What are the different bow sights? Which one is for me? These are 2 very important questions when you are getting a new bow sight. 

In this article, I will answer these questions as best I can; so you can choose what bow sight you need faster.

1 pins.

One-pin bow sights are good for target shooting and hunting. These sights have one pin that moves up and down to adjust for distance. The problem with these sights is that they are set at one distance and if an animal moves, you have re-range to adjust to that distance. The advantage is they are better for longer ranges and you can move your sight to a greater distance and shoot. And you have less pins to focus on when you shoot.

3 pins.

Three-pin sights have 3 fixed pins that are set at one distance at a time. With these sights, you have 3 pins that you can move up and down in a sight housing. And you have gang adjustment by losing an Allen screw and moving the entire sight up and down or left and right. 

Most people set these sights at 20, 30, and 40 yards, or if you want more distance you can set 20, 40, and 60. The upside is that there are not many pins to focus on, but you don’t have much distance out of your sight.

5 pins. 

Five pins are just 3 pins but with 2 more pins. This is the sight most whitetail deer hunters use. You get plenty of range out of these sights for most hunts. Most 5 pins are set at 20, 30, 40, 50, and 60 yards which is far enough for most shooters. You can adjust the sight the same way as a 3 pin sight. Five pins are great sights for all-class shooters and work for most hunters.

7 pins.

Seven pin sights have the most range out of all the fixed pin sights. Seven pins get you more range than 5 pins, so you can hunt pretty much everything with 7 pins. You can set these pins wherever you want. If your arrow drops a lot, in let’s say the 50 to 60-yard area, then you can put a pin at 55. 

These sights give you a lot of adjustability. You can shoot from 20-80 if your bow is fast enough. Sometimes when you have a 7 pin, you can have too many pins, so you end up with 1 or 2 extra pins that can confuse you on the shot. This can be a major downside cause it can be hard to remember where all 7 pins are set at. In the heat of the moment, when you are shooting at an animal, you can use the wrong pin and miss or wound an animal.

3, 4 and 5 pin sliders. 

These sights will get you the range of a 1 pin and the fixed pins that 3 or 5 pins have. You can hunt anything with these sights. If you don’t know if you want to get a fixed pin or a 1 pin these are great to bridge the gap. 

If you hunt animals that move a lot, you would want this over a 1 pin so if the animal moves, you still have pins to hold on to it. Or if you shoot 3d, you can move the sight to specific yardage so you don’t have to gap shoot. Or if your feeder is at 25 yards you can move your second pin to that distance and still shoot with another pin if the animal moves.  

If you hunt, one of these sights should fit the type of hunting you do. You should be able to find these types of sights at your local pro shop or big box store. Multiple sight manufacturers have all of these sight options so you can buy one online if you want.

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