Archery:Equipment Standards

Equipment Standards

General Standards

1. All equipment should be consistent with pre-17th century archery in looks and function. The construction, use, and knowledge of period-style equipment and its safe use are among the primary goals of SCA archery. However, the use of modern equipment is permitted provided it meets the equipment standards spelled out below.
2. Nothing in these rules shall be interpreted as preventing a Kingdom or branch from making rules requiring the use of period style equipment in a period division or a specific competition. The rules allow the use of modern-style bows, but do not require that all competitions allow their use.
3. Each archer has the ultimate responsibility for the proper care, inspection and safe use of his/her own weapons, and for knowing and following the SCA and Kingdom target archery rules.
   1. An archer shall not knowingly use unsafe equipment.
   2. If an archer is unsure of the safety of his/her equipment, he/she shall request the assistance of a Target Archery Marshal in inspecting the equipment.
   3. The Target Archery Marshal assisting in the inspection shall make a reasonable attempt to locate any unsafe conditions or violations of Kingdom rules and inform the archer of what is found and how to correct it.
   4. The inspection by the Target Archery Marshal may not find all equipment faults and is conducted as a service to all the archers on the line. It does not remove the archers' primary responsibility for the safe condition of their own equipment.
   5. Any equipment observed by a Target Archery Marshal to be unsafe shall not be used until it is made safe and is re-inspected by a Target Archery Marshal.
4. Exceptions to the use of prohibited equipment may be allowed as follows.
   1. The Kingdom Archery Marshal, or his/her designee, may approve the use of prohibited equipment by class, such as the use of plastic vanes or non-wooden arrows for children's archery. Any such exceptions shall be reported in the Kingdom archery marshal's quarterly report to the SCA Archery Marshal.
   2. The Target Archery Marshal-in-Charge of an event may allow the temporary use of prohibited equipment for an archer on an event-by-event basis, such as permitting a new archer to use aluminum arrows with plastic vanes.
   3. The Target Archery Marshal-in-Charge shall make necessary allowances for archers with disabilities, provided that range safety is not compromised by these allowances.

Bows

1. Bows may be made of any suitable material, provided they are judged safe to shoot by the Target Archery Marshal.
   1. Bows of unusual materials or construction will be required to pass the inspection of the Kingdom Archery Marshal or designated deputy.
   2. No compound bows are allowed in competition. There will be no exceptions to this prohibition.
2. Adjustable or fixed sights are not allowed.
   1. If adjustable or fixed sights are attached, they shall either be removed or made inoperative.
   2. Sighting and/or ranging marks on the limbs or riser are allowed, except in divisions or competitions that exclude their use.
3. There are no draw weight limits for target archery bows. However, should a Target Archery Marshal observe that an archer is using a bow too heavy or overdrawn for them to safely shoot, the Target Archery Marshal will require the archer to stop using the bow.
4. No modern spring/flipper rests or plunger buttons are allowed. The use of simple rests is allowed, such as simple one-piece plastic or non-adjustable wire rests; feather, bristle, leather, etc. rests; built out shelves or rests. The use of the shelf in a cutout window is also allowed.
5. No stabilizers, clickers, or modern string release devices are allowed.
6. Bows with cutout risers (i.e., those that can be seen through from the side, often found in take-down bows with metal risers) must have the openings covered so as to present a solid surface and an appearance more in keeping with medieval archery equipment.

Crossbows

1. Non-period center-shot trackless crossbow styles are not allowed.
2. No compound prods or break-cocking crossbow styles are allowed in competition. There will be no exceptions to this prohibition.
3. No archer shall continue to use a crossbow that is observed by a Target Archery Marshal to have too heavy a draw for the archer to use safely.
4. Prods of most materials are allowed, provided they are judged safe to shoot by the Target Archery Marshal. Prods of unusual material or construction will be required to pass the inspection of the Kingdom Archery Marshal or a designated deputy.
   1. However, the marshal in change may disallow the use of any crossbow that is too heavy a draw for an archer to safely use or whose bolts would pass through and out of the backstop.
   2. Wooden or metal prods such as steel or aluminums should have some form of safety straps, sleeve or other method to reduce the chance of the shooter or a bystander being injured by a broken limb.
   3. Crossbows made before these rules are in effect that have prods which can not be easily removed for the addition of a restraint on the prod to reduce the chance of injury in case of breakage, are not required to have such coverage.
5. Simple rear sights are allowed. Front sights are not allowed.
6. Stocks may be of any material.
7. If a modern stock with openings that can be seen through from the side is used, all such openings must be filled or covered to appear more period. Openings that are intended for gripping the stock need not be covered. Openings may be covered with tape, leather, cloth, etc.

Strings

1. All strings shall be appropriate in length and strength for the bow type and weight. Linen, silk, artificial sinew, and any modern bowstring materials are acceptable, as long as strings are properly constructed.
   1. Strings that have become knotted, or those that have been repaired by knotting strands together, shall not be used. This rule does not forbid those string designs that incorporate knots, such as a bowyer's knot, in their original design.
2. A nocking point may be attached to the string. It may be made of metal or tied on. A single nocking point is allowed.
   1. The nocking point may consist of one or two locators, which may be of any type.
   2. The locators may not extend above or below the arrow nock in such a way that they are used as sighting mechanisms.
3. Peep sights or kisser buttons mounted on the string are not allowed.

Arrows and Bolts

1. All shafts shall be of wood or of bamboo-like materials.
2. Both self and footed shafts are permitted.
3. No broadheads or tips that cause excessive damage to the targets shall be used, except for special competitions using these heads with the permission of the Target Archery Marshal-in-Charge and the Kingdom Archery Marshal.
4. Fletched arrows and bolts shall have feathers or other pre-17th century material. Plastic vanes are not allowed.
5. Nocks for arrows, and caps, rings, or nocks for bolts may be of any material, provided they are securely attached.