For the past 25 years, my favorite bow shop has been Schaffer Performance Archery, which is located just south of Minneapolis/St. Paul in the suburb of Burnsville, Minnesota. Owner John Schaffer and his knowledgeable staff have an excellent reputation for customer service. Even though I’ve since moved out of the Twin Cities metro area, I still find it worthwhile to drive to his shop when I need bow service.

In addition to stocking and selling Mathews, Hoyt and PSE compounds, as well as all of the archery accessories from the biggest brands in the industry, John also manufacturers the Schaffer XV arrow rest and Opposition Air bowsight. (FYI: John says the new 3.2-ounce DT Air bowsight fits the new Mathews V3X perfectly, and it’s the lightest dovetail sight currently built for the bow. John sells his rest and bowsights to other archery dealers throughout the country. Contact him at 952-894-6169 to learn more.)

When customers enter John’s shop looking for a bowsight, he has two of his Schaffer Opposition Air models mounted on a portable display riser, as well as a few other brands and models. The reason is indoor lighting doesn’t mimic real-world hunting conditions; a bowsight pin doesn’t look the same indoors as it does outdoors.

Under the guidance of John Schaffer or one of his team, a customer can walk outside the shop to compare different bowsight pins in natural light. The custom-made display riser attaches solidly to a countertop in the store, but can be quickly removed for use outdoors.

If you regularly have two or more employees working together in your bow shop, consider whether it makes sense to create a display riser so you can accompany a customer outside to compare bowsight pin performance. It’s probably not a good idea to leave the store unattended while you step outside to help a customer with bowsights, and unless you know a customer well, it’s probably not smart to let them leave the store solo with the display.