Getting the shaft under your eye
12-01-2005, 10:57 AM
#1
Nontypical Buck
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location:
Posts: 2,994
Getting the shaft under your eye
I absolutley HATE not being able to cut and paste here[:@]
Please read this link-
http://tradgang.com//noncgi/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=6;t=001480
and imagine I posted it here
Please read this link-
http://tradgang.com//noncgi/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=6;t=001480
and imagine I posted it here
12-01-2005, 11:17 AM
#2
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Eureka, MO
Posts: 3,703
RE: Getting the shaft under your eye
Highlight it, and select copy. Then come over here and hit ctrl+v and it will paste it for you.
RANGEBALL's POST
Curious as to what bow characteristics dictate how easy or hard it is for an individual shooter to comfortably line the shaft up under their shooting eye?
I'm currently shooting a Martin X200 recurve, my brother's bow. This is my first year in the woods with a stick. I shoot split finger and anchor on my right canine tooth with my middle fingernail.
I've noticed that unless I pay strict attention, the nock end of the arrow when I set up comfortably is to the right of the point end, and I subsequently miss left. To get the shaft under my eye (shoot RH and am RE dominant) requires manipulation that takes me out of what I feel is my natural set up. Since this is the first recurve I've shot (essentially, did shoot some trad when I was a kid but paid zero attention to things like form) I just assumed this is how it is.
A few weeks ago my youngest daughter and I were perusing the hunting section of a farm store, and I grabbed one of those draw length measuring blue fiberglass bows off the rack. I pulled back several times and had her tell me what it read at the eye screw (which was 27.5" each time, what that means as I've no idea if it's amo or what).
Then it hit me. Just drawing to my natural, comfortable, easily repeatable draw, the shaft was DIRECTLY under my eye. Each and every time. When I figured this out I bet I drew that little bow 50 times to make sure it wasn't a fluke, even closing my eyes while drawing, and got perfect alignment each time.
I've since tried to wrap my head around why this would be so. "My" recurve is only 45# and I don't feel overbowed at all. I do shoot the recurve with a damascus glove, and drew the blue bow bare fingers, but I can't imagine that or anything else that would cause the difference.
Any thoughts or ideas? I'm left wondering if it's due to the long bow like non center shot shelf of the draw length bow, and if it is, if I wouldn't shoot much better with a similar longbow.
RANGEBALL's POST
Curious as to what bow characteristics dictate how easy or hard it is for an individual shooter to comfortably line the shaft up under their shooting eye?
I'm currently shooting a Martin X200 recurve, my brother's bow. This is my first year in the woods with a stick. I shoot split finger and anchor on my right canine tooth with my middle fingernail.
I've noticed that unless I pay strict attention, the nock end of the arrow when I set up comfortably is to the right of the point end, and I subsequently miss left. To get the shaft under my eye (shoot RH and am RE dominant) requires manipulation that takes me out of what I feel is my natural set up. Since this is the first recurve I've shot (essentially, did shoot some trad when I was a kid but paid zero attention to things like form) I just assumed this is how it is.
A few weeks ago my youngest daughter and I were perusing the hunting section of a farm store, and I grabbed one of those draw length measuring blue fiberglass bows off the rack. I pulled back several times and had her tell me what it read at the eye screw (which was 27.5" each time, what that means as I've no idea if it's amo or what).
Then it hit me. Just drawing to my natural, comfortable, easily repeatable draw, the shaft was DIRECTLY under my eye. Each and every time. When I figured this out I bet I drew that little bow 50 times to make sure it wasn't a fluke, even closing my eyes while drawing, and got perfect alignment each time.
I've since tried to wrap my head around why this would be so. "My" recurve is only 45# and I don't feel overbowed at all. I do shoot the recurve with a damascus glove, and drew the blue bow bare fingers, but I can't imagine that or anything else that would cause the difference.
Any thoughts or ideas? I'm left wondering if it's due to the long bow like non center shot shelf of the draw length bow, and if it is, if I wouldn't shoot much better with a similar longbow.
12-01-2005, 11:19 AM
#3
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Eureka, MO
Posts: 3,703
RE: Getting the shaft under your eye
About the topic, I just recently started shooting a recurve and I also have trouble getting the ahaft under my eye sometimes and I always miss left of my target too. I'll be interested in the responses.
12-01-2005, 02:57 PM
#6
Nontypical Buck
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location:
Posts: 2,994
RE: Getting the shaft under your eye
No.
I'm saying with this bow when I anchor, the nock is not under my eye but the point of the shaft is.
Someone at tradgang suggested perhaps I'm using too deep a hook when I grip the bowstring. Since going to the damascus glove, I've been gripping in my first crease. Perhaps that's the problem.
I have no idea how I gripped the string on the blue bow. I just grabbed in naturally and pulled it back. It probably helps that the draw weight is probably 10# or so
I'm saying with this bow when I anchor, the nock is not under my eye but the point of the shaft is.
Someone at tradgang suggested perhaps I'm using too deep a hook when I grip the bowstring. Since going to the damascus glove, I've been gripping in my first crease. Perhaps that's the problem.
I have no idea how I gripped the string on the blue bow. I just grabbed in naturally and pulled it back. It probably helps that the draw weight is probably 10# or so
12-01-2005, 03:41 PM
#7
Giant Nontypical
Join Date: Feb 2003
Posts: 9,175
RE: Getting the shaft under your eye
Have you tried grabbing the stringjust back of the pads of your fingertips instead of deep hooking and burying it in the creases? That'll bring the nock over to the left a bit. Maybe a big bit.
I've had some problems with left misses that I couldn't explain and had a few people watch me shoot. They tell me thatmy fingers don't straighten out when I use a deep hook and bend that those fingertip joints. That's the 'cupped hand' Asbell shows in his book.
Rather than move my anchor over to the left to compensate, I just went back to using the fingertip grab instead of the deep hook.
I've had some problems with left misses that I couldn't explain and had a few people watch me shoot. They tell me thatmy fingers don't straighten out when I use a deep hook and bend that those fingertip joints. That's the 'cupped hand' Asbell shows in his book.
Rather than move my anchor over to the left to compensate, I just went back to using the fingertip grab instead of the deep hook.
12-05-2005, 08:00 AM
#8
Nontypical Buck
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location:
Posts: 2,994
RE: Getting the shaft under your eye
I'll play with that today. Deep hook feels much more secure, but my shooting has suffered lately.
A guy on another forum thought it could have something to do with how much above my hand the shelf was. On the X200, it's pretty high. The little blue bow was right on my hand, basically. I think I'd prefer this set up on my next bow.
A guy on another forum thought it could have something to do with how much above my hand the shelf was. On the X200, it's pretty high. The little blue bow was right on my hand, basically. I think I'd prefer this set up on my next bow.
12-07-2005, 12:40 PM
#9
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: egypt
Posts: 1,994
RE: Getting the shaft under your eye
The guys who have mentioned canting with a longbow are spot on. If you havent read Fergusons book yet, do so. He goes into detail on the subject of shooting left. Asbell's 2nd book also goes into some good detail on longbow vs recurve shooting. JHansen's comment on shelf heigth again was referencing canting of the bow and the effects the distance between the arrow and the shelf and your hand placement will have.
I would not give up the groove for the tips ever again. Reason being, I plan on doing this for years to come and not succumb to tendonities in my fingers when a simple anchor point adjustment would alieviate all of this. Learn to relax your hand and you wont have to get out "on your tips" if you will.
On the below the eye, here's my thoughts. Whether you are stincter, gapper, split vision'er, or whatever, everything rely's on line of site. With the PROPER set of arrows out of a longbow, spine and tuned, you are more apt to hit things if you are pointed at them to start with. Like hunting any animal, the easier it is for them to get to you (speaking of calling here), the more likely they are to come eh. Well shooting is no different. The less you have to make your thinker work, the more it's going to work for you. Meaning if you naturally are coming to a point where you dont have to (mentally or otherwise) make adjustments however minute, the ONLY deviation you'll have will be up and down. The more natural things are going to work out for you, and the better shot you will be EASIER with less WORK and you will be able tomaintain this with less headaches along with being able to shoot many different bows with better then average accuracy without ever having shot them before.
There are a ton of factors why people shoot left. The more you can line up from tip of arrow to head position, to elbow alignment, to feet and everything inbetween, the more likely you are to hit what you are looking at.
Many will talk about the arrow, when properly spined, will wrap around the bow. It's ironic in one of Hills older books referencing his split vision technique his aiming point was to the RIGHT of where he wanted to hit. Mind you I believe this was printed before he was shooting with a more modern cut in riser as all references to bows and photo's included in the book are of him with more primitive looking bows.
Just my buck50
I would not give up the groove for the tips ever again. Reason being, I plan on doing this for years to come and not succumb to tendonities in my fingers when a simple anchor point adjustment would alieviate all of this. Learn to relax your hand and you wont have to get out "on your tips" if you will.
On the below the eye, here's my thoughts. Whether you are stincter, gapper, split vision'er, or whatever, everything rely's on line of site. With the PROPER set of arrows out of a longbow, spine and tuned, you are more apt to hit things if you are pointed at them to start with. Like hunting any animal, the easier it is for them to get to you (speaking of calling here), the more likely they are to come eh. Well shooting is no different. The less you have to make your thinker work, the more it's going to work for you. Meaning if you naturally are coming to a point where you dont have to (mentally or otherwise) make adjustments however minute, the ONLY deviation you'll have will be up and down. The more natural things are going to work out for you, and the better shot you will be EASIER with less WORK and you will be able tomaintain this with less headaches along with being able to shoot many different bows with better then average accuracy without ever having shot them before.
There are a ton of factors why people shoot left. The more you can line up from tip of arrow to head position, to elbow alignment, to feet and everything inbetween, the more likely you are to hit what you are looking at.
Many will talk about the arrow, when properly spined, will wrap around the bow. It's ironic in one of Hills older books referencing his split vision technique his aiming point was to the RIGHT of where he wanted to hit. Mind you I believe this was printed before he was shooting with a more modern cut in riser as all references to bows and photo's included in the book are of him with more primitive looking bows.
Just my buck50
