# Advice for 3D archery



## grind4thehunt (Apr 22, 2021)

Hey guys, looking for some general advice for getting into 3D tournaments. Can be setup pointers, mental game pointers, just looking to gain knowledge. Would greatly appreciate any advice yall have for me. I've got a bow picked out, what accessories are the most important (sight, scope, bars, rest, arrows, ect.). What' yall's strategies for the known classes, shoot for 12's or play it safe on the longer shots? Looking to start next year in the k40 class, I shot the hunter class this year and fell in love with this sport and really think I'll enjoy the K40. I am a big DIY guy, I build and tune my own bows, and i think this is gonna be a fun "never ending project" for me. Thinking about buying most, if not all my gear here in the classifieds, any advice on buying and selling would be appreciated as well. Thanks in advance for the help. Love the archery community, keep grinding!


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## Hntnfsh4evr (Feb 6, 2021)

Best advice is to practice your form, a lot. The best shooter I know still shoots equipment from 15+ years ago with the exception of new strings. You want to practice so much you can’t miss.

If you are looking for general shooting technique tips, John Dudley’s School of Nock is about as good as it gets for free.


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## ar1220 (May 18, 2014)

Go and have fun. Learn to play the game. And yeah depending on your skill level in the known classes I'd be shooting at every 12 but that will take a lil time and learning where the rings are on the targets.
Spend the money on good quality equipment. It may sting a lil more on the front but good accessories will last through several bows and will hold up.


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## Sudduth49 (Jul 30, 2020)

Shooting known, I shoot at all 12s. On the longer ones I usually set a yard hot and shoot at the lower or a yard short and shoot at the upper just to make sure I don’t give anything up on a miss. The thing I think most people overlook for 3D practice is the indoor game. Shooting a Vegas round or 2 every week made me a much better shooter and that practice transferred straight into my 3D scores.


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## grind4thehunt (Apr 22, 2021)

Sudduth49 said:


> Shooting known, I shoot at all 12s. On the longer ones I usually set a yard hot and shoot at the lower or a yard short and shoot at the upper just to make sure I don’t give anything up on a miss. The thing I think most people overlook for 3D practice is the indoor game. Shooting a Vegas round or 2 every week made me a much better shooter and that practice transferred straight into my 3D scores.


Really like setting a yard cold or hot on the longer shots. Will definitely try shooting some spots to really hone my shot process! appreciate the reply man.


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## grind4thehunt (Apr 22, 2021)

ar1220 said:


> Go and have fun. Learn to play the game. And yeah depending on your skill level in the known classes I'd be shooting at every 12 but that will take a lil time and learning where the rings are on the targets.
> Spend the money on good quality equipment. It may sting a lil more on the front but good accessories will last through several bows and will hold up.


That's something I struggle with is not knowing where the rings are if i can't see them through my binos. Definitely need a cheat sheet until I know them by heart. The piece of equipment I'm really struggling with is the sight and scope, any recommendations?


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## ar1220 (May 18, 2014)

Axcel sight, shrewd scope set up and you will as good a set up as your gonna get


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## GavinB (Jun 23, 2014)

Here's what I find works. Start small. Get good binoculars and learn where the rings are. Depending on your skill level, work on not shooting 5's. Then work on not shooting 8's. From there, you will learn where the 10 rings are and how to aim at them. I shoot bow hunter class so a trick I learned is when looking through your binos, find the rings and start to blur your binos until the rings go away and all you see are shadows. At that point, you will be able to use those shadows as aiming references.Once you learn the 10 rings, you then can divide the 10 circle up into quadrants. The upper 12 is always towards the head of the animal, opposite of the lower 12. Shoot at the quadrant you can see best. Hope this helps.


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## Dbolick (Mar 27, 2020)

watch some of the Compeititon Archery Media videos like "on the range with Danny McCarthy" or titled something similiar. Pros will give tips on how they judge, find spots, pace, etc. Just get out there spend time shooting at the targets and you'll get better.


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## MoparDaddy (Aug 30, 2020)

So much has already been covered, but there is 1 key factor I havent seen mention yet. DON'T MISS!


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## Aladner (Mar 18, 2014)

Axcel achieve XP is as good as it gets for a sight. I also love my axcel av 41 with a good 4x lens with a blue pin lit up with zbros evolution light. Axcel has some nice features and top notch quality.


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## grind4thehunt (Apr 22, 2021)

ar1220 said:


> Axcel sight, shrewd scope set up and you will as good a set up as your gonna get


Axcel achieve xp and shrewd optum is kinda what i've been eyeing so far. Hoping I can find a deal in the classifieds if I look long enough


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## grind4thehunt (Apr 22, 2021)

Dbolick said:


> watch some of the Compeititon Archery Media videos like "on the range with Danny McCarthy" or titled something similiar. Pros will give tips on how they judge, find spots, pace, etc. Just get out there spend time shooting at the targets and you'll get better.


