Callous on 3rd finger?

[term]

I have shot a lot this spring and summer, and I have developed a callous on my bottom finger(3 under) I draw 30" and shoot a 60" recurve.I fall in the range that the mfg recommends for my draw but I wonder if this bow may be a tad short for me. Any thoughts would be great Thanks. TERM

[dragonheart]

You are probably twisiting your string hand, and the string at full draw, away from your face.  I posted in the shooter forum about this quite some time ago.  Not sure about the thread.

[BobCo 1965]

I'm sure you are feeling the pinch.   :(  

For a lot of target practice you may want to go to a longer bow and then resume the shorter bow later. Personally, I draw 32" and even with a 70" bow, I still get pinched after shooting a lot. My main hunting bow is 64".

Some will say that you should not get any calluses, but I have not found that to be the case. Can't tell you for sure that it is not your shooting. Personally, I shoot about 400 arrows per week and I do have to do maintenance on my calluses. I use a file, fine emery cloth, and good moisture cream suggested by my dermatologist every other day. If you continue to do what you are doing the callus will only get worse without maintenance. You really do not want it to get out of control or get a blister under it.

[OutbackMan]

I've had issues w/three items causing the callous issue...torqing the string (bottom of string hand twisting out upon draw,) too much pressure on ring finger, and a bow that's too short (it's either 56" or 58" and I have a 29.5" draw) which all culminate to 3rd finger soreness and callous (and a little middle finger too.)

Concentrating on the eliminating the string torque and finger pressure has helped a lot, but 3rd finger still takes some abuse from the pinch.  Good luck.

[chopx2]

I asked someone about this very question 2 days ago (a well know archery instructor) and he said that this type of problem is a symptom of arm muscle tension and to relax the arm and use my back muscles to draw.

Fingers should only have enough tension to hold the hook but nothing else. If you tense the arm and hand when you release the fingers will not be 'loose' enough to fly off the string creating greater resistance and the callouses/soreness and numbness issues.

It is also far easier to say than do especially without someone to show you. I'm better at it now
, but not better enough yet and focusing on improving my use of back tension has helped my shooting consistency.

[cbCrow]

My son had the same problem that you have. One day while shooting I watched and noticed sometimes for an unknown reason his elbow would be above his ear and not straight back. When he made a effort to keep his pull straight his finger problem went away. He also pulls 30" on a 60" recurve.

[term]

Thank you all for the help!

[stabow]

I’ve had a callous on my 3rd finger for 40 years I wouldn’t worry about it.....stabow

[fedora]

I had a callous on my 3rd finger and read a note on here that said to concentrate on pulling with you middle finger.  I also lowered my anchor to the middle finger touching the corner of my mouth.  I use to anchor with my cheek bone between my two tumb knuckles and thumb tip at corner of my eye.  My callous went away with the changes.

Fedora

[njloco]

I have developed a callous on my ring finger, doesn't seem to effect my shooting, but I'll try what fedora did.

[champ38]

My experience has been identical to Fedoras..When I focused on pulling more with my middle finger the three year calouse went away. To do this you have to lower the elbow to inline or just slightly above.

[term]

up

[brinkwolf]

Something else you might try if you use a tab and not a glove is using a Soma tab. The Soma tab has a pinky hook on it that takes alot of pressure off your third finger in the draw plus the shape of the Soma tab keeps you from cupping your drawing hand. If you cup your drawing hand with the Soma it will dig in and tell you right away. It really helps you to use minumal hand pressure versus a regular tab or glove.