# Paper Tuning - why the controversy?



## nickp15 (Sep 27, 2013)

New to bow hunting as well.. Got my diamond infinite edge in February and paper tuned it recently for the upcoming season... Allowed me to realize my rest was slightly moved to the left.. I don't see how there could possibly be a bad thing to paper tuning


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## jlh42581 (Oct 21, 2009)

The deal is that a lot of the people who wanna cry about it dont know how to do it, not all but a lot. Guys who only own a block target with no where to shoot through paper and too lazy to make a setup. It gets it very close to broadhead tune.


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## dwagoner (Sep 27, 2007)

well he yolk tuned the bow and not paper tuned it, big difference. now if you said he shot it thru paper and thats it then you could say he paper tuned only. but that was a starting point and just cause after you got FP and BH tuned that it shot thru paper cleanly again doesnt mean thats all that was done. you said it took several trips inside and outside to get arrows flying together to 40yds so that says you did more than just shoot thru paper....


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## TrueTalker101 (Feb 20, 2011)

shaking my head!!!


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## huteson2us2 (Jun 22, 2005)

Paper tuning is a great first step but not the final step. We had an archer years ago we called "Great Scott". He would shoot six arrows into the 10 ring at 90 meters and then shoot through paper that he always brought with him. He would adjust the bow until he shot a perfect hole with a bare shaft. Then he would spread his arrows over the entire target, but he would be happy.

I tried to tell him that the archer with the best hole through paper is not the winner. It is the archer that shoots the best group. Paper tuning puts you in the ball park to start group tuning. It does not matter which method you use to group tune, only that you end up with all your arrows in the spot at close distance and long distance. Nuts & Bolts method is a little more involved than mine, but will work as well if not better than others.


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## aread (Dec 25, 2009)

Those who discount the value of paper tuning seem to fall into two groups. One, archers who don't have good enough form to shoot a bullet hole, no matter how well tuned the bow is. The other is those who don't know enough about tuning to know what to do when nock and rest adjustments don't give them a bullet hole.

The point has been made countless times here. Paper tuning is a tool. Any tool is only as useful as the operators ability to use it.

JMHO,
Allen


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## threetoe (May 13, 2011)

It just lets you know when the arrow is coming off the string clean and straight.

It's pretty much useless past 30 feet because by then the veins take over.
BUT
If the arrow is coming off sideways the veins have a hard time compensating.

It is the starting point to perfection.
It is NOT perfection itself.


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## SonnyThomas (Sep 10, 2006)

Paper tuning is but one step of tuning a bow. Some us tune using different methods other than paper tuning. What I look for shooting through paper is the arrow coming out of the bow cleanly. No contact and no radical tears I go with Modified French Tuning and if necessary tweak from there. For long distance such as Outdoor target or Field I go with French tuning and it works for hunting bow.

More often than not Modified French tuning does a great job out to 40 yards and more. French tuning takes it farther. Once either method is complete one can play with the rest height or nocking point to see if groups can be tightened. My hunting bow was done with these methods and will tack drive fixed broadheads, mechanical broadheads and field points out to 40 yards. I don't shoot farther than 40 yards when hunting. In fact 90% of my deer kills probably fall 25 yards and less. My longest ever shot was a measured 36 yards and a clean kill. I can't even remember shooting through paper with my hunting bow. 

A big problem with paper tuning is the one doing the shooting. I mean, if your grip isn't correct or have bad form you're going to have paper tears that won't go away, get worse or even change directions. I've said it many times, I don't paper tune for some one. They can shoot through paper and I'll help adjust. 

So you noted yoke tuning. Well, how do yoke tune a bow that has a floating yoke? How do you yoke tune a bow that doesn't have a yoke?

Target bows aren't tuned to shoot fixed broadheads, but are decidedly dead accurate out to ranges well beyond the norm, 80 and 100 yards.

And so what if you field points and fixed broads don't impact together? Are you hunting with field points or fixed broadheads? Final word for hunting is to sight in with the broadhead you're using.

All fixed broadheads are not created equal. Some are finicky and more.

And box stores. I worked at one right before deer season. Three of us sent out something of 150 bows 2 weeks before season. These bows were either new, had new strings or new rests installed, and basic tune jobs. People killed deer with these bows. And then figure the average distance for whitetail deer kills is still 19 yards.

