# Arrows veering to right



## neptar (Apr 25, 2016)

I am currently doing a beginner course.

Started barebow and was getting pretty consistent groupings. Switched to freestyle and suddenly all my arrows were going to the right. They seem to be bending to the right. One coach said he'd spotted why, and told me it's because I am looking wrong side of the string. So he taught me about the string picture. I shoot left handed, so he told me to set the sight in line with the center of the bow and the string and when I draw the string should be to the left of the sight. He said if I could see the string on the right of the sight then my shots would go to the right all the time. Yet when I try this they are going to the right. When I picture it all in my head, it seems to make more sense the arrow would go to the right the more i put my string to the left of the sight...

The only why I can hit central is to aim to the left. Every now and then I get one arrow that doesn't seem to veer to the right and seems to travel straight.

I feel the coaches aren't really helping at the moment. Just keeps saying the same things but nothing is changing. I am trying to listen and do what he says, but I think I am losing confidence in the coaches. Groupings are getting a bit better but I still think my groupings were better when I first started doing barebow.


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## Bowmania (Jan 3, 2003)

Did you ever think that if the coach keeps telling you the same thing and nothing is changing, that you're not doing what the coach is telling you? If you change anything on your end, that should change something on the target end. 

I'm not a sight shooter so I don't know that issue. You may have a tuning problem with the "bending of the arrow". 

Maybe Viper will see this and address the sight issue.

Bowmania


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## Hank D Thoreau (Dec 9, 2008)

The coach is telling you where to align the string relative to the sight. Try an experiment. Pick a few locations from your riser to your aperture and see how the arrows move. See if you can make the arrows bend in the opposite direction. This will show you how it works and how to control it. Next will be to see if there is anything that needs to be fixed.

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk


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## neptar (Apr 25, 2016)

I have tried what they say. But the arrows are still curving to the right, they may well hit the middle sometimes when I am a bit left, but they are still swerving in the air to the right. So my point is it's something else that is causing them to bend to the right. Maybe my release? I've tried everything they say, and it's just giving me no consistency. Every now and then I will get one that feels good and goes straight but I don't know what I am doing different. Probably because I am concentrating so hard on the things they are telling me. They have had pieces of paper covering one side of the bow to make sure I am targeting right. So I just wondered if anyone knew what specifically would cause an arrow to swerve to one side?


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## RickRendo (Jan 31, 2014)

I would start over and re-tune the arrows or try to. It maybe more a spine issue then where to set the string or it could be in your release of the string.


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## Halfcawkt (Dec 27, 2015)

Can't believe it took so long for someone to mention possibly weak arrows. That is my first thought, but almost confirmed when the term curving right is used.

Don't know your freestyle set up, but I would guess arrow is borderline weak for the current state of tune. This could explain the occasional good arrow with a slightly different release from time to time.

Plunger position or tension could be adjusted or even different arrows.

Consulting with coach would be wise. I shoot off the shelf, but strike plate thickness changes require different arrow setups for me. It amazes me how much a small change in thickness changes arrow requirements for true shots.

Always refer to those with more experience than I have when in doubt. Hank's idea about playing with alignment and making note of the results sounds like the first stop on the road to correction, though.


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## Halfcawkt (Dec 27, 2015)

Sorry, possibly stiff, forgot to account for lefthandedness.


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## Halfcawkt (Dec 27, 2015)

Other point you have probably covered... You're not shooting cross eye dominate are you?


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## Thin Man (Feb 18, 2012)

Hello. 

I'll leave the sight picture issue to the others. 

You state that sometimes you catch a great shot yet don't quite know why. And, since you are being coached, I'll assume that you have been working on changing (improving) various technical elements of the alignment, draw, anchor, etc. Some of these elements may still be in a state of inconsistent flux. 

I'll point out a couple of mistakes that cause my arrows to veer off similarly to yours ... not that they may apply to your situation ... but as food for thought and possible elimination as culprits.

If I "collapse" during the loose my arrow will veer either left or low-left (I'm a RH shooter - think "right" for your LH translation). Collapsing can occur either within the bow arm's alignment or within the draw fingers. At the moment of loose, if I do not have a deliberate rearwards pull opposite the target, I can find that my bow arm has crept (collapsed) slightly forward towards the target and loosed the arrow in front of my original anchor, resulting in a sideways shot. I can also perform the same mistake within my draw fingers, accidentally allowing them to "lead" - or want to prematurely open - the loose, rather than exploding open at the moment of truth. This also results in a sideways shot. 

I can also collapse (and with increasing frequency) if the bow's draw weight is on the high side of my being able to comfortably dominate its weight ... and it don't take much overage to induce this. I must be significantly stronger than my bow and able to comfortably (if not effortlessly!) achieve exactly the alignments I desire in order to perform a repeatable and accurate shot. I shoot a variety of draw weights, and can easily note when a particular bow is just a tad stronger than me. I may be good for a few shots on a bow such as this, but over the course of a long session the bow dominates me, rather than the other way around. Collapsing becomes unavoidable.

Another problem that produces a sideways shot for me is to over-extend my bow arm. When I do this (and it is a sneaky one, for it is comfortable up to a point), my bow is now pointing off into a sideways configuration ... though my aim looks normal to me. In other words, I am holding the bow overly-extended and subtly rotated within my hand to the side, and therefore pointing it directly into the mistake zone. Might be a well-aimed and accurate shot ... but inadvertently pointed in the wrong direction!

Newton's "Equal and Opposite" Law applies to many components of the archery shot, especially at the moment of the loose. The mechanical physics of leverage applies to the draw fingers as they unfurl. Anything out of whack within the holistic combination of technical elements at the very moment of the loose will corrupt the shot to some degree. 

