ARCHERY TERMINOLOGY
Adapter - An arrow part that allows screw-in points on wooden shafts or glue-on points for aluminum shafts.
Anchor Point - The reference point to which a person pulls the bow string before releasing. This point should be the same for each shot and may be the side of the mouth, ear lobe or other reference point.
Armguard - Material attached to the forearm that holds the bow to protect it from a string burn or keeps the sleeve from catching on the string.
Arrow shaft - The main body of the arrow before the nock, fletching or point is installed. It can be made from several materials, including wood, aluminum, carbon and composites.
Arrow shelf – The area of the bow above the handle or grip where the arrow sits.
Arrow straighter - A tool used to straighten arrow shafts that are only slightly bent.
ASA - Archery Shooters Association
Back of Bow - The side farthest away from you when holding the bow in a shooting position.
Banana - Large feather fletching, also called the magnum shape.
Bare shaft - An arrow shaft without fletching, nocks, inserts, points, paint or cresting.
Blind - A concealment for a hunter.
Blunts - Arrow points that have flat ends, which are made from steel, aluminum, rubber or brass. They are used for small game and practice.
Bow Belly - The side closest to you when holding the bow in shooting position.
Bow square - Tool that is T-shaped, used to determine where to place string nock, measure brace height and tiller.
Bow string - Several strands of material twisted together to form a strong string used to launch an arrow.
Bow stringer - An aid that helps to prevent limb twist and tip damage while installing the bow string.
Boyer - A person that makes bows.
Brace height - The distance from the string to the deepest part of the handle or grip. This distance can be changed by twisting the string tighter to increase the height and untwisting it to decrease the height.
Brush blind - A concealment for the hunter made from native vegetation and constructed so that maximum concealment and minimum detection is achieved. See our page on this method.
Burner or feather burner - An electrical tool that uses a hot wire to shape a feather fletch to a custom shape.
Cable guard - The rod on compound bows which keeps the cables away from the center of the bow so the arrow can pass by without hitting the cables.
Cam - The wheel or pulley on the end of compound bow's limb used to provide let- off and power. They may be round or elliptical shape.
Center shot - A bow with a sight window that is inset to the centerline that runs along the bow from end to end inline with the string. This lessens the bending of the arrow when released.
Clicker - A gadget attached to the back of the bow which clicks when you are at your desired anchor point.
Cock feather - The odd colored or marked feather (vane).
Compound bow - A bow with one or two cams that provide let-off and power.
Crest - Bands of color used as decoration or for identification on an arrow near the fletched end.
Cresting brush - A brush used to apply cresting colors to arrow shaft.
Cresting machine - A device that spins the arrow shaft so that cresting colors can be applied.
Crossbow - A small, strong bow, held and shot like a rifle. The stronger one's have a lever to help cock it.
Crossbow Bolt - The shaft or arrow fired from a crossbow.
Crown dip - A color applied to the nock end of an arrow shaft for about 12 inches by dipping to which the cresting is applied.
Dacron - A type material used to make bowstrings.
Die cut feather - A feather that has been cut to a particular shape.
Draw length - The distance a person draws a bow, measured from the bottom of the arrow nock to the back of a bow when in shooting position.
Draw weight - Amount of pull weight measured in pounds that it takes to pull a bow string a certain distance.
Fast flight - A lightweight material that has little stretch and is used to make bowstrings for the newer bows. The bow MUST be rated for this material before using it.
Feather splice - Making one fletch out of 2 or more different colors by cutting sections and gluing them together.
Field points - Points that are round (no blades) with a sharp point, usually used for practice.
Finger pinch - Having your finger pinched against the nock by the bow string when pulling the string back.
Fistmele - The brace height.
Fixed blades - An arrow point (broad head) with two or more wide blades, usually used for hunting.
Flemish string - A twisted string that consists of two separate bundles of string hand twisted together.
Fletching - The feathers or vanes used to stabilize an arrow in flight.
Fletching clamp - The clamp that the fletching is placed into before being attached to a fletching jig.
Fletching jig - A tool used to hold the fletching clamp(s) which apply fletching to arrow shaft.
Flipper rest - An elevated rest attached to the bow sight window. Looks like a tab or finger.
Flu flu - An arrow with large bushy feathers to limit the flight distance and used to shoot airborne targets or targets in trees.
