Duncan Busby picks his top precision items to take your game to highest levels this summer.
Over the last few outdoor seasons compound scores have been getting higher and higher with ever tighter margins between archers; even a single point can mean the difference between a win or going out in the first round. While this level of performance is largely down to the skill and dedication of the competitors, even the best in the world will struggle to perform with poorly set and inaccurate equipment. Now more than ever it’s vital that your bow is set up correctly in order to squeeze out every possible point; luckily there is a wealth of kit and technology available to help you drive your scores to the maximum.
Last Chance Vane Master Pro Fletching Jig
Fletching arrows can become a bit of a chore at the best of times – so why not invest in a jig that takes away all the frustration and hard work?
The Vane Master PRO is an innovative tool that can accommodate every arrow size with little to no adjustment. It allows you to fletch your arrows at a 0-5º helical, left or right, using up to 4” length vanes.
This jig can fletch in 3 or 4 vane configurations using Vane Flat Technology, which uses two wires to hold the vane, allowing the clamp to contour neatly around the shaft for perfect adhesion. The VMP is made from lightweight aluminium and comes in a handy carry case making it the perfect travel tool for repairing or even totally re-fletching your arrows wherever you are.
Price: £400 ($350) www.lastchancearchery.com
Image – lastchancearchery.com
Hamskea Gen2Pro Third Axis
A third axis levelling device should be considered an essential piece of kit by any compound archer; if your sight isn’t level how can you expect to shoot consistently? So if you want to invest in the best sight leveller out there, look no further than Hamskea Gen2Pro. It mounts easily to any sight and offers a distinct advantage over static sight-levelling systems. The compact sliding design is the only sight leveller to factor in any natural bow torque thanks to its patented 3rd axis alignment bar. Its lightweight aluminium construction is durable and accurate, allowing you to level all three axes at full draw. The Gen2Pro also features a handy turret level and string groove for squaring your bow in a vice, while its wider adjustable jaws are designed to fit almost any sight available – a quality tool for archers who demand the best out of their equipment.
Price: £74.99 ($79.99) www.hamskeaarchery.com
Coops Bowsmith Portable Drawboard
Have you ever wondered why your arrows don’t hit the same place every time no matter what you do? A well-tuned bow is an accurate bow, and it will help you to squeeze out every ounce of efficiency and forgiveness from your set-up.
Coops Bowsmith manufacture a range of workshop equipment designed to make tuning your compound bow a breeze; this handy portable draw board allows you to measure and adjust your cam timing, draw length, cam lean, holding weight and your peep rotation, all while out on the range.
Designed to collapse down to fit inside its own handy carry case, this portable drawboard is easily converted to suit left and right-handed bows and is the ideal tool for serious compound archers on the go.
Price: $375 www.coopsbowsmith.com
Last Chance HS4 Handheld Bow Scale
Learning your bow stats will help you become a more accurate archer;draw weight, holding weight and your let-off are all vital measurements when precision is on the line. Luckily Last Chance Archery are here to help when it comes to all things weight-related with their newly designed HS4 Bow Scale. Building upon their extensive archery knowledge, LCA have always strived to make every one of their scales superior to the last, with more features, higher quality and a safer build. The HS4 is the best yet, with a max weight rating of 110lbs, an aluminium outer shell, peak/hold weight functions, and a newly added let-off % readout. These scales display your bow’s weight clearly and accurately on an LCD screen and also feature an internal scale for weighing luggage, fish and even turkeys! What more could you want?
Price: £109 ($99) www.lastchancearchery.com
Archers Advantage
In the world of competitive archery, small details are important; arrow charts and guesstimates no longer cut it. Today’s serious archers rely on technology to achieve their best results and there is no better software out there than Archers Advantage.
Amongst other features this program can be used for shaft selection for all major arrow manufacturers, cut charts with unmatched uphill/ downhill accuracy, to print accurate sight tapes, calculate arrow trajectory, as a spine converter, and even to print simulated and scaled target faces.
The program is handy to use on a mobile device out in the field and you can create as many set-ups as you like. Archers Advantage is extremely accurate and simple to use giving you perfect marks every time. There’s a reason why it’s trusted by some of the world’s best archers.
