April 25, 2008

archery arm

archery arm

archery arm
While practicing archery the bow string grazes my left elbow. What do I do?

I keep my left arm pretty straight holding the bow, and I pull the string with my right hand. But when I leave the string (and the arrow) it grazes my left elbow. Can you suggest a suitable correction in the technique? A video clip demonstrating a similar problem anywhere on the internet is greatly appreciated.

Travis S is correct...but only a slightly, if at all. The Number One cause of "string slap", whether on elbow or forearm, is not too long a draw -- it is poor shooting form. I know too many people with "excessively long" draw lengths who do not have any trouble with "string slap" at all (Korean archers draw upwards of 34 inches, and they don't have problems...). Pull your bow's string to full draw as though you are actually shooting, but without an arrow (don't want any accidents here if you happen to slip), and look at your left arm. Is your elbow protruding into the path of the string in any way? If it is, you need to work on your shooting form... (ok, you can let down the string now... no, don't just let go of it, ease it down)

Look through and use the following links to learn good shooting form; they may be "optimised" for use with Traditional and Primitive bows (especiaslly the "Ten Steps"), but the methods just happen to also work with compound bows.

http://sagittarius.student.utwente.nl/artikel/steps/

http://paleoplanet69529.yuku.com/forums/59

The "Ten Steps" are mostly guides; there is some room for individual "style" in each Step. The one thing which must always be remembered is to do each step as close to exactly the same **every time you do it**. Consistency is the key to good form, and good form is a major key to accuracy.

Now, if it is only your elbow which is "at fault", you probably need only rotate the elbow joint out of the way. Make sure the inside of the joint is turned toward the string -- not "up-n-down" or outwards. If this doesn't work, you will have to keep your elbow slightly bent when you shoot.

If you are twisting your body -- and therefor your bowarm -- in order to reach full draw (and to hold it), you need to get a bow with a lower draw weight. Too high a draw weight always leads to poor form, which in turn leads to poor accuracy.

I hope this helps you in finding , and curing, the problem you are having with "string slap".

Archery Info: Finding Your Arm Draw Length