What is Helical Edge?
Helical Edge is more than just an archery app—it's a game-changer for hunters and target archers seeking unparalleled accuracy in sight marks and ballistics calculations. Our app stands out by delivering real-time, exact calculations right in the field, eliminating the guesswork that plagues traditional tools. While older software and competing apps might offer printable PDF sight tapes, they often fall short: many are inaccurate without multiple manual corrections, rely on bulky models for arrow trajectory, and only provide incremental marks—say, every yard or half-yard—forcing archers to interpolate for fractions like a quarter or third of a yard. This leaves you estimating, especially in dynamic scenarios.
Why are we different for target archers?
What sets Helical Edge apart is its true calculator functionality. It computes your precise sight mark on the spot, for any distance, ensuring you never have to guess between clicks. This core advantage unlocks several powerful features. First, it simplifies adjustments: whether you're compensating for wind pushing arrows six inches off-course, aiming off visible points on hard-to-see 3D targets like ASA rings, or fine-tuning for horizontal and vertical shifts, the app tells you exactly how many clicks to dial in for perfection. Second, if your marks are consistently running high or low, you can quickly recalibrate by entering a single distance and corrected mark—such as at an odd 52.5 yards after a perfect second shot—and the app shifts everything accordingly. Discard it anytime to revert. Third, for close-range tweaks, optional fine-tuning ensures flawless short-distance performance. Fourth, tackling extreme angles, like long uphill shots where rangefinders in bow mode fall short, we incorporate cosine adjustments (the flat distance your rangefinder in bow mode finds), plus an innovative experimental method for hyper-accurate sight settings. Finally, minimal input yields results: enter just one sight mark with basic details, even at irregular distances like 33.3 yards—no rigid increments required—and get close—usable marks instantly. This is crucial for on-the-fly fixes during tournaments or hunts, where equipment failures demand quick recovery without exhaustive data entry.
Why are we different for hunters?
Helical Edge streamlines sighting in pin sights and movable setups. Start with a closer-distance mark, then use your phone's screen to overlay a predicted pin layout behind the sight cage for quick alignment. Confirm a second distance, and the app refines the gaps between pins; add a third for as many as needed, all accurately spaced. If your sight moves, generate custom sight tapes extending beyond your farthest pin, plus dedicated close marks with fine-tuning options. The result? Faster setup, fewer shots wasted on broadhead targets, and more time in the field.
Meet the Founder: Tyler Boies
I'm Tyler Boies, a 26-year-old from the Pacific Northwest, where I'm building my life and starting a family. Archery has been my lifelong passion, blending hunting with competitive target shooting across indoor, field, safari, 3D, and outdoor formats. My journey into the sport deepened after a traumatic brain injury in my youth, which taught me resilience and the value of precision in recovery and performance. As an adult, I've served in the volunteer fire department—a role I continue today—and spent nearly two years in private ambulance services, honing skills in high-pressure problem-solving. Now, armed with a bioengineering degree and certification, I channel that technical expertise into creating tools that empower archers.
From Frustration to Innovation: My Archery Journey
My drive to build Helical Edge stems directly from years of hands-on experience and the frustrations I've encountered as both a target archer and hunter. In target archery, I grew tired of sight programs that only offered static, incremental marks—limited to half- or full-yard steps—leaving me guessing in critical moments. At events like Redding, the canyon bear targets are notorious for pushing arrows due to strong cross winds, forcing imprecise aiming off without tools to calculate exact click adjustments. While others have also tried to address this situation by making the shooter put in: windspeed, wind angle, and how much of that wind is hitting the arrow. This makes an essentially unusable feature to a shooter in a competition setting. Further, all attempts to do this have resulted in the user having to aim off, not allowing the user to aim at the target itself. ASA targets added to the headache with poor visibility of scoring rings, meaning I had to aim off of whatever point I could see and hope for the best—no reliable way to offset precisely. Long uphill shots often resulted in low misses despite rangefinder readings, and equipment malfunctions, like one I particularly remember facing at Darrington Archers. My sight broke mid-tournament, leaving me scrambling to reset marks under strict time limits with inaccurate, incomplete apps that demanded too much upfront data.
Hunting brought its own challenges: excessive time and expense sighting in bows with pin sights, burning through broadhead targets just to get alignments right. I watched friends in bowhunter freestyle classes struggle with close-distance marks, as no app addressed them properly, and movable sights lacked printable tapes for extended ranges. These pain points—imprecise aiming offsets, and inefficient setups—pushed me to apply my engineering knowledge to archery ballistics. Drawing on physics-based modeling, I developed Helical Edge to provide dynamic, data-driven solutions that adapt in real time, making complex calculations accessible so shooters can focus elsewhere.
Expertise
With a foundation in bioengineering, I've focused on applying kinematic and kinetic principles to archery's unique demands, from arrow dynamics to environmental variables like wind and angles. My competitive background includes consistent participation in diverse archery disciplines, where I've honed techniques now embedded in the app. Notably, overcoming personal setbacks—like sighting in mid-tournament after gear failures—has informed features for rapid recalibration. What I am most proud of, is a tool that has turned years of real-world frustrations and competition experience into a practical tool that genuinely helps other archers.
Philosophy: Empowering Archery Through Technology
At its core, I believe in making archery more accessible via innovative tech, democratizing precision for everyone from weekend hunters to elite competitors. This means stripping away barriers: no need for advanced arrow specs or rigid data entry to get started—just intuitive tools that grow with you. Specifically, Helical Edge bridges the gap between raw math and practical shooting, ensuring even novices can achieve pro-level accuracy without hard to find information. It's about enhancing the mental and physical flow of the sport, turning potential misses into confident hits, and fostering a community where technology amplifies passion rather than complicating it.
Ready to experience the edge? Download Helical Edge today from the App Store or Google Play, and let's dial in your perfect shot. Have feedback or questions? Reach out via our contact form.
