HH bow grip question

[Buranurra]

Hi all,

I am looking at buying a Howard Hill bow as my first real trad longbow. I currently shoot a Predator recurve and a Toelke Whip D/R.

I don't know what grip to go for, straight or locator. I would appreciate your views.


Cheers
Jase

[centaur]

HH purists will probably recommend the straight grip, but a locator may be easier for your transition. Either one will feel quite a bit different from your other grips. I am a fan of the locator myself, but that is just me. If there is a chance that you can try out a couple of bows with different grips before you buy, that would be a good thing.

[khardrunner]

straight... you can always change it later if you start with a straight

[ChrisM]

Straight with a narrow wedge.  A locator makes it hard to shoot with the right amount of heel pressure.

[SCATTERSHOT]

here's another thought. I have become partial to the dished grip. It's not much different from the straight, and it's more comfortable to me. Sorry to muddy the waters, but ultimately you have to choose what feels best to you.

[Rossco7002]

I switched from shooting a Toelke Whip to HH style longbows. I didn't find it a difficult transition and can swap between straight and dished with no problems. I have a slight preference for the dished grip but (as khardrunner says) if you go straight you can always have it modified later.

[Buranurra]

Many thanks for the responses!

I am undecided on what draw weight to go for. I comfortably shoot 55# on recurve and D/R longbow. I could go up in weight but would also like to be able to use this bow as I get older (I am 45 now)

Any thoughts on this?

[SCATTERSHOT]

I don't know that you would need to drop much in weight, maybe 5#, if you want to. The Tembo model is reported to draw more smoothly than some of the others, due to a fewer number of Laminations.

[Buranurra]

I was going to go for a derivation of the Wesley Special, kind of a cross between this and the Ol one Shot.

[mikebiz]

I would seriously recommend the dished grip.  Or you could go straight.  I feel that the dished settles into the lifeline of the hand better and more comfortably than the straight.  I do not like locators on my Hill bows.  In my opinion they make it far too easy to torque the bow with the bowhand.  The straight or dished wedge grip drastically minimizes this tendency, as long as you use a proper grip.  

I agree with Scattershot.  I think 50-55 would be fine if you can handle that now.  I would also recommend the Tembo.  You don't really need the extra two laminations.  Five lam bows have a lot of extra glue that probably won't gain you all that much.  Just a thought.

Good luck with it with all the decisions.  I've learned a lot from the good folks around here.  You will do the same.  Keep asking questions and enjoy the ride.

[Bill Skinner]

I am another dish fan, and I also like a Tembo, I think they are slightly faster than the Big 5 or the Wesley.  Go for a larger grip over a smaller one, I find the larger grip settles in my hand better.

I prefer an asymmetrical straight grip, you can tell when it is in the wrong hand.

[mikebiz]

The size of the grip should really depend on the size of the shooter's hand.  I have small hands (hold the jokes    and larger grips just don't work.  I've actually sold bows because of that reason alone.  Remember shooting this type of bow is all in the hand placement.  Proper grip is critical.  I was just speaking to a guy who went to Bob Wesley's shooting school.  He was very clear that a proper grip, which is easy to replicate with practice, that the bow will torque and handshock will be felt.  I have found this to be true myself.  

For example I wear a medium glove and most standard sized Hill-style grips are a little too big for me.

[Buranurra]

Great information fellas - many thanks, I will be considering all of this carefully before placing the order.

[William Penn]

After shooting many a straight, locator and dished grip, I clearly prefer dished on HH bow.

[TSP]

Although grip shape can make your experience a little more (or less) comfortable, from a shootability standpoint there is very little difference between a straight, mild dished, and mild locator Hill grip.  Aesthetically I don't care for the looks of locators on Hill bows (a personal thing), but the real key with any of these grip types is to learn how to hold the bow properly in your hand.  For most people what works best with these bows is quite a bit different than what works best for recurves.  

You might do a search on past Hill threads here, there are some good pics posted that can help.  You'll still need to experiment on your own, but the pics are a good starting point.  I find that full hand contact with the grip (hold it like a firm handshake, not like a dainty teacup) makes these bows feel and shoot much better.  Try some different hand holds and see what feels/works best for you. You might also ask the bowyer Craig Ekin what he recommends.  Other than yourself (via some experimentation) nobody else would have better advice on Hill "how-to" than Craig.  

     

[Sam McMichael]

I like both the straight and dished grip on my Hill bows. They just seem to lend themselves to gripping the bow low on the heel of my hand. I have locator grips on other longbows, and they seem to set my grip up more like a recurve. There is nothing wrong with this grip, but I just don't care for it as much.Try the various grips to see what you like best. You will shoot best with the grip you are most comfortable with.

[Buranurra]

THanks for the replies.

Trying different grips before buying is not really an option. I live in Perth - Western Australia and the likelihood of me finding someone with a HH is very slim let alone different grips.

THanks again

Jase

[Canyon]

Jase, you may be surprised to see how many Aussie's are on this site and even more surprised to see how many are shooting Hill's.

[Buranurra]

Originally posted by Canyon:
Jase, you may be surprised to see how many Aussie's are on this site and even more surprised to see how many are shooting Hill's.

Hi Canyon

Yeah, I know there are plenty of Aussies here, in fact I recently hooked up with Slivrslingr from this site to go on a hunt with, which was great fun.

I just didn't think there would be many HH guys in Perth??