Riddle me this

[The Night Stalker]

I have a Dakota pro hunter recurve that I primarily use for whitetails. I also have an A&H long bow that I use for elk hunting because of the lighter physical weight.  Both bows are set up and ready to go with their arrows. I do not like to jump around with bows. My Dakota is shooting like it always has, it just shoots were I am looking.
I got a wild hair so I took a shot in the basement at about 15 yards with my A&H. Shot right, went and got the arrow and shot the same place. Changed from a 400 legacy to a 600 axis. Shot the same place at about 8 inches right. Changed side plates. 8 inches right.  Right now, I am hunting with my pro hunter but I really do not know why I am shooting the long bow 8 inches right. Rick would probably say it was my right hand or my release.  Has anyone experienced this?

[McDave]

Are you shooting a left or right handed bow?

[The Night Stalker]

Right handed, the arrows hit within a inch of each other consistently.  My welch bow is spot on.  I tried to play with the self material like Rick Welch does but it did not seem to work.

[McDave]

It is a puzzle, particularly if you were previously shooting the A&H to the same spot as the Dakota, which I assume is the case. 8" at 15 yards is too much to adjust by changing the strike material. I can normally adjust 3-4" at 20 yards that way.  I often shoot a longbow to the left of where I shoot a recurve, since they are often not cut past center like my recurves are.

While there are many reasons I might miss to the left, the only reason I miss to the right is when I pluck the string, which is pretty obvious to me when it happens, and doesn't happen consistently.  You seem to have eliminated arrow spine as being the culprit.  Have you tried holding the longbow vertical to see if that moves the point of impact to the left?  Not that you would want to have to shoot that way, but it would be another piece of information.

If it were a recurve, I would suspect limb twist, but that is rare in a longbow. I'm not familiar with the A&H, but I've heard it's one of the best longbows out there. Any possibility the upper and lower limbs could have gotten reversed?

I really enjoy my Dakota too, although I mainly use mine for 3D.

Sorry I couldn't be of more help, but I'll be interested to see what the problem turns out to be.

[McDave]

With some bows, you can move the impact point to the left by building out the side plate with stiff pieces of leather.  However, the rests of most longbows are not wide enough to accommodate very thick side plates.  Still doesn't explain why it is hitting to the right now and wasn't before.  But thought I'd throw it out there anyway.

[Onehair]

I also have that issue with my A&H. I finally built my shelf out until it is spot on. The bow is cut well past center and when I held it out in front of me with an arrow nocked, it just naturally points right.

[The Night Stalker]

I shoot the long bow the same as the Dakota, straight up. I had a shooting session with the Dakota at my outside range. I wore myself out walking up the mountain to change a scouting camera position stump shooting the way. When I got back to the house, I put my Dakota on the rack and grabbed the A&H .
I shot one arrow and it went in the exact same place as the others. Probably the same hole. Crazy I did try to build my side plate out and I did check my limbs for twist yesterday. They look fine.

[SAVIOUR68]

Night Stalker can you give more info of the Bow specs. My A&Hs require a really stiff arrow that some time does not make sense but they pack some punch in those limbs.

[The Night Stalker]

My bow is  64 inch 3 piece with metal riser with leather grip.  45lbs @28 I draw a little over 29 inches. I have been shooting the 400 beeman legacy carbon shafts HIT insert with 175 grain point. I have some 340 easton traditional carbon shafts.

[The Night Stalker]

Yesterday, after my shooting session, I decided to try to shoot the A&H . I tried to bare shaft some Axis 340 traditional shafts. I was  having a hard time to get them consistent and one went nock left through the target in into a 3 inch sewer pipe. Sixteen years of shooting in the basement and never did that.  Put the longbow on the rack and grabbed the pro hunter and could not miss if I tried. Still puzzled.

[SAVIOUR68]

Tim I am scratching my head also, I also had almost the same identical bow as that but was 50@28 and i draw 28.5 and shot a AD trad lite with 150 up frt. What is the  point weight of the HIT you are using ? In all honesty IMO I think the A@H has quite a bit more stored energy in the limbs than the Dakota. Couple things to try would be
1. lighter point weight
2. use a harder strike plate material/built out plate slightly
3. decrease brace height slightly
4. check and adjust nock point height

[The Night Stalker]

I will tinker with it tomorrow. I am using the standard HIT with 175gr head. I had to patch the sewer pipe. I will try those things over the weekend. Tim in NC

[The Night Stalker]

I went back to look at my notes from Rick Welch's class. I built out the side plate with leather and double sided tape. I got it to shoot nock right and I am sure I could get it turned now. I am going back to shoot my pro hunter for the season.

[SAVIOUR68]

[Tim]

Hey Timmy,

I also shoot an ACS and fine tuned the left and right impact points with different materials on the side plate.  Velcro, Velcro with leather under it and Velcro with a piece of felt under. All a slightly different response, but still hitting too far left for me.  I than went to a calf hair plate with different materials under it.  Since the calf hair is harder it brought my arrow over to the left.  I settled on a calf hair plate with a small piece of moleskin underneath.  I'm shooting the skinny axis shafts, a 5/16th shaft would definitely change things.

I also noticed that with a thin calf hair shelf I would shoot high.  Changing over to a softer shelf of Velcro brought my arrow down to where I was looking.

Hope all is well!.......Tim

[The Night Stalker]

Tim, I am coming home tomorrow.  I want to do some crabbing one last time before it turns cold. I will work on the A&H when I get back to NC  and try that. I put straight leather on mine.  Dad was complaining about the deer when I got home from work today. He seen about 25 today in the yard, out back, in the hay field. Did you ever make it down here.

[gonefishing600]

My question would be, have you ever shot your A&H accurately?

[The Night Stalker]

Well Bruce, I did at one time but it had a wood riser. I sold the wood riser that had a leather grip.  I took my stepson's metal riser because he went off to college and put my set of limbs on his riser. I thought about getting the recurve riser A&H makes but I did not want to spend the money.  After the switch, my arrows  did not fly right so I was puzzled when there was so much difference in changing  risers when both had the same self material.