SaroorHai

I cant shoot a tight group at 20 yards, and I dunno what to do. My anchor point is odd, but it works and I know exactly where it is. I shoot very tight groups at 10 and 15 yards, and practice all the time. I can;t figure gap shooting out at all. I want to hunt with this bow nxt year, but I wantto at least be confident that I can hit a deer at 20 yards. Any tips? Getting some serious frustation with this. BTW I shott using the flipper rest because my arows have vanes. Could this be part of the problem?

LBR

The vanes could be part of the problem. Have someone watch you, or video yourself, and try to get an idea of what you are doing differently. If you can group at 15 yds, you should be able to at 20 yds. Concentrate on your release and follow through (bow hand and string hand), and keep your eye on the spot until the arrow impacts. At worst, you may have to limit your hunting shots to 15 yds or less.

Chad

longbowman

There's a certain distance that everyone has that "feel" for and I call it a "ZONE". Within that zone you "know" you can hit exactly what your shooting at. It sounds to me like that zone has found itself for you and it's within a 15 yd. radius. Go stump shooting and pick out stumps and clumps etc...and shoot them. After you get to the point where your always hitting them begin stepping off the distance "after" the shot. You will find that every time you pick out a shot that's within your zone your deadly. Contrary to popular belief, that's what traditional shooting is all about. Knowing your limits isn't a good way to put it in my mind. I would rather say knowing you kill zone. Once you establish that mental zone you will begin restraining yourself from shots at game until they come within that mental zone. I've never really understood why people think it's harder to kill a deer with traditional equipment. I think what's harder is to kill a deer at distances that either you want to shoot or that people with wheels and sights can shoot. I happen to shoot both types of equipment and I have stands that I carry a compound to because the chances are my shot will be about 10 yds. outside of my traditional kill zone and I am very comfortable shooting the compound out to 25 yds. There was a time that I felt only real men shot traditional equipment but when I started hunting for only good racks I figured out that there will be certain set ups that don't lend themselves to my traditional limitations. You need to make the choice of which is more important, the kill or the "way" you make the kill and then stick with the limitations you've placed on yourself and be content with the results.

Troy n Oh

I agree 100% with longbowman. With that being said I would definatley get rid of the vanes and see if that doesn't help some.

stealthycat

I you group well at 10-15 yard then you're grouping well at 20, 25 and 30 yards too (its just that the target is closer and stopping the arrows before they go out any farther).

That you cannot group well when the target is beyond your comfy range is telling me you haven't learned to focus hard yet. I can't either really. For pure instinctive shooting (no sights, concentrate, aim and shoot) you MUST be able to focus and burn a hole where you want the arrow to go.

Ever notice you can shoot much better groups when you have an all white target and a quarter coin sized target, rather than a 6" ring ? Concentration, focus - its huge factor and practice make it I think.

IMO its rare for guys to shooting truly instinctive past 20 yards unless their eyesight is unbelievabley good. You can't pick a spot that far. If you have an aiming system then yeah, I can see it working (I'm asuming you don't though) ???

SaroorHai

ok i was shooting at night with only the two back porch lights on. I grouped incredibly well at 10 and 15 yards(didn;t try 20, figured I might lose some arrows). Then I though about my practice set up. i have 3 targets, at 20 yards is the 3d deer target, the one im not grouping on. I put one of the more traditional target at 20 yards and grouped much better. It's just me, I gotta shoot that 3d target all the time I guess.
I have noticed what was said about a smaller target, I can hit 20 oz plastic pespi bottles stuck in ground every time ( not good for feltchings though).
I have no aiming system, it just doesn't work for me. I really think its the 3d target, but I will eventually switch to feathers when I can afford it.
I think I am concentrating fine on the other targets though, I doubt thats it. When I say group well I mean like I have been replacing alot of nocks lately.
I have bruises and blisters on my right hand's fingers from shooting lately, so I broke out my Dad's compound with a release. No problem grouping with that thing at 20 yards. Those cams sure make it easy

LBR

That's something I hadn't considered, and it will make a difference. When I started, I didn't have anything but flat targets for quite a while--it was a real eye-opener the first time I shot 3-D targets--I couldn't hit a thing! Over time it will get easier, but if you practice strictly on one or the other, when you switch out it will be more difficult.

Chad

Scoobiedoo

My suggestion is 'lose the vanes and go feathers.' With the array of modern waterproofing agents avail today there is no reason not to.

Shooting vanes and a Flipper rest doesn’t get the arrow close enough to the shelf or your hand. The closer that arrow is to your bow arm the better for getting a good 'feel' for the shot.

I also agree - purchase a few 125 gr Judo points and start stump shooting. Its one of the best way to start to develop a 'feel' for longer shots - in odd positions.

However, as others have stated, know YOUR effective range and don't be tempted to exceed it until you can keep EVERY arrow in a kill zone EVERY time.

PS Treat yourself to a copy of G. Fred Asbell's 'Instinctive Shooting' book. Its great and filled with a lot of tips and good stories!

Good luck!

Problem Child

It's mental. I have only been shooting instinctively for about two months. Somedays, I group real good at 25 yards, and other days I don't. I found an old can huggie laying around and tied it to a rope and hung it over my target over the bullseye. My grouping tightened up a lot. Try this with something about two or three inches in diameter, tennis ball maybe, and see if that helps. Oh, and, I know what you are talking about LBR with the three D target. BTW, I narrowly missed a big rabbit yesterday with my unknown brand recurve. The arrow hit the ground about two feet in front of him. I thought I was gonna get him on the first bounce. This is very addictive.

Scoobiedoo

You'll find your accuracy improves with a smaller target.

Take this test:

Take a 8" pie plate and attach it to your bales of hay or target. Shoot. See how well you do...

Now remove the pie plate and replace with a small 2" circle or 'dot' of some kind. Even a pack of empty smokes will work. If they are, say, Newports - stare at the P in Newport. Not the entire box - just the letter P.

Re-shoot.

I'd bet you find your shots at the 2" target with the letter 'P' grouped better than the entire 8" white pie plate target.

So what does this prove?

That the smaller the 'object' is that you FOCUS on the better your shot will be. Hence 'pick the spot' is always discussed. Pick a tuft of hair on the deer, a messed up tuft, a tuft of white, etc. Don't just focus on THE deer but a PARTICULAR spot ON the deer.

You'll shooting will improve amazingly well...

I once shot a squirrel off of a tree at about 50 yds + with a brand new recurve bow I had never shot before! Bragging? Not at all. Just shows how well someone CAN shoot IF they put their full concentration into THE shot.

When you go out and practice, take only 6 arrows. Shoot only 6. Make them COUNT. Concentrate on quality not quantity. After you shoot those 6 - go back into the house. Do this everyday. If you feel unfocused, tired, etc - don't shoot. Shoot ONLY when you can give it 110%.

Eventually you'll get the 'feel' for when a shot 'feels right' and when it doesn't even before you shoot.

Good luck.