Has anyone tried a release with a longbow or other? I'd like to fool with one here in the off season & check out the accuracy difference with a cleaner string release. I know it's not for all but I love fiddling with things & make things fresh! (grin) Hand-held or wrist release better? Thanks!
ElkNut1
Hand held, and you will neet a snug nock fit, and maybe a nock under(depends on the type of release,rope or hook).
Easy enough to try. Maybe a loop? You really like to stir the pot ;)
No Sir, no pot stirring intended! I'm serious as a heart attack in seeing the performance difference between my fingers releasing the string as opposed to a release aid. If it's significant I would seriously consider it for hunting purposes. It's the off season for myself so a perfect time to experiment! (grin)
So I'm looking for guys who have tried it! It just may save me a little trial & error! Thanks!
ElkNut1
I fooled with using one a couple years back when I had a Morrison Cheyenne. I used a loop and wrist release. The accuracy is much better since you are taking your fingers out of the picture eliminating poor release and string torque. You also pull more consistently with your back since the release is around your wrist. It seemed like a compromise between trad and wheels. If I ever develop arthritis bad enough, I might do just that.
Arthritis in my hands and fingers makes it impossible to shoot more than a few shots with fingers. Even after a few shots my fingers are so sore I can't shoot for a week. So I got a Trophy Hunter release and have never looked back.Having the strap around my wrist allowes me to pull 10# more with comfort and it is way more accurate than sore fingers.You need a fairly snug fit between nock and serving and I nock under my tied on nock point to keep the arrow from slipping up the string when you draw.I know its not trad but my choise is shoot with a realease or not shoot at all. Bob
It is still trad in my eyes when you shoot a bow with no let off and no sights. Some times you have to do what you have to do to play you favorite sport. Incidentally, I had 3 smashed fingers when I tried the release. I can vouch first hand that it allowed me to shoot but with more consistency. Accuracy is still all up to you.
My wife, Greywolf has finger problems as well. Arthur has set in and she can not shoot fingers. I put a ultra nock (metal loop)solid on string of a Recurve bow we just got her. This does away with pinching agaisn't the arrow on a short bow, and bought her a Winn release. She can pull back with her wrist and grab the bar in it easy enough. And a touch of the trigger she is in busniess. She shoots it pretty darn good,this way. She wants to stay as traditonal as possible and no training wheels. This is the only way we will do it and have her shoot acurately..
I shoot my longbow with a release. Not an over the counter job but one I made myself. The problem I found with switching to a release was that most of them would cause me to lose drawlength or change my corner of the mouth anchor to maintain drawlength. I shoot instinctive so changing my sight picture was out of the question. This is what I came up with,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VOUSesQJuk4
This is the very first one I made and it has been refined since. It's latest incarnation is as quiet as shooting fingers.
Deadsmple, do you have a picture or two of your release ??
i played around with a carter release a few rounds,very accurate but to me it doesn't feel like traditional anymore.
Deadsmple, what in the world was that thing in your hand? It doesn't look like a release!
Guys, do not feel like you have to explain yourself why or who uses a release. It doesn't matter to me what an individual shoots or hunts with, use what works, if it's legal I'm all for it!
I personally enjoy the weight & feel of my longbow but if I can better myself so the arrow is delivered in a more superior manner then I'm all for it. I want to dispatch all animals as humanely & quickly as possible, I find most issues stem from ones release of the string & I'm no exception! (grin)
I'm really not concerned who feels what about some who wish to experiment with such ideas, just looking for some info from those who have tinkered with it & what releases seem to have the advantages. I too would assume a wrist release would allow ones to draw the wt. easier as CanadaBowyer mentions. Thanks!
ElkNut1
QuoteOriginally posted by elknut1:
I want to dispatch all animals as humanely & quickly as possible, I find most issues stem from ones release of the string & I'm no exception! (grin)
I'm really not concerned who feels what about some who wish to experiment with such ideas, just looking for some info from those who have tinkered with it & what releases seem to have the advantages. I too would assume a wrist release would allow ones to draw the wt. easier as CanadaBowyer mentions. Thanks! ElkNut1
Couldn't agree more. "Traditional" like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder. Once you get past whether the bow has wheels or not, the definitions really start to become matters of taste or preference and in the final analysis "all tastes are tastes." (Quote is Kurt Vonnegut.)
Here's a pick of the release used in my little video. This was my first attempt at making these so it's not the one I'm currently using. The one I'm currently using much quieter than this one.
