Block Archery Targets

What Block makes for archers and bowhunters

On this site, Block covers one product type: archery targets. The brand's own pages split the lineup into targets for vertical bows (compounds and other bows you hold upright) and targets for crossbows. The grid above shows these groups:

• Classic layered foam: a two-sided cube in 18-inch and 22-inch sizes
• Infinity 6-sided: a cube you can shoot on every face
• Infinity Crossbow: the 6-sided design rated for crossbow speeds, per its listing
• Range: large foam backstops for ranges and shops
• Hurricane H25: a bag target listed under the Block name on Amazon

Block doesn't make 3D animal targets in this grid. Because the brand's lineup here is short, the grid also shows alternatives from other target makers in a separate block, picked by matching type and specs. If you want a foam deer to practice angles on, the 3D archery target page covers them across brands.

The grid filters by type and changes as listings come and go. So I'll write about the groups and what separates them, not about this week's count. The specs come from Amazon listings, marked in the grid, and from the maker's pages where I could read them. Where nothing says, the grid shows a dash.

How a Block archery target stops an arrow

Here's what actually changes between a Block and a bag of rags. The maker says its foam targets stop arrows "with friction, not force." On the Classic and the Range, the foam comes in layers. On the Range, the maker describes those layers as open and unglued. The arrow slides between layers, the foam grips the shaft, and the shaft slows down over a few inches instead of slamming into a wall.

Kitchen version: push a butter knife into a stack of pancakes. It goes in easy and stops on its own. Now push it into a frozen pancake. That's the difference between friction and force, and it's why foam arrows usually come out in one piece.

The Infinity works a little differently. The maker describes a high-density layered-foam core inside an outer foam wall, which it calls PolyFusion. That build is what lets the maker rate it for higher speeds than the Classic.

Lineup notes: Block targets by family

The Block Classic: the two-sided layered cube

The Classic is the one people mean when they say "the Block." The maker sells it in 18-inch and 22-inch sizes, and the listings give both as two shootable sides and about 13.5 inches deep. The listings rate it for broadheads and field points. The maker says the Classic stops both with friction rather than force, which it says makes arrow removal easier.

On paper, the 22 gives you more face to aim at than the 18. In practice, a bigger face spreads your shots over more foam, and spread shots are what make a target last (more on that below). The 18 is the one that fits in a small car trunk next to a bow case. (Ask Uncle Walt. He measured his trunk with a tape and then didn't believe the tape.)

The Block Infinity: six sides

The Infinity is a cube you can shoot on all six faces. The maker lists 20-inch and 22-inch sizes, offset aiming points on the faces, and a carrying handle. It says the Infinity stops arrows up to 500 fps (feet per second, how fast the arrow leaves the bow). It also says it's safe with field points and with both fixed and expandable broadheads.

Quick math on the six sides: a two-sided target gives you two faces to wear out. A six-sided one gives you three times as many. Each face also has its own aiming points, so you can move your group around without moving the target. That matters more than it sounds, because nobody likes walking a target across the yard between ends.

The Block Infinity Crossbow: the fast one

The crossbow version of the Infinity is a 16-inch, 6-sided cube in its listing. The listing rates it to 520 fps, the highest number in Block's part of the grid, and for broadheads and field points.

The maker's FAQ gives a clean rule: bows at 350 fps and lower should use a compound target, and anything faster should use a crossbow-specific target. If your crossbow's listed speed is above that line, the crossbow target page covers what to look at across brands.

Block Range: the backstop

The Range targets are the big ones. The maker lists Range sizes of 24 by 18 by 48 inches and 28 by 18 by 48 inches, and calls the line archery range targets and backstops. It says the open, unglued layers of friction foam stop all broadheads and field tips, and that Range targets are designed to butt together with minimal seams between them.

The Range Foam Archery Target in the grid doesn't list its specs in the grid, so read its listing for size and depth. A Range target is a lot of foam. It's the target for a club, a shop, or a backyard where three people shoot at once. One archer with one bow probably doesn't need a backstop the size of a dorm fridge.