Subscription Price: $15 per year www.archersadvantage.com
Axcel Achieve XP Pro
The Axcel Achieve has long been the sight of choice for serious tournament archers around the world; the build quality and level of adjustment of these sights has ensured that the Achieve has appeared on countless podiums over the years. For 2024 Axcel decided to raise the bar even higher and release the new Achieve XP Pro; built to be even lighter than before, the XP Pro features a slimmed down elevation rail and new Diamond weave UHM extension bar which cancels twists and vibrations by 50%. The new XP Pro also features dual Single Screw Balanced Tension Adjustments allowing you to tighten both the elevation and windage adjustments to eliminate any unwanted movement. The addition of Superior Vibration Dampening technology also protects the sight’s guide surfaces from dents or scratches and helps the XP Pro retain a like-new feeling for the duration of its life.
Alongside the usual industry-leading technology found on their previous Achieve models, Axcel have also incorporated a micro-adjust 1st axis adjustment and bigger lockable knurled adjustment knobs – precision and accuracy at its best!
Price: £530 ($560) www.truball.com
ACU Archery S.O.S. Kit
Do you ever feel that you’re forever fighting to hold your bow steady over the target? Do you spend countless hours adjusting your stabilisers to improve your aim? Well now you don’t have to; ACU Archery have designed the next advance in bow stabilisation with their S.O.S (Stability Optimisation System) kit. Built with the same technology used to balance skyscrapers, power lines and camera gimbals, the ACU S.O.S is a mass-tuned damper which attaches to your bow or stabilisers and is designed to remove unwanted movement from your sight picture.
It consists of a block of adjustable weights suspended by four stiff wires which allow the weights to move independently to the rest of your bow. The stiffness of these wires can be adjusted to suit your stabilisation preferences and individual aiming pattern and the S.O.S device can be mounted almost anywhere on your bow, allowing you to truly customise your shot – the future of aiming is here!
Price: $275 (€357) www.acuarchery.com
T.R.U. Ball Aileron HBC Flex Release
A release aid is a personal thing, and you’ve got to find the right one for you. Often what suits one archer doesn’t suit another – until now.
TRU Ball’s newest release aid is their most adjustable and customisable yet. The Aileron HBC Flex is the latest addition to their signature series and is fitted with four adjustable finger beds which work in a similar way to the flaps on aeroplane wings. It allows you to make adjustments in a way never seen before to the release’s 2nd axis; the Aileron technology adjusts the way the release sits in your hand, ensuring it’s always square to the target whatever your size. This helps to eliminate any unnecessary torque and gives you even more accurate results – the Aileron HBC Flex really is the most ergonomic release aid ever!
Price: £274.99 ($319.99) www.truball.com
Leupold RX-Fulldraw 5 Rangefinder
Whether you’re getting sight marks on the range or competing on a tough field course it’s essential to know the exact distance you’re shooting and there’s no more accurate way than using a range finder. Leupold optics are renowned for their ruggedness, absolute waterproof integrity and optical quality, as a result they are trusted and respected by the archery community.
The RX-Fulldraw 5 is built with the competitive archer in mind and is the most ballistically advanced archery rangefinder on the market. Input your arrow speed, peep height and arrow weight and it will use Archer’s Advantage software to calculate laser-accurate ranges based on your specific set up, whatever angle or distance you’re shooting at.
The Fulldraw 5 also has an indicator of your arrow’s flight path within the display, so if you’re shooting round the woods, it will tell you if your arrow will hit an overhanging branch before you come to full draw. Leupold’S RX Fulldraw 5 takes the guesswork out of any target no matter how extreme – you won’t find a better rangefinder anywhere.
Price: $499.99 www.leupold.com
Feather Vision Vitrum Duplus Doublet Lens
The Vitrum Duplusis the newest and most advanced lens in the Feather Vision line of lenses. Working with some of the best optical engineers on the planet, Feather Vision spent over two years with one primary set of criteria; the Vitrum Duplus must outperform all other options available on the market…. and it does just that.
The new Vitrum Duplus is a Doubletstyle lens, utilising 2 different materials fused together. The materials complement each other by helping to reduce the chromatic dispersion and spherical aberration. In other words, they prevent the different colour bands from dispersing, giving the archer a more precise focal point which creates a crisper target.
Archers will see a crisper image, with a more advanced colour separation and improved light gathering beyond any lens ever seen on the archery market; this provides a big advantage in low light situations.
The new Vitrum Duplus has a custom made anti-reflective coating that was specifically designed for archery, and a superior hydrophobic and oleophobic layer helping your lens stay smudge free. Find out for yourself why Feather Vision is and always will be the leader in optics in the archery industry.
Price: $274.99 www.feathervision.com
