About five years ago, I saved up several business expense compensation checks and paid what felt like an ungodly amount of money for a high-speed crossbow. Let’s just say it was enough money that I made sure my lovely spouse didn’t have to see it come out of our regular finances. I mean, she already reminds me that the venison I bring home likely costs several hundred dollars per pound.
As someone who used to get a new compound bow to test and write about every year, I was way more excited than I should have been to shoot something new. But I rushed outside to sight in the new crossbow immediately when it arrived.
I set up my foam block-style target, moved back 20 yards and fired. I don’t know if that arrow has landed yet. So I got closer.
The next two arrows smashed into the target so hard they completely disappeared. I pulled them the rest of the way through from the back, completely ruining the fletchings, and made some adjustments to the scope.
Now able to move back farther, the arrows no longer completely vanished into the target, but they buried so deep it took many minutes of sweaty effort to get them out—and not undamaged, by the way. Even moving back to 40 and 50 yards, arrow pulling was a major project.
Probably based on that experience, I never felt comfortable with that crossbow. I sold it and last year purchased one with a little less punch from the same company. The problem wasn’t really with the bow, after all. It was doing what it was built to do. The problem was that I hadn’t paired the bow with the right high-speed crossbow target.
If you’re struggling with a similar problem, read on. What follows are a few tips from my personal experience, as well as some advice from two target manufacturers who speak with their customers about these very issues every day.
Why High-Speed Crossbows Need the Right Target
As 3D archers know, even compound bows can bury arrows these days, making them especially difficult to remove from newer targets. If you’re shooting a crossbow in the 450 fps to 500 fps range, forget about it. The one I purchased most recently is rated for about 425 fps, and I still struggle with foam targets.
The good news is I’m now able to shoot my bows, both compound and crossbow, at anything from 20 yards to 60 and beyond without any of these troubles.
The bad news is that’s mainly because I purchased a new target designed to stop high-speed arrows while still allowing easy arrow removal. There are more models available now than when I bought my first one, and they’re much easier to find. I conducted several hours of online searching before I found one, and I was very nervous about sending the money to a company I had never heard of.
That’s not really an issue today, and a specialized high-speed target remains the most reliable solution I’ve found for shooting a 450- to 500-fps crossbow at shorter distances without fighting to get your arrows back.
Why Specialized High-Speed Targets Are Different
If you shoot a bow, you’re already familiar with foam targets, so I’m not going to waste your time explaining their characteristics. I will remind you that not all foams are created equal, and you usually get what you pay for.
Specialized high-speed targets are different. Instead of foam, they use tightly compressed materials more like those found in traditional bag targets. Their cover materials generally aren’t designed to be cut, which is why many of these targets aren’t designed for broadheads. But they still offer respectable shooting life since the internal fibers often move around field points rather than being cut.
Dan Schultz, director of sales and marketing for Rinehart Targets, said the material inside the company’s Speed Unlimited target is extremely compressed, which accounts for the target’s slightly rounded faces. Rinehart also uses a Spylar mesh shooting face designed to withstand repeated impacts from high-speed arrows.
Similar to traditional bag targets, arrow pulling is super-easy. Unlike regular bags, though, specialized models can stop arrows from crossbows shooting 500-plus fps. And because they use highly compressed materials inside a rigid structure, some come in square frames and shapes that look more like block-style foam targets.
In a real sense, they combine characteristics of bag and block targets.
Which Crossbow Target Is Best?
Nobody who has just shelled out several thousand dollars for a high-end crossbow wants to spend a few hundred dollars more for a special target, but that is a real possibility with bows rated at 450+ fps.
You can pick up a Rinehart Speed Unlimited target for about $220. The company’s RhinoBlock XL block-style foam target, which is of similar size, runs about $300. SEVR’s foam 21-inch HD Archery Target has an MSRP of $289.
The two foam targets I just mentioned are high-end models that will absolutely stop high-speed bows and crossbows, with the caveat that short-distance shooting can require substantial effort for arrow removal, especially when the targets are new.
Spylar mesh targets like the Speed Unlimited offer super-easy arrow removal at any distance.
Because each target type has its strengths, there isn’t one best choice for every archer.
For most compound-bow shooters, a quality foam target remains an excellent all-around option, particularly if you want to practice with both field points and broadheads.
Foam targets also tend to be lighter and easier to move, which can matter if you frequently carry your target to different shooting locations.
The calculation changes with today’s fastest crossbows. If you’re primarily shooting field points from a bow pushing 450 to 500 fps, easy arrow removal becomes a much bigger consideration, and that’s where specialized high-speed targets really shine.
