accuracy "poll"/question for the purely instinctive shooters

[larry]

I haven't met more than a handfull of guys that can consitently shoot 4" groups at 20yrds. most guys tend to forget the bad days and can only remember the good days  

[David McLendon]

Six arrows@20 yards warm up
 http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv133/DavidMcLendon/photo_zps4da4a237.jpgwith  this Shrew Classic Hunter
 http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv133/DavidMcLendon/CarbonShrew3.jpg  immediately prior to killing this buck off the ground wearing a ghillie @ 8 yards.
   
 I shoot generally 3.5-4" @ 30 yards and used to be pretty good at longer ranges, but since going to the ground with the suit, the game for me is trying to get close enough that I really don't need the bow. It can be really exciting at times.

[mcgroundstalker]

Why would a "purely instinctive shooter" need to shoot groups if he or she is a hunter? I like to think the first shot counts... Shooting groups sometimes helps your brain overload or pressure yourself into a flyer... Stump shooting and or roving builds your first shot into a good one...

But That's Just Me...        ...

... mike ...

[northener]

Originally posted by BAK:
Show me your 300 round score and I'll know what kind of "groups" your shooting.

Exactly..........no running from that.

Last time I shot that round my best was in the 250's

[David McLendon]

Originally posted by mcgroundstalker:
Why would a "purely instinctive shooter" need to shoot groups if he or she is a hunter? I like to think the first shot counts... Shooting groups sometimes helps your brain overload or pressure yourself into a flyer... Stump shooting and or roving builds your first shot into a good one...

But That's Just Me...         ...

... mike ...

Cuz I'd get pretty tired pretty quick of walking back and forth 20-35 yards pulling one arrow out of the target again and again.

[Sean B]

I can group arrows where they touch shooting at a dime size target at 10 yards.  Out at 20 I can group them inside a tuna can sized target.

[PSUBowhunter]

I think that you will find that most guys shoot a bow about half as good as they state on the Internet, there a VERY few archers that can hit a 4" circle at 20 yards, no matter what their shooting method is, so don't get discouraged if your shooting is not up to par with these guys.

[ksbowman]

I don't shoot too good now, but boy when I was young.......LOL.PSUBowhunter there's alot of merit to what you say!

[Rob W.]

I can usually hit my bag target at 7 yards in the basement.

[ISP 5353]

Originally posted by Rob W.:
I can usually hit my bag target at 7 yards in the basement.

This^  

[high desert rambler]

just for the record, my "4 inches at 20 yards" comment in the original post was just an example - hope no one thought i'm saying i'm that accurate... heck, i don't even have a figure for you at 20 yards - i'm not consistent enough to even measure a group!  4" group one day, 12" group the next...

now at THREE yards, boy howdy, i can smack 'em home EVERY time!        

[Bill Carlsen]

To clarify what I was trying to say in my previous post is really pretty simple if you have ever been coached in any kind of athletics or been trained on  a musical instrument. Practicing repetitions (assuming you are doing it correctly) will make any physical skill better. You can get good enough so that your shooting or playing an instrument becomes second nature and little thought is involved. I found field archery sharpened  my skills....4 arrows at 18 targets done twice a day is a lot different than one arrow at a 3D target on a 30 target range. If you want to be shooting well enough so you don't have to think about it in a  hunting situation you simply need to correctly practice repetitively....whether its called grouping or shooting spots. Shooting more than one arrow at a target can tell you a lot about your shooting, how well your equipment is in tune, etc. To be able to shoot that one arrow at an animal accurately and without thinking takes practice and thinking beforehand. Those of us that experience that "not remembering the shot" at an animal when it goes where you want it have a lot of practice arrows under their belt in order for that to happen....and the more practice you do the more that will happen.

[Roughrider]

My arrows usually hit right where they were pointed when I released.  While I've never measured this, I would honestly guess most of the time I shoot about a 6 - 8" group at 20 yards or so, 8 - 12" @ 30.  I seldom miss the Rhinehart multi-sided target out to 40 or 50 yards - I would guess it's about 18" in diameter.

There are days when that target seems about as big as a golf ball though ...

[S.C. Hunter]

When I shoot at 20 yards I can usually stay inside of 6" of my intended target. When I am having a good day I can often rattle arrows if I am shooting groups at that distance. I have had one Robin Hood at 20 yards where I was truly focused on my first arrow. I also had one at 35 yards that was purely luck but it was still cool.

I don't shoot past 35 yards as much as I used to, but last year when I was shooting out to 45 yards I was almost 50% shooting instinctive only on a 3D deer target. I feel completely confident at 25 yards and in on a deer size target and feel okay at 30 yards after that I am probably going to pass on a deer size target.

[Phrogdrvr]

I'm pretty consistently hitting inside 6" at 20 yards (discounting the occasional fly away).  I just recently discovered that I'm much better at shooting in the dark, which to me means my brain is getting in the way of my shooting when I can really see what's going on.  

[Yellow Dog]

When you do it right you don't remember the shot, it just happens.

[joe ashton]

I shoot nearly every day..(a few arrows) and a bunch of arrows a couple days a week.
nothing safe at 22 yards, if it will stand there and take it like a man.  But most of my big game animals have been shot at around 12 to 18 yards. (a few at 5 yards and a couple at 30)