help with draw lenght

[frank the hunter]

hi guys great sight. i wanted to ask, my draw lenght with compound is 27, but when i got into trad people told me my draw wood change by 1 to 2" shoter . when i shoot i find that my bow arm is pushed out all the way i shoot very good that way & that makes me now a 28" draw, but what is happen now my draw arm elbow is hurting, i do shoot a lot.some one told me that i should have a bent arm when i shoot but i find it hard to dolicate it. i dont no if a heaver bow wood keep me from pushing all the way out. thank you. have a great day.

[burnie]

straight arm, you better have a good arm guard to shoot trad that way.   :D    Your elbow hurts because you have a straight arm which does not distribute the bows weight evenly in the arm.  (assuming you ment your brace arm not your draw arm).  You should shoot with a slight bend in your arm.  I like to tell people its like;  Stick your arm in front of you like you were going to adduct it (bend it towards your chest), then turn your wrist to the proper angle.  In other words, turn your shoulder where your elbow is pointing out almost parallel to the ground, with a slight bend.  The elbow on your brace hand should not be pointing down, that would be the orientation if you are shooting straight armed. It will feel odd, but It will help.  Bad habits are hard to break.  If you go with a heavier bow, you will hurt even more.

Agian, im assuming you are talking about brace arm not draw arm.  If its your draw arm, you have probably just developed a little tendenidis.  If thats the case, ice it and lay off a bit.

[frank the hunter]

thank you. i am sorry i did mean the bow arm. i will try what you said & ice it.every time i wood shoot as i aim i keep pushing to the target thanks again have a great day.

[Dave Worden]

If you're shooting a bow with a recurve-style grip (deep locating "notch" in the grip, try this.  Hold your bow arm out with the palm facing the ground.  Put the bow into your hand right against the webbing between thumb and hand.  Palm is still horizontal.  Let your fingers relax and come to the back of the riser, no need to wrap them around it or grip the bow tightly.  That will orient your elbow properly.  You're ready to shoot.  If you're shooting a long bow with a wrist down grip, ignore this post!