Do-it-yourself projects have enjoyed great popularity the past two decades thanks to internet giants like Etsy, Pinterest and other sites that help craftsmen unleash their building skills. In fact, Amy Poehler and Nick Offerman recently launched a competition show geared toward crafters called “Making It.”
Has your inner crafter been awoken by that show or Etsy? Do you constantly study projects online and think, “I can do that”? If so, maybe it’s time to make your own archery equipment, like a stand for your bows and targets. Even the greenest handymen can become master woodworkers with these DIY bow and target stands.
You don’t need a fancy workshop full of tools and exotic woods to make functional bow or target stands. All you need is some PVC pipe or wood to make stands worthy of Pinterest praise. PVC pipe is such multi-functional material that you can even make bows from it. The structure of PVC pipe makes for a solid base, which is easily built upon. And you can connect as many tubes as needed to make the stand tall and wide enough to handle your bow or target.
Suspending your target from a stand keeps it off the ground and protects it from bad weather. You no longer need to worry whether the yard is still drenched and muddy from yesterday’s rain. You can practice anytime. Likewise with a bow stand. Bows are our babies and you wouldn’t lay a baby in mud, would you? A bow stand holds your bow upright, protecting it from dirt, mud or wayward boots.
And why settle for an ordinary stand when you can build one with great features? Place a few pipes facing up with the opening exposed and you’ve created holders. Add two pipes pointing up from the base and you’ve got a couple of arrow holders. Attach a cup-holder to the end of the two supporting pipes in the middle and you have a place for drinks … adult or otherwise.
If you want to leave your target out in the yard without scrambling to bring it in before rain arrives, simply buy some extra wood so you can build a cover over your target. A wooden slab covering the boards that frame the target create a roof over the target.
You don’t have to be an expert to make well-crafted stands from wood. Anyone with pipe, wood, nails, screws, hand-tools and adhesives can make a bow or target stand solid enough for archery practice.
Who knows? Maybe one day you’ll be standing atop the Olympic podium, accepting accolades and explaining how it all started with grade-school dreams and your homemade stands.
