to shooting on a proper outdoor field range!
 

Andy-M

New member
Made the move just over 2 years ago. A bit of advice, get yourself some cheapish arrows when you start shooting outdoors. Even the best lost a few in their early days 😁
 

Kernowlad

Supporter
Supporter
Yep having lost four ACGs, I?ll save mine for long shots after I?ve got the hang of it a bit (if I actually do get the hang of it...!)
 

AndyW

Well-known member
Re. Arrows. Easton Powerflights are very good for the price. If you want pretty much bullet proof go with Gold Tip Hunters and if you're under the magic 300fps GT Velocity or Black Eagle Carnivores - nock collars are very useful if you are not going to be running with unibushes and will save you arrow after arrow.
Shame you didn't jump 6 months ago you could have done the 3d champs at the Flete Estate. Nothing wrong with your set up but you will be in with the big boys in unlimited and will need to do over 20 avg. a target to place most likely - steep learning curve, invest in a range finder and spend a few hours judging distance. Walk round, guess distance and shoot then rangefind the same shot and shoot again - your brain will soon sort it out. Get your distances sorted for up to 70 yrds and don't forget the sub 10 - 15yrds as they will put shots out at 3 - 5 yrds occasionally.
GL and have fun.
 

dvd8n

Supporter
Supporter
AIUK Saviour
Remember that it doesn't need to be an either/or choice - most field archers that I know are members of target clubs too.
 

Geophys

Member
I shoot target with Recurve, Compound and Longbow. However, I also shoot field with a tradbow, I personally didn't feel right walking the woods with all the recurve or compound paraphernalia. I shoot my longbow with a band, but the tradbow three fingers under and intuitive aiming. A day walking the woods shooting 3D, National animal or forester rounds with good companions has got to be the best fun you can have with a bow in your hand.
 

English Bowman

Well-known member
I shoot GNAS/AGB started off target, and very quickly took up field as well. I shoot AGB field rounds for competition and target for practice. I am a member of a NFAS club, but as they have their own insurance they don't need me to join NFAS, so I don't do NFAS competitions.
 

Mistake

New member
Ironman
I made the switch from WA target to WA field technically last September but threw myself whole heartedly into shooting field this year for the simple reason that it's more fun, more sociable and it suits my mentality a lot better (three shots and then move on to a new set of challenges.. lovely stuff)

I shoot target mostly in the indoor season now to keep my "under pressure" skills sharp, and also mostly to see friends I've made whilst shooting target who don't want to/ can't shoot Field for whatever reason
 

Valkamai

Member
I made the switch from WA target to WA field technically last September but threw myself whole heartedly into shooting field this year for the simple reason that it's more fun, more sociable and it suits my mentality a lot better (three shots and then move on to a new set of challenges.. lovely stuff)

I shoot target mostly in the indoor season now to keep my "under pressure" skills sharp, and also mostly to see friends I've made whilst shooting target who don't want to/ can't shoot Field for whatever reason
And how was it representing your country on the weekend Mr badger?
(your pm box is full BTW).

Sent from my H3113 using Tapatalk
 

Mistake

New member
Ironman
And how was it representing your country on the weekend Mr badger?
(your pm box is full BTW).

Sent from my H3113 using Tapatalk
A privilege that I hope won't be another 8 years in the making... shot well as well

Sent from my BLN-L21 using Tapatalk
 

Graham Smith

Active member
AIUK Saviour
A few friends form our target club and I are trying to set up a small field club. We have found the land and have a meeting with the farmer/owner tomorrow (Saturday) to try to sort it out.
He is very up for the idea, we just have to sort out rent etc.
We all shoot Olympic recurve at the target club but are all up for something different and will be shooting traditional one piece recurve now that we all have a bow each.
The only thing we are not too sure about is what insurance we will need but we are looking into that.
 

Kernowlad

Supporter
Supporter
Interesting stuff - as mentioned in another thread, we did our first "proper" shoot and loved it - love the format, the variety and also shooting a sensible number of arrows rather than just banging off end after end. The target shooting definitely keeps you sharp but the field format was way more fun.
The club doesn't seem to shoot outdoors all that often but when they do, we'll be there for sure.
I'm still a member of our target club and will do the odd round now and again (mostly outdoors - I've really gone off shooting indoors) though.
 

English Bowman

Well-known member
A few friends form our target club and I are trying to set up a small field club. We have found the land and have a meeting with the farmer/owner tomorrow (Saturday) to try to sort it out.
He is very up for the idea, we just have to sort out rent etc.
We all shoot Olympic recurve at the target club but are all up for something different and will be shooting traditional one piece recurve now that we all have a bow each.
The only thing we are not too sure about is what insurance we will need but we are looking into that.
As club members I assume that you are AGB members, why not form the club as a field section of your target club, you'd then be covered by AGB insurance assuming you conform to the safety rules. Or if you want to set up a new club you have 4 options, AGB, NFAS, IFAA, or get your own cover, pros and cons to each.

If you want to go down the AGB route I may be able to put you in contact with someone who can help you, where in the country are you?
 

