# FITA Target Butts



## lastcall21 (Jun 27, 2007)

I'm trying to find out what kinds of target butts most people use and where i can order some from. Our club is looking to buy some new target butts and we're having a hard time finding them in Canada. so round butts, square butts, but for outdoor fita is the primary use.

If anyone can give some ideas, locations, store names, that would be great!!

thanks,

sheila


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## mholz (Sep 7, 2005)

American Whitetail 

http://www.archerytargets.com/


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## DK Lieu (Apr 6, 2011)

At UC Berkeley, we use two types of mats for outdoors: American Whitetail AR152 and Morrell M48. We have a lot of both. Both are durable, and we are basically happy with both. Both have advantages and disadvantages. The biggest problem with both is that the shipping charges alone can run up to $150 each because of their large size.

American Whitetail AR152. Very lightweight, and round, so it is very easy to move for set-up and take-down. Superb at stopping arrows, but arrow removal can be a bit difficult, especially when the mats are new. Arrow lube solves this problem. The facing of the mat needs to be replaced every semester (every 10,000 - 15,000 shots, depending on how much of the mat you use and accurate you are). American Whitetail changed the design of this mat about a year ago. Used to have a core that was wound with strands of rubber, called a Veloci-core. This core was durable, but after around 15,000 shots, would start to disintegrate and leave little bit of rubber all over the ground. Our field managers hated us, and we had to pick up the field on our hands and knees after every practice. The new design uses a rolled high-density foam. We like the new design much better, because it doesn't disintegrate like the old one. We wind up replacing our cores about one a year (around 20,000 - 30,000 shots). Cores cost around $100, but can be shipped by regular post. Replacing the cores is a bit of a chore, but cheaper than getting a new mat. Once the core and face is replaced, the mat is almost like new. Overall life of the mat is 5-6 years with our usage.

Morrell M48. This is the same mat used for the WAF in Las Vegas. Big and heavy. 48"x48"x18", around 200 lbs. Large size and weight, and it's square shape, are actually desirable features in our case. The Morrell mats we can leave outside and be reasonable sure that no one will take them (even though we do run a security cable through it and tie it to the stand). We need to put away the American Whitetails and lock them up in a shed at the end of each practice. The Morrell needs to stay dry, otherwise the innards will settle and the mat will increase in weight dramatically as it soaks up water (possibly damaging the stands). We just throw a tarp of the Morrells at the end of each practice, and they seem to be OK. Arrow removal is very easy, no lube or arrow puller needed. The biggest fault of the Morrell M48 is a steel frame that is used inside to help keep its square shape. The steel frame is a 1" tube that is covered with foam that runs just inside the mat at its periphery. The foam is not sufficient to protect arrows that hit the frame. We probably lost several hundred dollars worth of arrows before we solve the problem by mounting 6" wide pieces of conveyor belting in front of the mat at the frame. The conveyor belting cost about $100 per mat. We've only had these mats for about 1.5 years, but they seem to be holding up so far. We blew through the front cover and foam face within 6 months. Then stuffing started to settle in the center, but we just stuck rags, bits of foam, and whatever else we could find in the center, and kept shooting, and this seems to work. The construction of the mat lends to rebuilding for around half its original cost, but not easily. We'll likely have to rebuild in another year. Not looking forward to that.


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## Mithril (Dec 4, 2010)

Most clubs in Canada use butts made from strips of Tentest. You gotta make sure it's not the kind with asphalt inside!


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## limbwalker (Sep 26, 2003)

Whitetails are pretty hard to beat. 152's like DK says. Replacement cores (when you finally need them) are reasonable. Shipping is per pallet from Lancasters. Same price for one or 6 bales, so it stands to reason that you get them in multiples of 5 or 6. Shipping is actually pretty reasonable if you do that. 

When I lived in S. Illinois, the Whitetail facility was only 3 hours away, so we just drove over there and picked them up in person when we needed some. Too darn convenient. 

The folks at American Whitetail have sponsored USAT for years and are big supporters of fita target archery. Good folks to get bales from.

Good luck.

John


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## BobCo19-65 (Sep 4, 2009)

I know that getting stuff to Canada is not always easy. What I would suggest doing is calling someone at Caledon Archers Club (near Toronto) and asking where they get their butts from. I have been at their club in the past and they have numerous butts.


