Matteo Campagna
ITEN
Menu
Menu

Elite compound archers draw more pounds than recurve archers

2 studies · 61 archers measured

ForContextAgainst2010201220142016201820202022202420262025, for, n = 612025, context, n = 612011, context
Each circle is a study: its position gives the year, its row whether it is for, against or context, its size how many participants it measured. Light circles are studies on other populations or without archers.

The comparison comes from a single study, on competition data from 61 archers at the Shanghai stage of the 2025 World Cup. In compound the mean draw weight is 56.6 pounds against 46.8 in recurve, and it is also far more uniform from archer to archer, with a standard deviation of 3.0 pounds against 6.0. On the arrows the picture is less certain. They come out shorter in compound, 71.1 centimetres against 75.6, but in compound the shortest arrow recorded measures 28.9 centimetres, a value that looks as if it was entered in inches and that pulls the mean down, and the archers' draw lengths are missing, which could on their own account for part of the difference. Arrow weight does not separate the two disciplines clearly: 384 against 363 in the printed units, with a correlation of 0.23 that falls short of significance (p=0.07), and the weight is given in grams but only makes sense in grains. A non-significant difference does not show that the weights are the same. It is a descriptive snapshot of a single event, and the firmest figure is the one on draw weight.

Also phrased as: "compound versus recurve draw weight"; "how many pounds compound archers draw"; "compound arrow length"; "compound and recurve arrow weight"; "world cup archers' equipment"

In practice

Compound archers are said to shoot close to the 60-pound limit in the rules, while recurve archers choose their draw weight to suit their strength.

Evidence

  • 2011
    Context Equipment tests Published later

    Compound arrows for international competition used in the laboratory: ProTour 470 at 23.0 grams, 420 at 23.7 and 380 at 24.4, 0.715 metres long, with a 7.8-gram tungsten point (120 grains), nock and pin of 0.78 grams and three 38-millimetre vanes of 0.58 grams. The stiffer shafts are also the heavier ones. It is the compound side only, with no comparison with the recurve.

    The Behaviour of An Arrow Shot from a Compound Archery Bow · J L Park

  • 2025
    For Archers Published later

    61 elite archers at the Shanghai stage of the 2025 World Cup, official competition data: mean draw weight 56.62 pounds in compound (standard deviation 3.01, range 47.00 to 59.90) against 46.77 in recurve (standard deviation 5.95, range 37.20 to 58.30); correlation between discipline and draw weight r=0.70, p<0.01. The number of archers in each discipline is not reported.

    Empirical analysis of the impact of bow parameters on arrow velocity: A study of World Cup archers based on energy transfer and aerodynamics · Feixue Rao, Jiasheng Lv, Haidong Chen, Peijin Li, Hao Huang

  • 2025
    Context Archers Published later

    Same sample: arrows averaging 71.06 centimetres in compound against 75.57 in recurve, correlation between discipline and length r=-0.31, p=0.02. In compound the standard deviation of length is 9.43 centimetres and the minimum recorded is 28.9, a value that for a competition arrow looks as if it was entered in inches; in recurve length runs from 66.4 to 85.2 centimetres. The archers' draw lengths are not reported.

    Empirical analysis of the impact of bow parameters on arrow velocity: A study of World Cup archers based on energy transfer and aerodynamics · Feixue Rao, Jiasheng Lv, Haidong Chen, Peijin Li, Hao Huang

  • 2025
    Context Archers Published later

    Same sample: arrow weight does not clearly distinguish the two disciplines, 384.20 in compound against 362.54 in recurve, with a correlation between discipline and weight of 0.23 and p=0.07. The units are given as grams but the values only make sense in grains, and in grains they are in line with the 23 to 24 grams of the compound arrows weighed in 2011. A non-significant difference does not show that the weights are the same.

    Empirical analysis of the impact of bow parameters on arrow velocity: A study of World Cup archers based on energy transfer and aerodynamics · Feixue Rao, Jiasheng Lv, Haidong Chen, Peijin Li, Hao Huang

Status history

  1. 2011 Not studied The first useful figure describes the compound alone: the international competition arrows a laboratory study uses on a single-cam compound weigh between 23.0 and 24.4 grams, with the stiffer shafts also heavier, for a length of 71.5 centimetres and about a third of the weight in the point. There is no comparison with the recurve at all, and nobody has yet recorded the equipment of a group of archers: not studied.
  2. 2025 Reported A single study on archers compares the equipment of 61 World Cup athletes: 56.6 pounds in compound against 46.8 in recurve, with a correlation of 0.70 between discipline and draw weight, and in compound a far more uniform draw weight, with a standard deviation of 3.0 pounds against 6.0. The arrows come out shorter in compound and not distinguishable in weight, but a minimum length of 28.9 centimetres and the printed units for weight suggest transcription errors. A single sample, descriptive, from a single event: reported.

Related

Related articles

Research lines

Cite
APA

Campagna, M. (2026). Elite compound archers draw more pounds than recurve archers (Version 2). In Evidence Registry. Retrieved 16 October 2026, from https://matteocampagna.com/en/registry/equipment/compound-recurve-draw-weight-arrows

BibTeX
@misc{campagna2026_compoundricurvoassetto,
  author = {Campagna, Matteo},
  title = {Elite compound archers draw more pounds than recurve archers},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Evidence Registry, matteocampagna.com},
  url = {https://matteocampagna.com/en/registry/equipment/compound-recurve-draw-weight-arrows},
  note = {Version 2; accessed 2026-10-16}
}

Other claims in this domain

See all claims on equipment and tuning