The Hurricane H25: the bag target

The Hurricane H25 is listed on Amazon under the Block name. In Baird's 2015 record of the Field Logic sale, Hurricane Bag Targets is listed as its own brand next to Block Targets, so you'll see both names. The listing gives it two sides, 25 by 25 by 12 inches, and a 425 fps rating.

A bag target is a fabric shell with filling inside, not a solid foam block. The grid doesn't show a point rating for the H25, so check the listing before a broadhead goes anywhere near it. More on bag targets is on the archery target page.

How to choose within the Block lineup

Speed first

Match the target to the fastest thing you'll shoot at it. Here's the one opinion I'll put on this page: buy for your fastest arrow, not your average one. The maker's own line sits at 350 fps, compound targets below and crossbow targets above, and the listings rate Block's targets from 425 fps on the Hurricane to 520 fps on the Infinity Crossbow. If a friend brings a crossbow to your yard, the target has to handle the crossbow too.

Then the point type

Field points are the practice tips. Broadheads are the cutting heads you hunt with. Practicing with the broadhead you'll hunt with tells you whether it hits where your field points do. The Classic and the Infinity list broadheads and field points. The broadheads page covers fixed and mechanical types.

Broadhead practice wears a target faster. The maker's FAQ lists broadheads versus field tips among the things that change how many shots a target takes.

Then the number of sides

Two sides or six. More shootable sides mean more fresh foam before you're done with the target. If you shoot a lot, the 6-sided Infinity spreads the wear further. If you shoot a few ends on weekends, two sides of a Classic may be plenty.

Then the size and the carry

A bigger face is easier to hit and spreads your shots. A smaller cube is easier to carry, store and fit in the truck. The Infinity's carrying handle is in the maker's description; for the others, plan on a two-hand carry.

Who should skip a big foam target

If you only ever shoot one bow under 350 fps and you shoot field points, a bag target may be all you need. If you want to practice judging yardage on an animal shape, skip the cube and look at 3D targets. If you shoot a light youth bow, read the maker's note below about bounce-outs first.

Using and caring for a Block target

Spread your shots

The maker's FAQ is blunt about this. Arrows poking out the back usually come from hitting the same spot over and over, because the foam can't re-expand. Its fix is to spread your shots over every aiming point and every shootable side.

Walt's take: "A target is a hay bale with a college degree. Treat it like one and it'll treat you right." I'm not sure what that means. He also aims at the same dot every end, so I think the advice is for him.

Know what a stop looks like

The maker says an arrow buried to the fletchings still counts as a stop, as long as it doesn't pass all the way through. If arrows pass through after only a few spread-out shots, the maker says you may have a defective target and should file a warranty claim. The site lists a limited warranty and links the terms.

Pull arrows out the maker's way

The FAQ's method:

• Grip the shaft close to the target, with an arrow puller or a rubber-grip glove
• Twist left and right to break the melt around the shaft
• Pull straight back once it turns
• Try a light shaft lubricant before shooting, which the maker also suggests

Twisting first, pulling second. Yanking straight back is how you end up sitting in the grass holding half an arrow.

Keep it out of the weather

The maker recommends storing the target indoors when it isn't in use. If it has to stay outside, it says to cover it with a tarp or another waterproof cover. A target that lives in the rain wears faster.

Safety

Set the target in front of a safe backstop, with nothing and no one behind it. Never shoot at a target someone is standing near, and walk to the target together after everyone is done.

Block facts

Here's what I could verify:

• Maker: Field Logic, whose brands included Block Targets and Hurricane Bag Targets, per Baird's deal record
• Owner: Field Logic was acquired by FeraDyne Outdoors in May 2015, per the same record
• Where: FeraDyne's site lists addresses in Superior, Wisconsin, and Russellville, Kentucky
• Warranty: a limited warranty, per the maker's pages

Where the targets are made isn't stated on the maker's pages, so I left it out.

Speed, point, sides, size. Write those four in your spreadsheet before you buy. Then pick the color, if you want to argue about something.