I have been shooting for about 10 months and am getting frustrated. I have
Reflex Excursion 60 lb draw weight
27" draw lenght
Whisker bisket
Copper John Sight
Gold Tip XT Hunter arrows
Mechanical Release
Should I not be able to hit the 10 ring 8 out of 10 times at 20 yards? Do I need better equipment? Is there some hidden secret. I practice and practice. I can hit the 4 inch ring 9 out of 10 times but cannot shoot the arrows in a 2 inch group at this range. Any suggestions or is this the best I can expect.

Frustrated Bones

need more info bones. your bow could be that out of tune. you could be flinching, or letting go of your bow arm when you release. you could be trying to aim with your bow arm and really not be anchored. you could be twisting your hips. i would say that at least some days you should be able to do it. do you ever practice from 40+ yards? sure makes 20 seem a lot closer.

Not bad for 10 months , glad you are striving to better yourself . Keep practiceing , when I was at your stage , I started shooting a device just like the "hindsight" . It taught me ALOT about grip , which is an very important part of being consistant/accurate . Another sugestion I would make is to fide a proshop , or group of archers who have been in the sport for a good while , and who you get along well with , have them check your form/equipment and make sugestions . Some of what they tell you will work for you , and others will be useless . Find what works for you and go with it . Good luck and keep us posted .

You're doing great. Another 15,000-20,000 shots and you'll be busting nocks every shot.

I may catch some flack for this but if you're goal is perfection the WB may not be the best rest to achieve those goals. Don't get me wrong, the WB has it's place and is a good hunting rest but I can almost guarentee you won't see anyone at a competition shooting a wb. ( I say almost because there is always an exception) If you like the WB and plan to hunt with it then stay with it and keep practicing. If your goal is to be a 3-d competition contended you way want to look for another rest.

The WB definately has it's place but, pin point accuracy is not where it's at.

Remember practice doesn't make perfect, perfect practice makes perfect. Don't get frustrated that won't help your groups plus it is the path to the dark side(TARGET PANIC) and you don't want to have to deal with that. Check your bow to make sure its properly tuned, but it doesn't sound like your groups are that bad so my guess is its human error, go through your form piece by piece like a check list, it could be anything from minor inconsistancy in grip, release, anchor etc. I to shoot a WB rest and have no problem touching arrows when I practice as long as its tuned. Good luck. it will come together soon enough.

I also have a Reflex Excursion, 60 lb pull. My groups tightened up dramatically after I paper tuned my bow. I'm not a target shooter, so I don't know how big a 10 ring is, but I've been able to consistently put six arrows inside a 2 1/2" circle at 20 yards. I'm using a shoot through rest and fixing to change to a drop away. I don't like the idea of any potential fletching contact like in a WB. Also, having a sight with a level bubble has really showed me that I was torquing the bow, even though it is distracting at first.

I think you are doing fine and just keep up the practicing. Try this little trick I learned many years ago. Take one shot a day or one in the morning and another 5 hours later. When you practice really hard you are out shooting maybe 10-20 shots all within a half hour or less. By switching to only taking one shot per day you are puttinig 100% emphasis on that one very shot and it counts! It's like the real thing being out in the woods...you only get one shot! So make it count.

Try it for a week and see how you do. You might be surprised that your one shot a day is placing where you want it to!

bones,

What part of it boils down to is that you are trying to shoot groups. I heartily disagree with the idea of shooting one arrow a day. That does not teach you a darn thing. I would suggest, however, shooting one arrow at a time and then go retrieve it. That way you have a mental attitude of making that one shot count.

Another thing is that you are trying to pressure yourself. relax and have fun. The other is to not worry about hitting the ten-ring but concentrate on form and shot execution. You may need to join alocal archery club, pay attention to who some of the better target shooters are and ask for some help. Most good shooters are more than ready to help a novice. Afterall, they were one once. When ever you get it between your ears that it doesn't matter hwere the arrow hits, so long as you execute the shot right with good repeatable form, then the shots will start to go where you aimed the bow. You'll get markedly better as time goes on.

I once had a coach who was a pro and he taught me a lot. He used to stand behind me and whisper things, like "Aim the bow. Aim the bow.". Over and over again. And now I pass that on to lots of folks. "Aim the Bow". There is nothing you can do to help the arrow to the ten-ring. You must shoot the bow. Let the bow shoot the arrow.

I noticed a couple other posts you have. One concerns broadheads. A little advice. It's a long time till hunting season. Put the broadheads away and learn "shooting form" and "bow maintenance and tuning". The knowledge will help you get the broadheads flying later. Concentrate on one thing at a time.

Practice, practice, and more practice. I have been shooting over 20 years and when I get out of practice, it takes a good amount of time to get it back. It would also be helpful if you have someone watch you so they can see if you are keeping things consistant. If you are a new shooter, it might take years to get good consistant groups. Just keep your head up, and when you get frustrated, put it up. More bad habits are developed after a person gets frustrated and keeps shooting.

Shoot small miss small. Whether I am hunting or shooting 3-D, I pick a spot to hit and shoot for that. Get the shot process engrained in your head so you don't have to think about it. All you should be thinking about is aiming and not shooting....