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## slade (Feb 21, 2003)

Pacific Bow Butts http://www.pbbts.com/


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## Vittorio (Jul 17, 2003)

I'm using American Whitetail 152 butts in my club since 2007 for competitions and for training as well, for a total of 38 butts, and I can confirm comments on good quality and duration.
I have also 5 x 172 butts used mainly for outdoor training at 70 mt since 2007 and they are perfect for the purpose. 172 model is thicker and has a ball of elastic rubber thin threads ins the center that stops arrows even from compound after 4 years of use . 
Unfortunately, the Italian importer has stopped to import 152 model in Italy, importing now the 172 model only. I have purchased 15 new 172 butts for my triple fita tournament in September, but results have been quite tragic, as these new butts don't have the reinforced center same as before, and density of material of the winding is not enough to stop arrows. They simply started not stopping arrows even in center from the first end. We have been forced to change all the butts during the competition with more traditional straw butts or with the old 152 butts, and under an heavy rain it has not been an experience I will forget. These new 172 butts have been returned to importer and he has promised to replace them with new better ones now coming from US .. delivery to us by end of this month.
Comparing old 172 butts to those we have rejected, apart the absence of the inner rubber ball reinforcemnt replaced by some thick plasic material, the other big difference is that they are much lighter than the old ones, that means a softer-less dense material used to make them. 
Old 152 butts under rain and after being used for more than 10 competitions were stopping arrows properly, while new thicker 172 butts were NOT. 

Production problems can happen to any company, so I hope that new butts coming will ba of the same quality of the old ones and we will forget this story.
I will keep you informed about their quality when I will test them, but in the mean time, be careful about the quality of waht you get from manufaturer, at least for 172 model.


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## Serious Fun (May 12, 2003)

Just took delivery of 40 new Am Whitetail targets for use at the AAE AZ Cup. We have priced many World Archery compliant options over the past years and the AM Whitetail targets always come out on top.


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## pencarrow (Oct 3, 2003)

Ref. Vittorio's post.
Several months ago American Whitetail putout a bulletin stating that the material they used to make the VELOCICORE centers was no longer available. They were expermenting with other things. Have not heard anything else.

Fritz


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## Warbow (Apr 18, 2006)

pencarrow said:


> Ref. Vittorio's post.
> Several months ago American Whitetail putout a bulletin stating that the material they used to make the VELOCICORE centers was no longer available. They were expermenting with other things. Have not heard anything else.
> 
> Fritz


Here is their comment from earlier this year:


archerace7 said:


> Hi Steve,
> The reason we had to stop building Velocicores, is because the stranded rubber that we used moved entirely out of the US. We used to buy the off spec material at a much lower price, in order to make the cores at a reasonable price. Once the material was sent off shore, we could no longer purchase off spec material, and the cost of first run material was five times more expensive, as well as having to purchase a container load at a time. It became unfeasible. We purchased several tons of the material and were able to produce velocicores for about a year and half after this happened, but eventually we ran out.
> The upside is this, I started working on an alternative, first was the blob material, which I found was vastly inferior to the Velocicore, then I started working a Hybrid of foam and compression combined, This turned out to be the ticket, not only it is less expensive, arrows pull much easier, and it is repairable. We currently have a Pat. Pending on this technology, under which the Prodigy falls as well as the Cube Hybrid and our HybriMAT competition and range mats. At the time I hated it that we could not longer produce velocicores at a reasonable price,,,it would have tripled the cost of a target to use the material from over seas, but it turned out to be blessing in disguise as the new hybrid design is far superior to any target we have ever tested, and we have tested them all. The only down side, is the design cannot be used with broadheads, but if you are shooting target points, and if you are a avid archer who shoots on a daily basis...you will not find a finer archery target.


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## cc46 (Jan 22, 2005)

Hi Sheila, 
A few thoughts...Archers of Caledon uses a number of "whitetail" type targets but there are many combos of cores and outer frames for outdoors. Peel uses nearly the same. Gary Gillies has several Whitetails he got from the US years ago that are in various stages of use with replacement cores for the Spring Classic. 
For indoors Caledon, York County Bowmen and Colby/Bow Shop use Ethafoam face sheets with a stacked bag wall filled with old clothing. 
I personally bought a 48 inch foam target from Saugeen Shafts in Peterborough, Bill Embery told me it was a locally made target with a core and foam wraped around it and then faced with a thin layer of foam front and back. I've used it for 4 summers and 15,000+ shots and now it needs repair. 
I think the Bow Shop/Colby in Waterloo or Saugeen Shafts in Peterborogh are a good place to start to look.
Good Luck


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## Vittorio (Jul 17, 2003)

I understand now that that original 172 matts were with velocicore (rubber threads balls) inner center, but now these are no more available. Importer did not inform us about the change, and anyhow the new matts we received and used during our competition in September were of very poor quality not in the center, only, but also one the outside windings. One week ago I have "selected" 4 out of 15 that were much heavier than the others (probably meaning much tighter winding), and now I have one of them in our indoor range for duration testing. This one stops indoor fat arrows from compound quite well, as well as my son's Nano Pro's with tungsten points, but the center area leaves arrows dirt of plastic fused material, similar to the effect we got in the past form Ehafoam matts when they were quite old. Totally unacceptable. 
As told, we are waiting for a new delivery by the end of this month that has been promised to be of superior quality. I will post about it when recieved. 
Herebelow some examples of what happened during our competition with brand new matts.


