The PSE story begins in 1970, when Pete Shepley (then a product engineer for Magnavox Corporation) decided to take his love of archery from a hobby to a full time profession. With the support from his peers at work and in the archery industry, Pete knew that he could advance the archery technology of the time into something new, something different, something better.
The company Pete founded, Precision Shooting Equipment (PSE), is now the largest privately-owned archery equipment manufacturer in the United States.
In the early days of the company, Pete experimented with accessories such as release aids, arrow vanes in place of feathers and much more, before finally turning his focus to the ultimate challenge…the perfection of the compound bow. Pete introduced the first PSE compound bow at an archery tournament in Indiana, and within a week he received orders for 200 more, then another 700 from across the country.
In 1982, PSE moved its operation from a small building in Mahomet, IL to Tucson, AZ. In contrast with its humble beginnings, PSE’s current corporate offices, factory, and pro shop facilities fill the space of one city block. But while PSE has gotten bigger and better, we’ve never forgotten the passion of archery that inspired our founder, and that continues to inspire us every day.
It’s this passion that makes PSE an industry leader, holding over twenty patents for bow design and archery products. PSE was one of the first companies to machine bow risers and accessories from solid aluminum, and we pioneered the four-stage forging process to create strong, lightweight bows.
PSE’s great commitment to the incomparable sport of archery that keeps us making great products for you, and keeps us innovating not just for PSE, but for the entire archery industry. As Pete Shepley himself once said, “Research and development are the most expensive stages in manufacturing, but we’re committed to it and to making the whole industry grow, not just our slice of the pie.”
