Find Your Perfect Bow
Answer a few short questions about your draw, your release and what you want to shoot. The bow finder puts up three bows worth your time, with the draw weight we would start you on.
Find your bow
A few quick questions and we will put up three bows worth your time, with the draw weight we would start you on. Skip anything you have no view on.
What actually decides whether a bow fits you
Three things do most of the work. Get them right and almost anything in the range will shoot well for you. Get them wrong and the best looking bow on the wall ends up in a cupboard.
Your draw length
How far back you actually pull at full draw. It decides which bows stay smooth rather than stacking on you, and it sets the arrow length you order. Every bow shoots happily below its rated maximum, so a shorter draw is headroom rather than a problem.
Your draw weight
The poundage you pull at your own draw length, not at the 28 inches most bows are rated to. Most people are better off starting lighter than they expect, because form comes first and poundage follows. A bow you can hold steady is a bow you keep shooting.
Thumb ring or three fingers
The biggest fork in traditional archery. A thumb draw is what the short asiatic bows were built around and it sits the arrow on the opposite side of the riser. A three finger Mediterranean release is what most Australian club archers already know.
The finder also asks what you will actually do with the bow, because length matters as much as culture. A 118cm Vav puta bow and a 139cm Queyue are both Turkish, but one is built to be handy from the saddle and the other to be smooth at a long draw. Every bow in the range is measured rather than guessed at from its name.
Not sure of your draw length? Work it out in a minute
You do not need a bow or a range for this. Stand with your arms out to the sides and have someone measure fingertip to fingertip. Convert that to inches and divide by 2.5. Draw length is quoted in inches everywhere in archery, including here, so it is worth getting used to the number.
If you would rather not measure at all, the finder will estimate from your height and put you in the right band. Either way it advises, it never blocks. A bow whose maximum draw sits under your measurement is still shown to you, with the figure spelled out, so the call stays yours.
Recurves are the one case to take seriously. Pulling a recurve past its limit is how limbs get damaged, so the finder flags that clearly instead of burying it in the fine print.
What that number tells you
- The arrow length to order, so you are not cutting shafts twice
- Which bows stay smooth to the end of your draw instead of stacking
- Your real draw weight, since poundage climbs the further you pull
- Whether a short bow will pinch your fingers on a three finger release
Or browse by tradition
Already know what you are after? Go straight to it.
Turkish and Tatar
Ottoman puta and flight bows, from laminated starters through to hand-gilded pieces, plus the Crimean Tatar forms that grew out of the same tradition. The deepest part of our range.
Steppe and horseback
Mongol and Hunnic bows built short and quick so they clear a horse’s neck, along with everything else in the range that handles well mounted.
Chinese, Korean and Near Eastern
Long siyah Han, Ming and Yuan composites that draw long and smooth, the Korean gakgung, and the angular Assyrian form.
Common questions about choosing a bow
How does the bow finder work?
It scores every bow we stock against your answers and shows the three that fit best, with a percentage and the reasoning behind each one. You get the results on the spot. Emailing them to yourself is optional, and nothing is held back until you do.
What if I do not know my draw length?
Skip the measurement and the finder estimates it from your height and arm span. You can skip the style and bow length questions too. Anything you skip drops out of the scoring rather than counting against a bow, so a shorter quiz still gives you an honest result instead of a padded one.
What draw weight should I start on?
Lighter than most people expect. Adult beginners are generally well served somewhere in the 20 to 30 lb range measured at their own draw length, and children a good deal lighter again. Heavier bows punish poor form and get shot less. The finder works out a starting figure from your build and experience, then leans towards bows you can actually get at that weight.
Thumb ring or three fingers, which should I pick?
If you have shot at an Australian club you almost certainly used three fingers, and there is no reason to change unless you want to. A thumb draw is what the short asiatic bows were designed around, and it is worth learning if that style is what drew you to them in the first place. The finder treats this as a real fork rather than a preference, because it genuinely changes which bows suit you.
Are the bows it recommends actually in stock?
In stock and backorder bows are shown by default, with backorder clearly marked so you know a wait is involved. Sold out bows stay hidden unless you switch them on, so you are not shortlisted something you cannot buy today.
What else do I need besides the bow?
Arrows matched to your draw length and the bow’s poundage, and something to protect your hand: a thumb ring for a thumb draw, or a tab or glove for three fingers. The finder lists the essentials for your release style alongside the results. Browse traditional arrows and accessories when you are ready.
Still weighing it up?
Run the finder again with different answers and see what changes, or just ask us. We shoot these bows ourselves and we would far rather you bought the right one the first time.