Archers with any time behind the string have at least heard of the BLOCK target from Field Logic. The company’s history fascinated me years ago when I first wrote about its products. Field Logic started out by using recycled packing material. It was given to them for free at the time—complete shipping containers at a time—just to get rid of it. The archery community is fortunate that the innovative minds at Field Logic put it to great use.
They also took a page from Xerox—if my memory serves my correctly—and dedicated a full one-third of revenues to advertising—hence the reason we have all heard of it. Since that time, Field Logic has gone through the usual corporate changes, but its commitment to quality and giving to the archery community have always been persistent. As one executive from Field Logic put it, “When it comes to arrow stopping durability (with field tips and broadheads) and ease of arrow removal, nothing compares to the revolutionary open-layered design of the BLOCK”.
That’s a pretty big claim and you have to have a great product to make such a statement and still be around years later.
The BLOCK is actually a series of targets and is available in a multiple sizes from about 16×16 inches to over 48×48 inches for ranges, clubs, pro shops and school programs. All BLOCK target use the same basic construction, thin layers of foam sandwiched together with an outer later of plywood and compressed with steel bands.
At The Range In testing the BLOCK, I started with field-point tipped carbon arrows. I shot it with a Mathews Z7 and an arrow speed of 272 fps. The BLOCK easily stopped every arrow and just as Field Logic advertised, they pulled quite easily. In the interest of openness, I prefer to use a lube on my arrows such as October Mountain Products Frixion Fighter. Without it, the friction resulting from the arrow coming to a sudden halt causes the material to actually melt to the arrow. I like to conserve as much energy and strength as possible when shooting. It prolongs the time it takes me to get fatigued and start throwing bad shots, so the lube really helps. A couple of details about the BLOCK target. First, yes it will stop arrows from any bow or crossbow that I know of or have ever shot. The arrows may also poke through the back of the target. Do not use a solid backstop immediately behind the target such as a concrete wall. Bag targets are most effective when suspended and free to swing. This allows the target to absorb the impact with less penetration. The same principle is true of any target; a hard backstop will increase the penetration and potentially damage your arrows.
Another common sense tip is to vary your shots. If you have the skill to shoot small groups, change your impact point regularly. You can create a soft spot by repeatedly pounding a small area and prematurely wear out your target. One last point is regarding broadheads. The BLOCK does a great job of stopping broadhead tipped arrows and offers easy removal of the same. However, broadheads are designed to kill animals by causing massive bloodletting trauma, i.e. the cut a swath with every shot. The BLOCK handles these arrows as well as any target, but yes, it will wear our much quicker with broadheads than field points.
My suggestion is to first sight in and practice with field points. Depending on the model of the sight you are using, you can use a pencil to mark the sight or record the settings before switching to your broadheads. Then, just before the hunting season, sight in your broadheads and again mark your sight for the broadhead setting. This will allow you to go back and forth between broadheads and field points during the hunting season and increase the longevity of your BLOCK target.
Do you have any experience with the BLOCK or another archery target? Let us know in the comment section.