Full length feather - A long uncut feather that can be cut or burned to a particular shape.
Hen feathers - The feathers of the same color on an arrow.
IBO - International Bow hunting Organization.
Insert - An arrow part that accepts the screw in point or the nock.
Judo point - A blunt point but with spring arms which grab and keep the arrow from skipping. When shooting in grass, the arrow usually tips up making them easier to find.
Kisser button - A button placed on a bow string to hold your anchor point consistently in the same position.
Laminations - Thin strips of material that run the length of a laminated bow. Can be found both the limb and riser section.
Let-Off - The percent that a bows holding weight is reduced from its pulling weight when the cams are in the valley.
Limb - The ends of the bow that bend when the string is pulled back.
Longbow - An archery bow with no cams and when strung, the string only touches at the ends of the limbs.
Loop - A string in a U shape tied on the bow string around the nock point that a release aid is attached to when shooting.
Mechanical blades - An arrow point (broad head) with two or more blades usually used for hunting, that open on impact.
Nock on arrow - Arrow part glued or snapped into the back of an arrow shaft that the bow string fits into. On early or very traditional arrows, the nock is cut into the shaft itself.
Nock on bow string - A mark put on bow string to mark the nocking point of the arrow. Sometimes a simple knot in a string is used, sometimes the point is marked with a brass clip with a rubber insert to protect the string. A loop of string or a loop of metal may be used with a release aid for the string nock.
Nocking pliers - Special pliers used to install or remove brass string nocks.
Nocking point - The spot on bow string where the arrow nock is placed to be shot.
Parabolic fletch - A feather or vane that has a round back shape.
Peep sight - The rear sight of a bow. A piece of metal, plastic, or rubber with a hole in it placed in the string, that allows the shooter to look through the string.
Quiver - A piece of archery equipment that holds arrows. It may be attached to the bow, placed on a belt, or carried on your shoulder or back.
Recurve bow - A bow that has no cams or other method to lessen the amount of force to pull back the string. When strung, the string contacts the bow limbs a short distance from the limb tips.
Release - Letting go of the string to shoot an arrow.
Release aid - Some type of tool that is used to pull the bow string and provide a better release by a trigger of some type.
Riser - The middle part of a bow that has the grip, shelf, sight window and other parts. This part of the bow does not bend when pulling the string.
Safety harness - A belt or harness to keep the hunter from falling from and elevated stand or blind.
Self bow - A simple wooden bow in long bow or recurve style.
Serving - String material applied to the bow string to in the nock area to make the string last longer and used also to make a loop in the string ends. Serving is also used to keep the peep site from moving on the string.
Serving jig - A tool used to apply serving string to bowstrings and cables.
Shield cut fletch - A feather or vane having a concave shape in the rear.
Shooting glove - A three-fingered leather glove used to protect the fingers while shooting bows.
Sight window - The area of the bow above the grip and arrow shelf where you would mount a site or as with a long bow, you see your target.
Spin tester - A tool that checks the straightness of an arrow or trueness of the broadhead.
Spine - A term that describes the stiffness of an arrow shaft and tells the shooter if the shaft is strong enough to be shot in a bow of known poundage. Too light of a spine can cause accidents when the shaft breaks.
Spine tester - A special tool used to determine the spine of a shaft. We recommend the one by archers-friend found on another page on this site.
Spine weight - A rating of an arrow shaft usually in pounds of pull weight of the bow so that the archer knows if the shaft is safe to shoot in a bow.
Stabilizer - A weight rod of various lengths and weights that is attached to a bow to reduce vibrations and supposedly give better control of grouping of shots.
Stand - A platform large or small, covered or not, usually above the ground from which to hunt.
String grove - The notches at the end of the bow limbs where the bow string is placed.
Tab - A small piece of material placed between fingers and string to protect the fingers while shooting a bow.
Take-down bow - A long bow or recurve that can be taken apart for transportation usually in 2 or 3 pieces.
Taper Tool - A tool used to place a taper on wooden shafts for the nock and point.
Tiller - The distance from the string perpendicular to each limb. On a compound, loosing or tightening the adjusting bolts to will get the distance equal. On a long bow or recurve, material must be removed from the bow to give the needed distance. We hope that this has helped in some way to advance your knowledge of archery and bow hunting. As time and resources permit, we will be adding more information for you.