Graham Smith

Active member
AIUK Saviour
As club members I assume that you are AGB members, why not form the club as a field section of your target club, you'd then be covered by AGB insurance assuming you conform to the safety rules. Or if you want to set up a new club you have 4 options, AGB, NFAS, IFAA, or get your own cover, pros and cons to each.

If you want to go down the AGB route I may be able to put you in contact with someone who can help you, where in the country are you?
We have now secured the land on a yearly agreement. We have been in contact with AGB and are waiting for them to get back to us. We are also going to look into NFAS so at this moment we haven't come to any decision. Forming the club as a field section of our target club isn't an option for various reasons. It's more that we want to keep it small for friends rather than be too big and formal. We are in south Northumberland in the Corbridge area.

Thanks for you help and advice. I really appreciate it.
 

English Bowman

Well-known member
Unfortunately I'm about as far from you as possible being on the South coast, but if you need someone from AGB I'll see if I can find someone closer to you who could help. As to which society you choose, it depends on what type of field archery you'd like to do.
AGB - Rules and insurance for roundels at both marked and unmarked distances, animal faces on paper targets and 3Ds - Competitions organised from local to world championship level. Affiliated to World Archery
English Field Archery Association (EFAA) - similar to AGB, but affiliated to International Field Archery Association.
National Field Archery Society (NFAS) - Animal rounds only, both paper faces and 3Ds, all unmarked distances, competitions organised from local to national championships, no international presence.

As I said before there are pros and cons to each, my preference is for AGB as I can shoot field, target or clout all under the same membership, but the membership costs are higher than EFAA or NFAS. I am also a member of an NFAS club, but personally prefer AGB shoots to NFAS ones as I like the roundels because they are more consistent and therefore easier to measure your progress and compare your scores to others with. That said I do shoot animal rounds and 3D and they are great fun. I also like the fact that I can shoot to represent my country at international events, I couldn't do that with NFAS. But this is a personal choice, and there is no one right way to do it.
 

Graham Smith

Active member
AIUK Saviour
Unfortunately I'm about as far from you as possible being on the South coast, but if you need someone from AGB I'll see if I can find someone closer to you who could help. As to which society you choose, it depends on what type of field archery you'd like to do.
AGB - Rules and insurance for roundels at both marked and unmarked distances, animal faces on paper targets and 3Ds - Competitions organised from local to world championship level. Affiliated to World Archery
English Field Archery Association (EFAA) - similar to AGB, but affiliated to International Field Archery Association.
National Field Archery Society (NFAS) - Animal rounds only, both paper faces and 3Ds, all unmarked distances, competitions organised from local to national championships, no international presence.

As I said before there are pros and cons to each, my preference is for AGB as I can shoot field, target or clout all under the same membership, but the membership costs are higher than EFAA or NFAS. I am also a member of an NFAS club, but personally prefer AGB shoots to NFAS ones as I like the roundels because they are more consistent and therefore easier to measure your progress and compare your scores to others with. That said I do shoot animal rounds and 3D and they are great fun. I also like the fact that I can shoot to represent my country at international events, I couldn't do that with NFAS. But this is a personal choice, and there is no one right way to do it.
It's not that far. Kevin Coster walked from Dover to Hadrian's Wall, just up the road from us in one day. Should be about an hour by car. lol.
As i said we have agreed the terms with the land owner and I checked on the NFAS website for membership. They are closed until January, for membership requests anyway, so we have plenty of time as, although the land is agreed we won't be starting until the first of March.

At the moment we intend to make our own targets and there are only seven of us so far. It is intended just to be a bit (or a lot) of fun for a few pals. We won't be be entering competitions or wanting to take part in shoots at other venues.

Thanks again for all your help and advice. I really do appreciate it.
 

English Bowman

Well-known member
No problem, if you're already AGB members I'd form an AGB field club to begin with, as you won't need to pay out any money.
I'd then probably go NFAS or EFAA from September onwards unless you renew your AGB membership, purely because it's cheaper.

Whichever society you go with, you don't need to shoot set rounds or in a set format to be insured, just abide by the safety rules, which are similar (but not identical) in all three societies.

If you decide to go in for a competition or two then the choice is down to personal preference as I said before.
 

Graham Smith

Active member
AIUK Saviour
No problem, if you're already AGB members I'd form an AGB field club to begin with, as you won't need to pay out any money.
I'd then probably go NFAS or EFAA from September onwards unless you renew your AGB membership, purely because it's cheaper.

Whichever society you go with, you don't need to shoot set rounds or in a set format to be insured, just abide by the safety rules, which are similar (but not identical) in all three societies.

If you decide to go in for a competition or two then the choice is down to personal preference as I said before.
Excellent advice. We are all AGB members through our club and will be renewing again in September so perhaps that is the way to go. Basically all we are concerned about is being covered for Public Liability and personal cover so we will look into both AGB and NFAS.

As for targets, the cost of 3D targets is horrendous. I had no idea they were so expensive. I have seen a video on youtube on making targets that has given us some good ideas. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jGsEBwiKnCI

I don't think we will be going in for competitions, not at the start anyway and as I'm now 68 I don't think I will be any time.
 
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