(http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o108/tgdeadsmple/release013.jpg)
Elknut1, I recently went to a handheld release with my recurve. ( I had the handheld laying around, so that's the reason for that choice.) When I used to shoot a compound, I used a release because of a severe case of target panic. The panic is still there, and after a handful of misses on a mulie hunt in September, I tried the release with my release. Besides the nock-set above, I put two nock-sets below the nock and anchor along my cheekbone. That combination gives me a similar point of impact as my shooting three-under, plus it doesn't go off uncontrolled. Give it a try, and good luck. Let me know if you have any questions.
knobby, great info, thank you! It just so happens I too am a 3 finger under shooter at present as well. The hand held may just be the ticket to try & still maintain my same draw length, what do you think, did your draw length shorten at all that you may have noticed?
ElkNut1
I tried my Winn Free Flight and just didnt like it. It did make the bow easier to pull, but I wasnt as accurate with it. It seemed loud to me also.....Roy
Thanks, you're the 2nd one that has mentioned the noise/loudness of the shot? I never considered that to be a factor, interesting! I'll keep that in mind! Thanks!
ElkNut1
Elknut1, I'd say I may have lost a half inch in draw length, probably not even that much. I guess I wouldn't worry about that at all.
The noise factor that was mentioned is something that I,too, thought about, because it does seem louder...to the shooter! We were shooting at deer camp yesterday, and one friend commented on how quiet my bow is. I was surprised, because I thought it was louder with the release. Fellow member Schlaggerman agreed that it still is quiet. The noise I'm hearing as the shooter, is because the release is right next to my ear. That explains what I hear, verus what the non-shooter hears.
I'm using a Tru-Fire Stalker release, but I'd bet that most releases could be used. It just takes a little time getting used to the feel of a slightly different anchor.
knobby
This thread is very timely for me as I've been thinking of using a release also, for a number of reasons. I do have a few questions.
First, will a release cause accelerated wear on the string? Would it be better to use a loop on the string?
Second, is using a release harder on the bow limbs than finger shooting? I was thinking that using a release causes more vibration and is more stressful on the limbs. I could be way off base.
Thanks,
Tony
TC,
Yes it will increase wear on the serving. That's why I now double serve the contact area of my serving with mono. Which actually serves two purposes, it protects the string and also acts as a nock point.
A string loop would probably be the best as far as string life but, I personally don't like the idea of using a string loop because I don't want to lose any draw length, however small.
As far as being harder on the limbs? I would say no, I can't think of how it would be harder but then again I might be the one that's way off base here. I just don't know.
I had a homemade rope release at one time. I wish I could remember where it is or how it was made, I'd try it again after season. I have enough "arther" issues now-days I might see it in a more serious light than I did 10 years ago.
It was a simple looking device but worked slick as a whistle. But it wasn't traditional enough for me back then..hahaha
TC, I too feel the loop would take a bit out of the draw length but not a big enough deal to be concerned with. I used a string loop on the compounds I used to shoot, thing is I always had mine very short in comparisons to others, just enough to snap on the jaws. I always would finger nail polish or flecth tite the string loop part itself & that would make it stiff as wire, it was quick & easy to get the release on without looking at the loop with practice.
Too, I feel I would be way less apt to short drawing with a release than fingers, this is especially so during crunch time hunting! Nothing written in stone yet but will try a few out for the fun of it. (grin) I feel with a cleaner release I'll add speed, penetration & great arrow flight, it should give me the best my bow has to offer & that instills confidence! These are very important to me on a hunting rig setup! Good Luck guys!
ElkNut1
i do not "fool around" with using a mechanical release aid in shooting a longbow (and recurves)...that's the ONLY way i shoot.
there's NO reason you cannot do it.
yes, i've used a loop, too...it works just fine.
you just have to work out what release works to your satisfaction and whether or not you wish to use a string loop.
my recurves are set up to shoot off the shelf, with a 3/8" above horozontal nockset and my preference is the tru-fire 3d hand held as it has a head that rotates 360* in either direction allowing canting of the bow. (any rotating head will work fine if you don't use a string loop, though...the sting loop will allow 'cant' very easily, too)
i currently have a howatt bushmaster set up with a string loop.
i find i can shoot a 10-15 heavier bow with a release aid, too...it relieves pressure from the fingers.
i can give you better details if you want to EM/PM me.