O.L.Adcock Method

[wisconsinteacher]

When doing this method of tuning, do I cant my bow like always or do I shoot it straight up and down?  Any other tips.  I am going to try it in the morning.

[FerretWYO]

Shoot like you would normally. make sure that your relase is consitent.

[Greg Owen]

I usually cant the bow like I normally shoot and cant the results the same. