How do you "aim" a recurve?
 

Bought a recurve last year. As a rifle shooter, I have trained to aim. This ingrained training has made wing shooting problematic, compound shooting okay but, makes a recurve puzzling.

I have tried just focusing on a target, aiming off the arrow point, etc. but there must be an accepted right way.

A lot of archers use the "instintive" shooting method kinda like throwing a rock or a baseball you look at the person or object you are throwing to or at and let fly. Some use the "gap"method. others use the method you mentioned aiming off the point of the arrow. You have to decide which is best/ most comfortable for you and practice that method.
IMO ther is no best or better method use the one that suits you and the one you find most comfortable

Start out with hitting a target about 5 yards away. It is almost impossible to miss at 5 yards. See how the bow feels. Notice the parallax between your line of sight and the arrow somewhere below your chin.

Then move back to 10 yards. Do the same thing.

Then 15.

Then 20.

By now you will notice there is a drop factor, for which you need to compensate.

Some people use the arrow tip as their aiming point.

Others use a spot in the sight window. If you use the sight window then you might as well screw pin sights into it. It means you are naturally an aiming archer.

If you use the arrow tip, then it means your are more of an instinctive archer.

Ultimately everything needs to line up, the string, the pin or arrow tip, the limbs of the bow, your hand at your draw back point, etc.

For a right handed archer, the flex in the arrow will cause the arrow to fly to the right. So you will need to aim slightly left to compensate for "archer's paradox."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archer's_paradox

For a left handed archer it will be the opposite.

If you have the wrong arrows for your bow strength then it can get all messed up. Read the wiki article.

A great investment would be a copy of "Masters of the Barebow, Volume III". Two World Champion Archers (Rod Jenkins and Larry Yein) explain their technique, and you'll find that aiming is a tiny portion of the shot.

There are different ways to aim--no one "right" way, just the one that works best for you. Consistency is the key--once you have consistent form aiming will take care of itself.

Get "Become The Arrow" by Byron Fergusson,, one of the best books on shooting you can read

There is no correct way to "aim". Everybody kind of does what works for them. The kicker is finding what your brain and body like. When you talk about using the arrow tip in correlation to the target that is called gap shooting/aiming. Very effective once you learn how much gap to put between the arrow tip and your target whether it be below for close shots or above for longer shots. Now for myself I am more instinctive which means I only look at my target. If I look at the arrow at all my concentration is lost and the arrow is going for a ride! I just have to draw to my anchor while burning a hole thru the target with my eyes and let it go. I take 6 arrows when I shoot and just randomly pick spots in the yard and no measured yardage and take shots randomly as I walk around. Do some reading up on gap shooting or start in close just looking at the bull and when your nailing it everytime move back and few yards and do the same so on and so on. Of course you have to have a consistent form or it dosen't matter how consistent you aim. Hope some of this helps.

Purchase this set of DVD's. This will anwer you question plus they are packed with tons of information! Good luck!

http://www.3riversarchery.com/masters+of+the+barebow+volumes+1,+2+%26+3++save+$1 5.00!_i7032-3_baseitem.html

Thanks
 

I am doing better. I have been using what has been described as "instinct" shooting. Just stare at the target and let go. It seems to work okay out to the 20 yards I have tried so far.

I think I will invest insome of the suggested books but, have to be careful not to confuse myself.

Thanks much

I saw this term elsewhere and it describes my form, "gapstinctive"

i just started shooting a recurve this year,
being a compound hunter, was used to pin/sites etc.
at first , to get an idea of how it was lined up, i lined up the string with arrow tip to the target,
that was to get used to left/right,
with up down, it was more instinctive,
used this until i found my natural anchor points, and form naturally followed,
you do have to be aware of your body positioning on every shot until you find that natural line up

Ill agree with what has been said. Shooting trad gear is like throwing a ball. You don"t aim, you just throw it. It is instinct. With that said, you can us the tip of the arrow and take notice of how low it is below the target at different distances, and use that as a "pin" if you like. I started real young on trad gear. I started shooting and hunting with longbows back in the 70s and shoot pure instinctive.