I have been fooling with changing up the way I grip the bow. A mentor of mine noticed that I torque the bow. I Especially a longbow . I shoot with a straight wrist. Ive tried the " loose grip" but everytime ive nearly had my bow hit me in the face.
Im also curious if the various styles of risers and grips can can help an archer to properly grip the bow and as well as not twisting it. I have small hands so I tend to really like a grip I can Really wrap my hand around and get a comfortable grip. I dont know if I like a low, medium, Or , high grip just as long aitI cab easily wrap my hand around it.
I guess I'm trying to ask if finding the proper grip angle/ diameter can assist me in improving my form and accuracy . What works for you.. And why?
chance, years ago I struggled with this as well and learned that regardless of the shape of the grip, I now grip it tight and make sure the heel of my hand is down and in full contact. its what works best for me because it is the easiest for me to repeat and have consistent pressure shot after shot. I do not torque the bow.
I do not know that one style of grip works better than another, only to say find what you prefer. at one time I thought the medium wrist grip was ideal, but now prefer a low locator type grip. I am most comfortable and consistent with this style grip.
Sure sounds like your torqueing the bow. When you say "how do you properly grip your bow", that can be a really loaded question especially on the LW.
Coach Lee and Coach Kim suggest the bow ride on your life line out to your thumb with knuckles at a 45. I would suggest and they would NOT, thumb and forefinger touching, the rest curled naturally maybe not even on the bow.
For me, my middle finger is on the front of the riser and the other two are just curled not touching the bow.
Coaches suggest using a sling and that's way we as trad have to modify a bit. I think you'll find that all the top shooter have their bow on the life line out to the thumb.
It would be pretty rare for a top shooter to 'grip' the bow.
Wow. A tough question to answer since it's such a personal thing. Some can actually grip the bow and shoot well, I can't. That doesn't mean either of us does it wrong and therein lies the problem. You really need to find where it's both comfortable and effective. You can "grip" the bow as long as you aren't twisting it, so there again it becomes a personal thing of finding a grip that works that way with your style.
Don't get too discouraged. Just play with some different styles, but make sure you are not struggling to maintain something that should feel pretty natural. You can pretty well throw away all the standard answers and get to work. I personally need the weight pushing on the web of my thumb/hand; not a straight wrist for sure, but not tightly gripping the bow. My fingers wrap around it comfortably if not snug. I wish I could be more definitive, but alas I can't.
Just enough finger touching to not lose the bow (or open with a sling).As you draw, just let the bow fill up your hand as it wants to. Keep your hand/palm muscles relaxed and don't flex them into the bow.
By letting the bow "float", it will naturally settle straight as you draw. Many people are drawing at a different angle than they are holding the bow. This causes sideways pressure. It REALLY affects your shot. I can see in my arrow flight if I just push in the slightest amount with one of my fingers.
I have a loose wrist sling installed on my bows that have bushings and I have tied a paracord loop onto my bows that don't.
I shoot a recurve with a medium wrist, pressure of the bow on the life line. Randy Ulmer gives great advice on the bow hand, and I use it shooting my recurve.
That being said, I struggled for months learning to shoot the Tribe Halo riser, learning to grip the bow tight with a lower wrist. Once I learned that, the bow shot great. Only issue is that shooting a low wrist compared to a high wrist or medium wrist shortened by draw length and I had to retune and cut arrows down.
Shooting a heavy riser and shooting a longbow grip type bow are very different. With a heavy ILF thing the type compound gripping works find not so good when shooting a stickbow. This are the root to alot of strange coaching.
I also shoot Selfbows, have owned 3 different Hills, and a few lightweight vintage recurves, as well as a lightweight ILF. I shoot them all loose. But that's just what works for me. I'll never go back to the "Grip it Like a Suitcase".
I find no advantage to a tight grip. UNLESS the bow isn't balanced in your hand (and then you need a new bow!). I had a 50's Herters that had an odd grip placement. It took me a while to find the right pressure point to get it to balance.
You have to work into your own style no one can lead you. You have to feel comfortable with what you alone decide and then perfect it. As long and your not torquing and clinching. You need to come up with your own style of shooting and settle into it. You might change up several times before you settle into being comfortable. Grips are so overrated and archer should be able to pick up and bow regardless of grip and shoot it.
I shoot like Ron - except for being right handed and not near as good! I have a couple dozen bows hanging around of all sorts of styles and grip them all the same. It is something I have done so long that I just don't give it much thought. I agree that you have to find what works for you.
"Only issue is that shooting a low wrist compared to a high wrist or medium wrist shortened by draw length and I had to retune and cut arrows down."
You must've left out a step or two.... Shorter DL means lower DW means lower Spine requirement, and cutting arrows shorter increases Spine.
But overall, I have the same issue - not too long a draw length to begin with, so I'm loathe to give any up. But with the longbows, anyway, I seem to gain enough consistency by letting the grip settle solidly into my hand that it's worth a few feet per second. My recurves.... those I can shoot high wrist (with the heel of my hand up off of the grip) and not notice any big change in my consistency.
There probably is One Correct Technique for Olympic style, but with the stripped- down equipment that most of us prefer, I think individual styles and results will vary....
Within reason.
Because as a rule in sports and some other things.... Usually if something REALLY unorthodox is working for someone, it means that they've stumbled onto a correction for some undetected form issue. Either that or they have a physical gift or such extraordinarily GOOD technique (or both!) such that they can simply do things that 99.95% of the population never could, under any circumstances whatsoever.
George, perfect alinement? Are you talking about my nose in relation to the sand pile in the background? haha.
I shoot with a "dead release", .."upon release both hands do nothing"
A lot of the good shooters shoot the power archery style where the release hand comes back along the shoulder. That's a good style but I've shot the D R for so long it's too late to change, plus it works for me. I ihink the two most important things with any style is the 2 C's,... "concentration and consistancey"
'I got a hold of it' When I pick up a bow the fist thing I do is squeeze the grip until the resin is leaking out of the riser wood and the tips are quivering. I get a hold of it. As soon as I begin the draw I lighten up. When I was shooting target bows years ago, I got use to the wrist strap and shooting open handed. When I would shoot at those blue and white targets with longbows, I tended to open up my hand and drop the bow. 'Make up your mind boys'. I grip my bows so they do not torque when I put a bit of heeled pressure on them, not hard but just enough to not drop them. I think I may put a bit of squeeze on when shooting real fast at jumped rabbits and pheasants.
I heel a bow,high grip and hold it not tight but firm But i shoot longbows mostly minamal dish in straight handle I think everyone should play around and find what works for them with a certain style if bow
I let the bow do its work with as little interference as possible. I let the handle push against the heel of my hand and settle into my grip, which actually isn't a grip at all in the technical sense. Bow torque from solid grab -'Imma grab that mother and tell it who's boss'- will make you pull your hair out trying to figure out whats wrong.