In other words, the question isn’t necessarily which target is better. It’s what you shoot, how fast you shoot it and whether you need broadhead capability.
Foam vs. High-Speed Bag-Style Targets
Foam Targets
- Broadheads: Usually compatible, depending on the model
- Arrow removal: Can be difficult with fast bows, especially at close range
- Best for: Compound shooters and anyone wanting one target for both field points and broadheads
- Portability: Generally lighter and easier to move
- Biggest advantage: Versatility
- Biggest drawback: Arrow extraction with high-speed bows
Specialized High-Speed Bag-Style Targets
- Broadheads: Generally not compatible
- Arrow removal: Extremely easy, even with fast crossbows
- Best for: Fast crossbows, field-point practice and close-range sight-in work where easy arrow removal is a priority
- Portability: Heavier; less convenient if you frequently move or transport your target
- Biggest advantage: Easy arrow removal
- Biggest drawback: Limited or no broadhead use
Foam Targets Still Work
For most compound shooters, difficult arrow removal isn’t enough of a problem to outweigh the versatility of a quality foam target. And even with a high-speed crossbow, choosing foam doesn’t mean you have to resign yourself to wrestling arrows out after every shot.
There are several things you can do to make arrow removal easier, the simplest of which is increasing your shooting distance when you can.
“I wish there was a magic solution, but the most effective thing you can do is move back and shoot from farther distance,” Schultz said. “Especially with a crossbow, you don’t need to be shooting at 20 yards. Move back to 40 yards, and the arrows will be much easier to remove.”
If bowhunters ever wanted a touch-it, feel-it example of what happens as arrows lose velocity downrange, that scenario is it: Shoot at 20 yards and you may fight to pull your arrow; shoot at 40 and it can be substantially easier.
Gary Cornum, marketing director for broadhead and target manufacturer SEVR, said impact velocity is one of the primary factors affecting how difficult an arrow is to remove from a target. Arrow weight, surprisingly, is not nearly as important.
Obviously, moving back isn’t much help when you’re initially sighting in a bow. But once you’re dialed in, practicing at longer distances can make life easier on both you and your target.
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Arrow Lube Really Does Help
Of course, there are times when you simply have to shoot from short distances, namely during the sight-in process.
One of the easiest ways to reduce extraction effort is to apply an arrow-lube product prior to each shot. Easton, Bohning and AAE are just a few companies that produce such products. Some come with a tube you simply dip the arrow into, while others use an applicator.
“Arrow lubricants can significantly reduce friction and make arrows easier to remove, particularly from high-density foam targets,” Cornum said. “They can also reduce wear on the target by minimizing drag during extraction. A light application is typically all that’s needed.”
Cornum recommends using arrow lube for foam targets at all times, and not just during the sight-in process.
“Shooting your bow should be a pleasant experience, so why not remove the frustration of difficult arrow pulls?” he said.
I tested Dr. Doug’s Full Synthetic Arrow Lube and found it noticeably reduced the effort required to pull arrows. I don’t have any kind of tool for measuring the pound-force difference for pulling a treated arrow versus an untreated arrow, but it’s a noticeable improvement.
Being a scent-conscious bowhunter, I won’t apply arrow lube to my hunting arrows, but I agree with Cornum that arrow lube makes a lot of sense for foam targets.
Why High-Speed Targets Shine at Close Range
Sighting-in is when the specialized high-speed targets really shine, however. Even at 15 yards, I can pull my arrows with one hand. I asked my wife to pull arrows shot from 20 yards just last weekend just to prove the point. She weighs about 120 pounds, but don’t tell her I told y’all that. Anyway, she had no trouble pulling the arrows with one hand and without a pulling aid.
Conversely, I shot into two different brand-new high-density foam targets at the same distance and struggled mightily to pull them. Using different types of arrow-pulling aids, I still had to put the targets on their backs, put my foot on the target, grip the arrow with both hands and pull like hell.
That kind of struggle doesn’t encourage you to shoot again, and I’m sure there are many bowhunters who cut their sight-in sessions short and settle for “good enough.” Which it isn’t.
Why Arrows Stick in Foam Targets
So why the big difference between high-density foam and specialized high-speed targets?
The biggest factor is friction. Foam targets grip the entire surface of the arrow, while the compressed materials inside bag-style targets don’t grip the arrow shaft nearly as much.
Schultz explained that arrows launched from today’s bows can create so much friction heat upon entering a foam target that the shaft can essentially fuse to the foam. Lube products help reduce that effect in addition to making the shaft easier to extract.
Cornum said several variables influence arrow removal, with shaft material, shaft diameter, target construction and impact velocity generally mattering more than overall arrow weight.
