Open hand or death grip ???

[JF]

loose grip seems to work best for my rc . john

[TSP]

A firm, full-handed grip for me.   It's more consistent, quieter-shooting, easier to control the bow in 'odd' shooting situations and actually REDUCES the amount of torque issues I've had (the bow/shelf/sideplate has less jump or twist if is firmly held vs. losely 'balanced').  It promotes a push-pull motion, works for any bow (longbow or recurve) and it enhances string clearance since the arm is bent more than with a straight wrist 'gentle' hold. Plus, no armguard is needed except when wearing heavy clothes.

[crotch horn]

I use a firmer grip but not white knuckles. I find it helps me with follow through and accuracy. I will try the fingers tucked under though. I only started shooting trad in 07 so lots to learn.

[Jason_MO]

I have more of a firm grip, but never really use the pinky or ring finger in my grip.

[Encino Man]

I pull back into the web of my hand and as I come to anchor I use just enough index and middle finger pressure to keep the bow from lurching out of my hand.

Now my long bow is a different animal. It requires a little more control.

Having a quiver mounted on the bow changes my grip a bit. I use a solid grip with as little tension as possible.

[Over&Under]

Originally posted by xtrema312:
 

Originally posted by Igor:
My forefinger and thumb touch...but the bow is primarily held there against the web of my hand by the pressure of the bow being drawn.

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Glenn

I do the same.  I was griping more, but now I do this.  I also now tuck in my bottom three fingers and touch the back of them to the grip.  This really cut down the bow torque.   [/b]

I have started to shoot this way as well with my bottom 3 fingers tucked in and it has helped me alot!

[thunder1]

I have a light grip on both lb and recurve. The harder I grip the more torque I had.

[MercilessMing]

When I started archery 1 year ago with Olympic style I shot open grip with sling.  My Hoyt recurve riser is heavy and with stablizer so open grip was never an issue.  After I found there are more fun shooting trad, I switched to longbow.  The longbow is much lighter in mass and open grip will let the bow torque if the release is not clean.  Depending on how good my releases are on the day, I will grip the bow firm accordingly.  

The other thing I noticed is recurve grip are usually higher.  I have to conciously "heel" my palm to the longbow grip instead of "choking the throat".  If I heel the grip, I usually don't need to grip the bow dead.

[firsted]

For recurves there seem to be pretty consistent guidance.  I previously had too tight of a grip & did note torque.  Then I just stared at Asbell's picture on the Instinctive Shooting book until looping my forefinger around the grip, meeting my thumb, became second nature. Allows my wrist to better align w/the arrow & the shot is more consistent.  Don't know how the "curling the bottom 3 fingers" works, tho.  I've tried that & must be doing something wrong - seems to put too much pressure on the fingers.  Loose grip is my much preferred approach.  Great topic.  Thanks.

[ren sarns]

I like a loose grip,  everytime I grip firmly I torque the bow and start going left/right.

[jerryb]

Depends on the bow
My recurve I shoot with fingers just touching the front of the bow
On my long bow I grip it firm but no death grip
Long bow rist down .recurve high rist high

[hvyhitter]

I went to a much firmer grip on my bows as I get more control on where I am pointing the bow and a much more consistant follow through on my release...but thats just works for me. There is no one perfect way to shoot you just have to find what works for you.