Trubl-Shootng-art - 11/24/14

"Trouble Shooting" by The Honorable Christophe of Grey.

NOTE: See also the files: arrows-msg, merch-archery-msg, Arrow-Matchng-art, Arrow-Inspect-art, Arrow-Making-art, arch-supplies-msg, archery-msg, SCA-T-Archery-art.

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NOTICE -

This article was submitted to me by the author for inclusion in this set of files, called Stefan's Florilegium. 

These files are available on the Internet at: http://www.florilegium.org

Copyright to the contents of this file remains with the author or translator.

While the author will likely give permission for this work to be reprinted in SCA type publications, please check with the author first or check for any permissions granted at the end of this file.

Thank you,
Mark S. Harris...AKA:..Stefan li Rous
stefan at florilegium.org
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You can find more of this author's work on his website at:
http://cogworks.wix.com/cogworks

This article was first published in the "The Phoenix", the newsletter of the Barony of Sacred Stone, Atlantia.

Trouble Shooting
by The Honorable Christophe of Grey
 
You tuned your bow, you categorized your arrows for accuracy, you practice your technique often and consistently AND YOU STILL ARE NOT IMPROVING! Frustrating. Welcome to the world of archery. Let's talk about trouble shooting common archery problems.
 
"The arrow falls off the arrow rest when I draw." This happens due to the mechanics of a bow. When you draw the string back, it forms an increasingly sharper angle resulting in your draw fingers pinching the arrow nock. There is a torque in this motion that translates into pulling the arrow off the arrow rest. When you grip the string make sure your fingers are loose about the arrow nock. As you draw back they will naturally tighten around the nock.
 
Arrows hitting high or low. The problem here is that the nock end of the arrow is either high or low for your aim. Inconsistent anchoring changes the rear sight on each shot. Develop a consistent anchor point and stick with it. Are you nocking the arrow snug against the bottom of the nocking point on the bow string? Some archers choose to nock above. Either way, pick one and be consistent. You should also be holding your bow with your hand in the center of the bow, top to bottom. If your hand is not centered, the bow limbs flex inconsistently which changes the energy transferred to the bow string. 

The pressure of the bow should be evenly spread along the palm of your bow hand. If too much heel pressure, arrows go high. Raising or dropping your bow upon release will cause high or low arrows. The arrow is actually still in contact with the bow just after release. Any movement of your bow affects the flight of the arrow. 

If you lean into your draw, moving your head forward to meet your draw hand, your arrows will go low. This technique reduces the draw length and the amount of power stored in the bow limbs. Conversely, if you draw past your anchor point to your shoulder, non-horse bow, your arrows will go high. More energy, more arrow speed, arrows hit high.
 
Left or right arrow hits are common on recurve bows that use an arrow rest and the bow is not held vertical while aiming. Hold your bow hand out with index finger pointed at the target. Rotate your hand. Your aiming point does not change. Now raise the thumb of your bow hand and use the top tip of your thumb as the aiming point. Rotate your hand and watch your aiming point rotate. Also if you pull your draw hand away from your anchor point, that is, away from your body, upon release you pull the back of the arrow with it. This can result in the arrow "swimming" down range and hitting right or left.

Conversely, if the bowstring hits your arm, chest, or clothing upon release it can also cause the arrow to hit right or left as the string is deflected from its normal path. A bowstring hitting clothing also takes some energy out of the string often causing arrows to hit low or fall short.
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Copyright 2014 by John Atkins. <cogworks at triad.rr.com>. Permission is granted for republication in SCA-related publications, provided the author is credited.  Addresses change, but a reasonable attempt should be made to ensure that the author is notified of the publication and if possible receives a copy.

If this article is reprinted in a publication, please place a notice in the publication that you found this article in the Florilegium. I would also appreciate an email to myself, so that I can track which articles are being reprinted. Thanks. -Stefan.

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Edited by Mark S. Harris	Trubl-Shootng-art	2 of 3