# Left Hand need help buying bow.



## da white shoe (Mar 10, 2009)

If that "shop guy" told you to try shooting right handed without knowing which of your eyes is dominate... you need to stay away from there!

That said, he may have been accidently right.
You may be left handed, but that doesn't mean you should be shooting left handed.
It is important to shoot with both eyes open.... with binocular vision, you can direct 100% of your focus on the spot you want to hit and still see the spot with your pin superimposed over it.
To do that, you really want your aiming eye to be dominant or it'll cause all kinds of headaches.
I would make sure which eye is dominant and then go with the corresponding bow.

To find your dominate eye, hold a pencil in both hands like a sword, 
hold your arms out fully extended,
then, pick out a door knob or some other small object across the room.
With both eyes open... bring your arms up until the tip of the pencil is on the spot.
When you close one eye, if the pencil is still on the spot... your open eye is dominate. 

Most any shop will be able to order a lefty bow, but you'll be limited to what they have in stock when trying them out.
Archers Afield in Tigard has a pretty large selection. 
There's a really good shop in Salem, but I can't remember the name of it. I could find out, if you need me to.


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## aread (Dec 25, 2009)

It's not too much better for right handed, but short draw archers too. I've never been able to shoot a 26.5" target bow before I bought it. I've learned to base my purchases on the bows specs. The taller you are the longer ATA that you need. If you plan to shoot enough to get good at target archery, your shoulders will thank you for a lower draw weight. Higher brace height is also good. I just find a bow that I'm interested in, check the specs against what fits me, read up on what other AT members say about it and buy the bow without shooting it. The only time I had problems was a bow that I would have bought even if I had been able to shoot it before the purchase. Fortunately, I was able to sell the bow for a little more than I paid for it.

Much of how a bow feels to shoot depends on how well it is set up for the individual archer. Some of the things that can change the feel of a bow are draw length, peep height, cam rotation & tiller. There are other things but these are the ones that I start with. I find that it really doesn't matter what specific bow that I shoot as long as it fits me. You will read posts here on AT that a new bow "holds on target better than any other bow I've ever shot". In truth, the bow design has little to do with how well it holds. It's how well the bow fits and how good the archer's form that determines how well a bow holds.

And don't wait on "some day" to compete. Do it sooner. There are two skills required to be a good target archer. One is to shoot X's. The other is to shoot X's under the pressure of a tournement. You should practice both. The more you shoot in competition, the easier it will be to shoot well under pressure. Everybody started somewhere & no one will critisize you for beginner level scores. They will just be happy that they have another shooter supporting the shoot.

Allen


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