Working at archery shop I've had bows come in that looked like warmed over death and the owners were killing deer with them. All that was wanted was a new d-loop or different peep or something else, but they weren't asked to be tuned. One was a Hoyt with the timing so far off it was unbelievable. I told the owner and he said leave it as he had already killed a deer and when he filled his last tag he'd bring it back to be timed. How do you argue with that?

When all is said and done, what works for you works for you.


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## dwagoner (Sep 27, 2007)

SonnyThomas said:


> A big problem with paper tuning is the one doing the shooting. I mean, if your grip isn't correct or have bad form you're going to have paper tears that won't go away, get worse or even change directions. I've said it many times, I don't paper tune for some one. They can shoot through paper and I'll help adjust..


HAHA i have a huge hole in garage from showing a buddy this, he had a nasty 8" left tear and i told him "gimme ur bow" shot above his tear and missed the target OH SNAP the easton 2712 was jammen into solid wood garage door into house HAHA sweet it stopped arrow, but i told him "look at paper now" and it was perfect hole. he fixed grip quickly and shoots lights out after that.

grip matters a TON......


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## SonnyThomas (Sep 10, 2006)

Dennis, more shops would be better off if they didn't paper tune. If they say they paper tuned the bow and the owner goes home and shoots through paper? Yeah, bad rip and the guy at the archery shop doesn't know crap about tuning a bow and tells everybody and their brother. Shop gets a bad wrap... Cheeezzzzzz. 

Too long a draw length and over bowed fall right in with bad grip.

Same with a junk bow, new, but junk. Had this new bow in and it wouldn't tune. Test shots through paper show a nock high tear of 2 inches and more. Found limbs mis-matched from the factory. Told the owner. Owner ain't believing me and takes it to two other shops. How I found out? He brings it back to me with a new set of limbs to install. Bow tuned in no time. I should have charged him double. Hard telling how many he told I didn't know what I was doing.....


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## Geeman (Nov 28, 2011)

ok, I am new to tuning but here is what is happening. I shoot a Bear Carnage, 61lbs, mechanical release, 28 inch draw length, 27 inch Beman 400 ICS Hunters with 100 grain field tip and Blazer vanes, right helical, use a Rip cord code red drop away rest. Vane does not hit anything after tweaking the knock.

At 6 yards and 20 yards I think I am getting bullet holes. and at target distances I am way happy with how the bow performs. I decide to shoot a bare shaft into paper and at 6 yards the back end of the arrow is all messed up when it flies, tearing a big hole bottom left in the paper. Is it not supposed to fly straight? Should I have tried shooting more than one bare shaft arrow or should I just forget about it, of course it is bothering me now.


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## SonnyThomas (Sep 10, 2006)

Geeman said:


> ok, I am new to tuning but here is what is happening. I shoot a Bear Carnage, 61lbs, mechanical release, 28 inch draw length, 27 inch Beman 400 ICS Hunters with 100 grain field tip and Blazer vanes, right helical, use a Rip cord code red drop away rest. Vane does not hit anything after tweaking the knock.
> 
> At 6 yards and 20 yards I think I am getting bullet holes. and at target distances I am way happy with how the bow performs. I decide to shoot a bare shaft into paper and at 6 yards the back end of the arrow is all messed up when it flies, tearing a big hole bottom left in the paper. Is it not supposed to fly straight? Should I have tried shooting more than one bare shaft arrow or should I just forget about it, of course it is bothering me now.


6 to 8 feet is the distance to use for either bare shaft or fletched. What tear is there will give you direction to correct center shot. If high tear and left or right, correct the left or right, then the height. If a low tear you have issues, either nockpoint, arrow rest or timing or a combination.
Getting a decent tear up close, 6 to 8 feet, you can then move back and see if improvement can be made. Happy at the longer distance, try longer. Now, a bare shaft is sensitive to movement so use tiny increments.
With longer distance I'd suggest weighting the arrow with the same weight as the vanes to used. Electrical tape or scotch tape will suffice if using a drop rest.

Okay, I was sort of brief... Hope the above helps.


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## Geeman (Nov 28, 2011)

thanks, I will give it a try


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