And, as mentioned above, spine and tuning likewise come into play. However, even a reasonable mismatch of arrow and bow should present a fairly repeatable shot so long as the archer's technique is also repeatable.

For contemplation purposes if only to eliminate possible variables. 

Good luck.


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## gnome (Oct 22, 2006)

neptar said:


> I shoot left handed





Halfcawkt said:


> Can't believe it took so long for someone to mention possibly weak arrows. That is my first thought, but almost confirmed when the term curving right is used.
> 
> 
> Always refer to those with more experience than I have when in doubt. Hank's idea about playing with alignment and making note of the results sounds like the first stop on the road to correction, though.


I am a left handed shooter, and for me, impacting to the right means the arrow is acting stiff.
Silly question, but will moving the sight fix the problem?


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## Easykeeper (Jan 2, 2003)

Maybe I'm really oversimplifying this in my head, but if you are using a sight and consistently hitting to the right can't you just move the sight?

Assuming you are shooting fletched shafts your arrows aren't curving in flight. They may drift due to wind, but in general they are following a straight path along the direction you point them.

Posted the same time as gnome, at least if my idea was too simple I have a companion to shucks around with.


neptar, your question might be better answered in the FITA forum. Most people who post here aren't using sights or shooting Oly style...http://www.archerytalk.com/vb/forumdisplay.php?f=24


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## fieldnfeathers (Nov 7, 2013)

Easykeeper said:


> Maybe I'm really oversimplifying this in my head, but if you are using a sight and consistently hitting to the right can't you just move the sight?
> 
> Assuming you are shooting fletched shafts your arrows aren't curving in flight. They may drift due to wind, but in general they are following a straight path along the direction you point them.
> 
> ...


^^^This. You can either move your sight to the right until you're hitting center again, move your string blur to the right, or a combination of both. I'd make sure your arrows are of proper spine first, then move on to fine tuning your sight and string blur.


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## neptar (Apr 25, 2016)

Thanks for the replies. Lots of food for thought here! I could move the sight and adjust that way. But I think it's technique that's causing the arrows to curve to the right. I can physically see them curl from going gold and then bend like a soccer ball to the right.

At the moment I don't have my own bow, I am using their bow with their arrows. The arrows are too long for me, because they use the same for everyone, and I guess they don't want a situation where someone tall could overdraw. Maybe with my own bow and arrows suited to my dimensions I might do better.

Thin man offered a few pointers that I will try next time. It's just so difficult as a beginner to be truly consistent when you are being told about your hips, head, feet, draw, back etc. It's so much to try and think about. Slowly but surely I feel I am getting most of it right. I am happy with grouping, just need to tweak a little to straighten out my arrows. Thanks again for all the advice.


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## Bowmania (Jan 3, 2003)

Did they give you a Thermaband - rubber band tied in a loop? Get one and use it as bow. When you're at full draw with the band you should have about 15 pounds of resistance (10 is OK, wouldn't go higher than 20). You have all the time in the world to think about your hips, head, feet...BUT once you start the "draw" time goes faster and you have to KNOW what happens next - anchor, transfer to hold, aim, expand, release... With 15 pounds of resistance you can think a lot longer on the 'stuff' after draw.

Don't worry that sequence will become automatic and not a problem when "time" speed up.

Bowmania


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## DDSHOOTER (Aug 22, 2005)

neptar said:


> I am currently doing a beginner course.
> 
> Started barebow and was getting pretty consistent groupings. Switched to freestyle and suddenly all my arrows were going to the right. They seem to be bending to the right. One coach said he'd spotted why, and told me it's because I am looking wrong side of the string. So he taught me about the string picture. I shoot left handed, so he told me to set the sight in line with the center of the bow and the string and when I draw the string should be to the left of the sight. He said if I could see the string on the right of the sight then my shots would go to the right all the time. Yet when I try this they are going to the right. When I picture it all in my head, it seems to make more sense the arrow would go to the right the more i put my string to the left of the sight...
> 
> ...


Try this.







or this







or this







Did your coach test you to see if your left eye dominate?
You must start out straight then start to push all these things to the right until you get left eye alignment with the target.


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## Azzurri (Mar 10, 2014)

Occasional wide shots may be torqueing or form glitches. Repeated wides check centershot and arrow spine.

My two cents from recent experience tuning my Olympic bow is if the bow/arrow aren't tuned together, and the bareshaft is dramatically off, your best fletched shots may still go middle but anything else wants to take off towards the bareshaft. In my case, when I started the bareshaft was way off paper and the poorer shots wanted to follow it. I ultimately dropped down a spine and then the bareshaft stayed on paper and I could tune reasonably, and once tuned the groups tightened and the veering ceased. Combination of arrow choice and later plunger tuning.

Try shooting a bareshaft and see if that does an even more dramatic right hook than the fletched.


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## Azzurri (Mar 10, 2014)

I buy that string alignment/variance can affect grouping or which side they land but in that case assuming tune the arrows should fly straight but just land in ways reflecting the consistency or inconsistency of the alignment. If an arrow is actually kicking/curving/landing at an angle that to me is usually either nock height up down or tune left right.


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## JasonJ (Feb 10, 2016)

The other test is to have another archer shoot the same setup, same bow, same arrows and sight and see what kind of consistent results they get. If the arrows fly true, it's clearly archers form and fault.. if they get similar results to the OP, I'd be looking at a mis-adjusted sight, or mi-matched arrows to the bow.


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## neptar (Apr 25, 2016)

First thing we did was check which was my dominant eye, my left eye is the dominant eye. I am a bit strange as I write right handed, play tennis right handed, play darts right handed. Yet I play snooker left handed as it feels more natural. Holding a bow left handed also feels more natural to me too.


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