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## Bean Burrito (Apr 20, 2011)

We just made ours...sheets of corrugated cardboard, drilled through and bolted together with 2 strips of wood. They will Take a pretty high weight recurve bow if made thickly but at closer ranges with good archers and thin arrows the middle can end up shot out.

An option if you can DIY is to make a target with a shrink wrap plastic stuffing... My personal one has lasted ages with no sign of failing any time soon.


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## stuschu (Apr 20, 2011)

Not sure if you are still looking, we use Pacific Bow Butts. Awesome quality at a pretty good price!
Check out their website:
www.pbbts.com


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## Serious Fun (May 12, 2003)

Target matt
http://www.archerytargets.com/fitamat2.aspx

Target stand
http://texasarchery.org/Documents/ScottStand/ScottStand.pdf


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## canton coach (Apr 26, 2008)

*American Whitetail Mats*

We purchased 48 of the new style AR 152 mats this past May from Whitetail and have had very good luck with the new mats. As you can see in the photos they stop compound arrows very well. All arrows in photos were shot with adult compound equipment. Down side is unless arrow is lubed they are very hard to pull out of the mats.


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## cc46 (Jan 22, 2005)

Re reading this today, one more thought....

to prevent pass throughs, 
Someone who worked at a company that serviced transport trucks and supplied them with new mud flaps with advertising logos on them had a supply of used mud flaps once the new ones were installed. They then hung the old mud flap on the back of a whitetails to stop arrows in a weak spot. It works well and a quick fix during an event.


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## m013690 (Sep 3, 2011)

Bean Burrito said:


> We just made ours...sheets of corrugated cardboard, drilled through and bolted together with 2 strips of wood. They will Take a pretty high weight recurve bow if made thickly but at closer ranges with good archers and thin arrows the middle can end up shot out.
> 
> An option if you can DIY is to make a target with a shrink wrap plastic stuffing... My personal one has lasted ages with no sign of failing any time soon.


Bean,

I wonder if you notice any adverse effects on carbon arrows with that type of target butt? I have the same thing here at home, based on the recommendation of my coach at the shop. It stops the arrows great, but I notice every now and then one of them will get really stuck in there so I need an arrow puller to get it out, and then I find small pieces of the cardboard stuck to the shaft, almost as thought the cardboard fibers became embedded with the carbon fibers at a very fine scale. I can generally scrape them off with a fingernail, or sometimes very gently with a blunt blade and an alcohol pad. Thought I'd toss that out there though, see if anyone has thoughts on it. It's not deterring me, though.

If anyone's thinking of making this sort of target, it's dirt cheap (about $20 for the wood end pieces and threaded rods). Just a few hours of dumpster diving for large boxes to cut u. Nice thing is, as you wear out sections of the butt, you can release the compression, remove the cardboard and rearrange the pieces to spread around the beaten down ones, cram in a few more layers and recompress. No pass throughs yet, and I've been pounding on this thing for quite a while now.


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## XCalibre (Aug 31, 2006)

at our club in Edmonton we use Bulldog targets, made in Winnipeg. from regular club use we have to flip them around or replace the thick cardboard face (both sides) every 8 months or so. but the stuffing has not deteriorated in the least in the over two years we've had them. we have the K9 model, which is fantastic for indoor club use. 

http://www.bulldogtargets.ca/


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## bigHUN (Feb 5, 2006)

anything new materials on the market worth to try?
I am interested for FITA and Field targets


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## LoveMyHoyt (Nov 29, 2008)

American Whitetail is a very good company to work with. Last year our club ordered a few new targets and they called me the day we were supposed to have them delivered. Well, there was a mix up on their end - and they overnighted them to us so we could have them for our shoot. They didn't have the ones we ordered in stock so they sent us others - with no shipping charge, discount on future orders -- they have been great. 
The last bunch of replacement cores we got from them, they are also replacing for us. We had just the opposite problem -- the arrows were nearly IMPOSSIBLE to pull out. One guy left after breaking an arrow trying to pull it out and several others just left after finishing the first distance. After shooting them several times - they are still nearly impossible to pull out. There is such a thing as too much of a good thing LOL!


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## DruFire (Jan 10, 2013)

I have a core from one of the whitetail targets that I use for 30-50 meter target.

It was well used before I got it,so it's an older model not sure if its the same as what's made today. the 10 ring was shot out and I repacked it. 

It is a beast at stopping arrows. Then pulling them out?!?! Good luck.. Arrow lube and a puller is a must.


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## kshet26 (Dec 20, 2010)

This thread has information on the Danage Domino targets which have been in use at major competitions recently. From the reviews, it looks to be equal or better than whitetails.


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