Absolutely love watching these videos, I'm learning something new every single video I watch. So glad PJ is doing these, I really hope they keep it up. I've improved every single shoot, setting goals for each shoot rather than just flinging arrows with no purpose behind them.


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## grind4thehunt (Apr 22, 2021)

MoparDaddy said:


> So much has already been covered, but there is 1 key factor I havent seen mention yet. DON'T MISS!


BEST ADVICE YET! Arrows are too expensive to launch them into trees!


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## grind4thehunt (Apr 22, 2021)

Aladner said:


> Axcel achieve XP is as good as it gets for a sight. I also love my axcel av 41 with a good 4x lens with a blue pin lit up with zbros evolution light. Axcel has some nice features and top notch quality.


Are you running a clarifier? I've heard some people say they need a clarifier above a 2x lens. Any thoughts? Really hoping I snag a deal on an xp in the classifieds, they seem to rule the roost in terms of a target sight.


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## ar1220 (May 18, 2014)

Clarifiers are all gone depend on your eyes, peep aperture size and scope distance from your eye. I shoot a 4x without one


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## xdr (Dec 22, 2019)

I’ve just started hitting the 3D comps close to me and am using my hunting bow. I upgraded to an Axcel accutouch sight, am in the process of upgrading to a target rest. I will swap these over to my target bow when I get it in 3-4 months. My logic is to get as good as I can now. I went through the school of nock vids all winter and it was a game changer for me. The sight upgrade I did has improved my ability to dial yardage much more precisely. That was $$$ well spent. I’m moving from a QAD rest to a Hamskea tgt rest so I can use different arrow diameters. 
The tips above are great advice that I plan to use as well. Great thread!


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## Sudduth49 (Jul 30, 2020)

grind4thehunt said:


> Are you running a clarifier? I've heard some people say they need a clarifier above a 2x lens. Any thoughts? Really hoping I snag a deal on an xp in the classifieds, they seem to rule the roost in terms of a target sight.


On my open setup, I use a CBE Vertex with the CBE VTX 32mm housing, “5X” lens with a Hamskea A+ Clarifier. I tried a 4X without a clarifier and it worked but the second piece of glass makes things much clearer and on targets where you can actually see the rings it makes a huge difference.


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## grind4thehunt (Apr 22, 2021)

Sudduth49 said:


> On my open setup, I use a CBE Vertex with the CBE VTX 32mm housing, “5X” lens with a Hamskea A+ Clarifier. I tried a 4X without a clarifier and it worked but the second piece of glass makes things much clearer and on targets where you can actually see the rings it makes a huge difference.


Seems like a bunch of trail and error when it comes to lenses and clarifiers. Thanks for the input man.


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## ChrisWalt13 (May 4, 2021)

I just got into 3D as well. Just wanting to follow this thread.


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## cedarsticks (Sep 10, 2009)

As with any sport, the only way to improve is through competition. Get out and shoot in front of people, don’t be afraid to miss and have fun. If it starts feeling like work, you’re doing it wrong.


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## Konasteve (Nov 12, 2019)

When you realize the joy of Archery is wasted on the young....... you’re finally doing it “ right”.


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## B3AV3R (Apr 19, 2006)

Learn your tendencies then plan, accordingly. 

When you miss, do you miss low? If so, perhaps you should add a yard or aim at uppers. 

I tend to overaim and then make weak shots. If this is you, learn to let down if your shot doesn't break in time. It helps to have a phrase that you say to yourself while aiming to keep track of time. 

Have fun! Don't put so much pressure on yourself that it sucks the joy out of shooting.


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## dkuz (Jan 22, 2021)

I have shot 3 matches so far. I just got into archery but I also shoot 3 gun. I approach the two with the same mindset, I use the matches as practice for the real world and use real-world equipment. For archery, that means a hunting setup. I am happy to just hit the target, it's great practice with a little pressure. In the last match folks showed up with 40 arrows, and I asked myself if the 4 arrows I had were enough. Turns out I just used one arrow for the entire match. The biggest thing is practice.


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## Emers7mm (Jun 5, 2021)

Looking fwd to shooting 3D again


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## Ravi1202 (Sep 28, 2020)

axcel achieve xp is what i am running..with ultraview 3 scope With 4x magnification. Love the set up.. 
but again scope choice is personal preference.


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## csteinberg (Oct 18, 2005)

Sudduth49 said:


> Shooting known, I shoot at all 12s. On the longer ones I usually set a yard hot and shoot at the lower or a yard short and shoot at the upper just to make sure I don’t give anything up on a miss. The thing I think most people overlook for 3D practice is the indoor game. Shooting a Vegas round or 2 every week made me a much better shooter and that practice transferred straight into my 3D scores.


Amen

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