There are many sights for bows on the market, and the type of sight you choose will depend on the bow style or archery bow class you decide to shoot. The NFAA recognizes 10 Bow Styles, 4 of which are compound. The 4 compound shooting styles are Free Style (FS), Free Style Limited (FSL), Barebow (BB), & Bow Hunter Free Style (BHFS). The definitions of each of these NFAA Compound classes/styles, as well as all other styles can be found in detail by following this link: https://www.minnehaha-archers.com/files/NFAAClass.pdf In comparison, compound bow styles in other organizations vary: World Archery/USA Archery has only one, and ASA has only two.
If you want to compete in novelty, club, regional, state, national, or world tournaments, you need to know what style you shoot. The type of equipment you buy as well as your age will define the class you are placed in. There are some shooting styles that allow sights on either a compound or recurve bow.
Sights vary in quality and price. We shoot Bow Hunter Free Style (BHFS) with 5 fixed pins and endorse Spott-Hogg sights, specifically the ‘Hogg It’ 5 pin sight. https://spot-hogg.com/sights/hogg-it/ Spot-Hogg makes freestyle adjustable sights, as well as fixed pin sights. Spot-Hogg sight offers a lot of adjustability for arrow flight and has fiber optic pins. There are left/right, up/down, and “third axis” (in/out) adjustments on Spot-Hogg sights. Additionally, there is a bubble level in the bottom of the pin guard as well as a vertical wire, which I’ve found to be very helpful when stacking pins. The fiber optic pins are different colors, making it easy to find your distance. Their customer service is great, and it’s a quality sight. It isn’t the cheapest option, but it’s the only sight you’ll ever buy. Ed’s left/right adjustment failed and they replaced the part. Recently, Spot-Hogg has changed their original sight to their newer sight which offers 3 different pin guard sizes, and the inside of the ring is green. We prefer the original size with a black pin guard & clear cover. There are a few older models out there, but they’re hard to find. Be aware that the fiber optic pins come in 2 different sizes as well. We prefer the larger size, because the smaller size is harder to see.
A typical 5 pin BHFS setup for pins is 20, 30, 40, 50, & 60 yards. However, pins can be set for any distance. For example, IF your bow is fast (high poundage) with the 20 & 30 yard pins right next to each, you could set your first pin at 30 and continue upwards to 70….or you can skip 70, and set your last pin at 80, the longest distance in an NFAA shoot. That being said, there is only one 80 yard shot on an NFAA Field Round Course (Field Side). My bow is set at 38 pounds, and Ed’s bow is 54 pounds, and our pins set up is 20-60. BHFS is shot with a mechanical release (caliper, thumb, or back tension/hinge releases). BHFS archers are not allowed to change their sight pins once a tournament starts.
If you buy a fixed sight with 7 pins, you’ll be competing with Free Style (FS) archers. Free Style (FS) archers have 1-3 adjustable pins. FS archers can also have magnification, longer stabilizers, & 2 side bars. If you want to score well, consider sticking with 5 pins (BHFS) or if you really want to shoot Freestyle change from 7 pins to a full on Free Style set up. FS archers adjust their sights for each target depending on the distance and also use a mechanical release. For us, adjusting for each target isn’t something we enjoy. We’re much better “guessers” than “dial in” shooters. And if you hunt, there isn’t time to adjust for a distance when an animal comes within shooting range, unless you’re in a treestand and know the distance already or have more than 1 pin. Additionally, if you shoot with magnification when hunting, it’s hard to see the entire animal and kill zone.
BHFS Archers can shoot the same yardage as a FS archer, depending on the poundage of the bow, but to shoot in-between distances like 25, for example, you “split the pins” by putting the 20 a certain distance above the spot and the 30 pin below the spot. Every bow is different, and every archer works with his/her sight in order to know where to place pins for every in-between distance. For distances over 60, most BHFS archers “stack their pins.” Meaning if you want to shoot 80 yards, for example, put the 60 yard pin on the spot, look where your 40 yard pin is and move your 60 to that point. Pins don’t stack mathematically however, as pin gaps are increasing the farther you go beyond your last pin. Ballistic decay (Kinetic Energy, Drop, Momentum) of the arrow at distance also comes into play. You need to know your bow and figure out where to stack for distances over 60 yards. For example, when I shoot 80 yards with my 38 pound bow, I’m actually moving my 60 pin to where the 30 pin was & move it up a bit, not quite to my 20 yard pin, because I’m adding 15 yards (95 yards total) for that 80 yard shot. Once I’m there, I find a point of reference on the hillside or something I spot, and I aim at that “spot.” Ed’s bow shoots faster (more poundage) so he moves his 60 yard pin to his 40 yard pin, and finds a point of reference above the target for his 80 yard shot.
Consider the bow you shoot, whether you’re a tournament , hunter, or recreational shooter….choose accordingly, take your binoculars, especially when setting your sights, get out to a range, and play with your pins! Enjoy!!