Grip question (form)
 

I've noticed it posted in several threads asking for critiques on form.

We're told to have the grip of the bow more on the pad of the thumb rather than the palm of the hand.

My problem is that I can't draw like that. I draw with the grip in the palm of my hand and then rotate my hand so that the grip is resting on the pad below my thumb.

I haven't noticed any inconsistancy doing things this way, but I was wondering what your thoughts on this were. Is there a chance it will cause me to be more inconsistant? Should I just work on trying to draw with the grip where it needs to be?

RE: Grip question (form)
 

before placing your bow hand on the grip - you need to go in to what i call the 'light in your loafers -hand mentality.' from just before your hand touches your grip, until after theshot is released - your bow hand needs to be dead. your wrist too. no tension, no fidgeting, no nothing -specially rotating your grip while drawn. you've gotten in to an absolutely terrible habit that should be broken. if you'rea right handed shooter - nothing on the left side of your life-line should touch the gripin any way. the life-line itself - and anything to the right of it is fair game. john

RE: Grip question (form)
 

My first question would be "Why can't you draw the bow like that?".

Paul

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good question

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Well they way all the pro's teach proper hand placement on the grip is to put your arm out straight and wrist slightly turned out. As if telling one to stop. Grip is placed in pocket between index and thumb. At full draw you relax your fingers on grip. Helps w/ anti-torquing. I'm not sure if makes sence how I explained it. But is how most competitors shoot.

RE: Grip question (form)
 

WhenI bought my Tribute, I was told bythe proshop owner to hold the grip along the "lifeline", it is the line at the base of the thumb, & then have the pressure of the bow end up towards the pinky side of the hand.Then totally relax the fingers.Basically, its like holding your hand straight out & slightly tilted to the left. @ 20yds, I went from the arrows landing inconsistently in a 4" circle, to a 2" tight group. 3 more rounds were exactly the same. Don't know if it will work 4 u, but I believe what he said.

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I'm having a problem understanding all this.
First, I'm a lefty.
I have a problem w/ leveling my bow. I always have to turn my hand in to get the level..level. Should the back of my hand be pointed out or slightly down. Or am I starting out wrong. My hand and fingers r relaxed.

RE: Grip question (form)
 

Check out these 2 pics.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v134/Ausie-guy/General%20Archery%20Stuff/grip2.jpg?t=1169868524

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v134/Ausie-guy/General%20Archery%20Stuff/grip1.jpg?

RE: Grip question (form)
 

AH HA!!!
I got it now. Thanks so much.

RE: Grip question (form)
 

Just make sure your bow hand is totally relaxed otherwise you will get tension in your arm and thats not good specially if you have to hold at full draw for any lenght of time;)

RE: Grip question (form)
 

quick little drill as to why you should have it on the thumb pad and not your palm. with your bow hand relaxed, push on it with your right knuckles - its easy to move around. Now try and do that pushing on the thumb pad - much harder since the thumb pad is in line with the forearm bones. seems to me like maybe he is shooting with an incrediibly low wrist grip. Try almost lining up your thumb pad and forearm in a straight line. You'll also move your elbow out and keep your arm away from the string.

RE: Grip question (form)
 

Excelent thread , once we get most of the other things in archery figured out , or think we do , its down to grip , I have strugeled with mine for years . Lots of diferant grips , and hand positions , even amongst the pros , they dont all do it the same way . Its an individual thing . I dont think any one would sugest grabing the grip with all of your grasp , wraping fingers around and sqeazing as a good grip , nor will most sugest a super high grip with the tention of the bow pulling it into the web between thumb and index finger . You must find the happy medium between the two extreems , that you are most consistant with . I will tell you what works for me , it may not work for you or the majority . I am most consistant with a medium high grip , the kind that darton and merlin bows kind of fource your hand into . Cant shoot a thin straight up and down grip that requires a low grip with any consistancy at all , the type of stock grips that have been on bowtech bows for the past couple years , these bows definatly require a low grip , many do well with them , Im not one of the many .

RE: Grip question (form)
 

If I had to guess, Dan....I'd say you were having trouble drawing your bow with your hand in the proper position.....because you're pulling too much poundage.

There's nothing wrong with cranking it down a little. No shame.

If my son (he's 14 but looks to be about your size) can't put his sight pin on his target and draw it straight back.......I turn it down.

If I'm wrong....I'm wrong......but it's something to consider.

RE: Grip question (form)
 

I would agree this could very easily be the problem. I am a pretty big guy (215 @ 6') and 70lbs is a bit much for me to maintain good form when I am not shooting a lot and conditioned well.