Another option is to use an aluminum arrow for sighting-in, even if you hunt with carbon arrows. Aluminum arrows can pull substantially easier from foam.
“Aluminum arrows generally pull much more easily than carbon arrows,” he said. “The smooth metallic surface of aluminum creates less friction against the foam, while carbon shafts tend to grip the target more. That difference becomes even more noticeable with today’s high-performance bows, which drive arrows deeper into dense target materials. Regardless of material, keeping arrow shafts clean and free of dirt, adhesive residue or damage will also make arrow removal easier.”
A vast majority of bowhunters will be using carbon arrows, but an aluminum arrow can be useful for the initial sight-in process on a crossbow if your crossbow manufacturer allows it and the arrow meets all of the manufacturer’s specifications for weight, length, diameter, nock design and other requirements.
Cornum noted that arrow weight itself is not a big factor in determining how easily an arrow pulls from foam. A similar-weight aluminum arrow should simply get you closer to the point of impact of your carbon hunting arrow.
Target Wear
A third consideration is target wear. One of my biggest mistakes was trying to use a brand-new foam target at 15 yards to sight in. On the flip side, if your target is too shot up you’ll blow right through it, so there has to be a balance.
Should You Break In a Foam Target With Broadheads?
This is one area where target manufacturers don’t offer identical advice.
For Rinehart foam targets designed to handle broadheads, Dan Schultz recommends breaking in a new target with several broadhead shots.
“A broadhead has more surface area to slow down your arrow, plus it loosens up the target a bit,” he said. “I wouldn’t recommend using a broadhead for everyday practice since that will wear out your target faster, but there’s nothing wrong with taking a few shots with a broadhead to loosen up a brand-new target.”
Gary Cornum takes a different approach with SEVR HD Targets. He said there is no need to shoot broadheads into a new SEVR target simply to loosen the foam because the target will break in naturally through normal use.
Broadheads can be shot into SEVR HD Targets, however, and Cornum noted that doing so reduces target life.
“Broadheads may be shot into SEVR HD Targets, and the target material performs very well for archers who want to practice with hunting heads,” he said. “However, broadheads cut the foam rather than simply displacing it like field points, so they will reduce the overall service life of the target.”
The takeaway is simple: Follow the manufacturer’s recommendation for the specific foam target you own. A limited number of broadhead shots may be an acceptable way to loosen one model, while another may require no special break-in at all.
How Long Do Archery Targets Last?
I was surprised to learn the life expectancy of foam targets and specialized high-speed targets can be similar, having expected the high-speed targets to have a shorter lifespan.
Both Cornum and Schultz were hesitant to put a specific shot-life figure on their targets, since longevity depends heavily on how they’re used.
Speaking about the life expectancy of the RhinoBlock versus the Speed Unlimited, Schultz said both are built for longevity and can handle high-speed bows, but the shooting experience differs depending on how they’re used.
Short-range crossbow shots into the RhinoBlock can make arrow removal difficult, particularly with today’s fastest bows, while both targets work well with vertical bows. The RhinoBlock can handle broadheads, although regular broadhead use increases foam wear and reduces target life. The Speed Unlimited, meanwhile, is not designed for broadheads.
When pressed further, and after stressing that archery target life largely depends on user care and shooting habits, Schultz said both targets can withstand tens of thousands of shots.
Cornum offered a few tips for extending the life of foam targets, saying, “With proper use, a quality high-density foam target will provide excellent stopping power and long service life, even with today’s fastest hunting bows.”
SEVR recommends these steps:
- Rotate the target periodically to distribute wear evenly.
- Avoid repeatedly shooting the exact same spot.
- Keep arrow shafts clean and inspect them for dirt, adhesive residue or damage that can increase friction.
- Pull arrows straight out with a steady, even motion rather than excessive twisting.
- Store the target out of prolonged direct sunlight and weather exposure when not in use.
Foam Target Quick Tips
- Use an arrow-lube product. Easton, Bohning and AAE are among the companies that make products designed to reduce friction and make arrows easier to pull.
- Use an aluminum arrow for initial crossbow sight-in if the manufacturer allows it. Then fine-tune with your hunting arrow at distance.
- Give a new foam target time to break in. A brand-new target can be particularly difficult at close range.
- Check the manufacturer’s recommendations before using broadheads to accelerate break-in. Rinehart recommends a few broadhead shots for some foam targets, while SEVR says its HD Targets will break in naturally through normal use.
Note: Some targets, including many specialty super-high-speed models, are not designed for broadheads. Shooting broadheads into those targets can cause permanent damage. Always check the manufacturer’s instructions before using broadheads on any target.
