Im new to bow hunting in general. I posted here a while back in hopes of gaining knowledge so I could get out there this season, but everybody has voiced their opionion that i just skip it and get confident through practice. Well I have been practicing, and I LOVE shooting my bow. It is so much fun and its something that I can do in the back yard (unlike shooting my guns). Well I want to build a target, cause the nearest archery range is about 30 mins. away and the walmart targets are falling apart, FAST. I was thinking bails of straw or hay. Anysuggestions for target material that will hold up. I dont really want to buy one of those stop blocks or things like that (too small and to expensive), I want to build a big target. Please help. (also if anybody has a trick to get target points out of the side of my shed, I would appreciate it)

Fill an old feed sack, burlap bag or duffle bagwith either:

1.) Old clothes, towels, rugs, pillow cases, blankets (no plastic, leatheror rubber)

or

2.) Balls of shrink-wrap cellophane. Justpull several feet fromthe dispenser and keep balling it up- and fill a large bag with it. Super light, and will stop any bow.

Neither of these targets are great with broadheads, but they work awesome with field points.

What I would do is get you some cardboard or drop cieling tiles, these work best. Take a 2x12 and some allthread and sandwich the tiles or cardboard between them start to tighten the all thread tilll compressed and put your taget on it and start shooting. Hay bales won't stop your arrows it just slows them down. If you put one behind the other it may work but you will have to dig your arrow out everytime. I have shot into one of those big round hay bales and it stops them nicely and they are plenty big enough.

It depends on if you're wanting to shoot fieldpoints or broadheads. For fieldpoints the rag bag idea is great and inexpensive as for broadheads I don't know of safe and cheap target. And for getting those fieldpoints out of the barn just take your pocket knife anddig them out.

If you have an old futon mattress laying around (or see one somebodys trash) grab it, you'd be amazed at how fast they stop em and how the arrow is ready to fall out of it when you get there.
The idea with material is that the arrow is rotating, when it gets inmaterial it wraps around the arrow and brings it to a stop.

fill a cardboard box with old carpet padding it works great for broad heads make sure it's packed and plenty thick

[/align]EXCELSIOR IS THE ONLY WAY TO GO!!!!!!!!! will last forever

If you want some good fun for practicing and have a hill or ravine to practice in try this, you'll love it. The only drawback is that you need a partner for this. Take an old basketball, doesn't matter weather it holds air or not(it wont when your done) and have your partner roll it down the slope and you practice shooting at it at different distances. The only thing is that you need to make sure you are shooting into the hillside! It's a ton of fun.

i would use a mattress, potato sack w/ potatoes, broken chairs, hay, or a dead tree. for the target i would get a humungo piece of paper and put a 5x5 inch circle in the center of the paper and just stick it on to whatever with tape.

get a big piece of styrofoam like they use for boat docks thats what i use and i use 1 a year or eveyother