The proper hand position before the draw is critical becauseit will prevent you from inducing torque into your bow arm during the shot sequence while trying to get into a proper grip. Once youadjust weight and learn how to set this before the draw, and then learn to hold the tension needed to maintain form in your back,your front arm can be amazingly relaxed and it will slow your sight picture movement waaaaay down. I actually take the time to visualize this relaxed state of the bow arm before every shot as part of my shot sequence, I can't imagine trying to adjust it at full draw while trying to maintain that shot tension in my back, next to impossible IMHO.

RE: Grip question (form)
 

I really can't get it right. Aussie-guy gave me some grip tips ,but my problem is stillleveling the bow. Unless I twist my wrist around ,the tip of the bow tilts to the left. (I'm a lefty) When twisting the bow to level it my arm and shoulder tenses up even though my grip is loose. I know I'm not pulling too much wt.
I know this isn't my thread and I'm not trying to take it over , but I don't want to start a dup.
I am WAY open 4 suggestoins.

RE: Grip question (form)
 

I was wondering the same thing myself. Takes practice, but you should be able to maintain that grip all throughout the draw cycle.
Got a wrist loop?

RE: Grip question (form)
 

archer58 , some put a counter weight off the right side of the risor under the grip , if your bow has a rear stabilizer hole , use a quick disconect nuckel and put a doinker , or some other short heavy stabilizer in the 45 degree position off to the right , helps to ballence the bow .

RE: Grip question (form)
 

I suppose I should choose my words more carefully. It isn't so much that its difficult for me to physically draw the bow back (despite my size, I'm fairly strong), its just uncomfortable [for my hand] to draw back this way. My guess is because I hadn't drawn this way very much previously.

Anyhow, I've been working on things and this is where I'm at currently;







Little to no palm on the grip, fingers relaxed...

RE: Grip question (form)
 

wash what rest is that?

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Cobra Diamondback.

I've got one on both of my bows.

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how do you like it?

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I'll put it this way, I liked it well enough that I put one on both my bows. ;)

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Any input folks?

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That left hand position is very good. It took me a while when I first started shooting to get used to it, as matter of fact after prolonged shooting it was quite painful.

Eventually, it went away, and with a grip like that on the Allegiance, my hand naturally goes there.

RE: Grip question (form)
 

That looks pretty good right there, but it still looks like your hand is not relaxed. Sort of looks like you are holding your fingers in that position rather than letting them relax.

You want to let your fingers just go limp and fall where ever.

Now that I look at the pics again you are deffinately not relaxing your fingers. Some of them are red from pressure wich means you are pressing them into the riser or other fingers and your pinky is being forced out like you are drinking a cup of tea;).

In your first pic see your thumb is pressed into your index finger. And in the third pic your index and middle finger are red from your thumb pressing on them or your pulling them into the riser. Just let them lightly touch each other after you draw.

I have to grip the bow when I draw it, but once it is back you should be able to relax most of it. What you don't want to do is shift your grip or rotate your hand after you draw the bow. If it didn't feel right, let down and do it again.

Do you know why good target archer rarely miss? It's because they don't take bad shots. Watch how many times they let down in a match. That is one of the hardest things to do in archery. It is too easy to force yourself through the shot, especially if you are used hunting.

If you have to do some blind bale or blank bale shooting where you make an effort to keep your hand relaxed before and during the shot. Let that wrist sling do it's job. I can almost assure you if we watched you shoot you are grabbing the bow after the shot. Which is ok, but eventually you will anticipate it and start grabbing it during the shot.

Get really close to your target, draw your bow and relax everything you don't need to actually keep the bow from coming back and whacking you in the face. Then have someone trigger your release for you while your eyes are closed. It bet it feels MUCH different than your normal shot.

Your posture and head alignment look pretty decent from what I can see in those picks. And there is no reason you can't shoot well with that grip as long as you can repeat the pressure from shot to shot. It's just that if you learn to relax that hand you might not get tired as fast and it will feel more natural.

And while I have your attention I am going to sound like your dad for a minute. Two things I want to point out. I strongly advise against drawing your bow with a release and not having an arrow nocked. Most new bows can take a dry fire or two (been there) but why risk it?

And second, NEVER stand in front of a bow at full draw, even if there is not an arrow in it. If it were to go off something could come off the string or the string could break and whip off. I have seen holes in dry wall where a peep and other things have come of the string and gone thru a wall.

But I don't know, maybe you used a tripod and the timer on your camera?

Good luck,
Paul

RE: Grip question (form)
 

Man Paul,you love those long post but you are right on.I am surprised you didn't mention that he had 3 picks and 3 different grips.He needs to find one,relax and go with it.

This post has been pretty good because most all of the info has been spot on.

He stated in a different post he did have a timer set on his camera but I agree about not having an arrow nocked but I would probably do the same if I was pointing it at my camera.[8D]

RE: Grip question (form)
 

My posts are usually not quick and to the point;). I type fairly fast and like to make sure I convey what I want to say. Proof reading is what takes so long. I type fast, but not accurate:D.

Paul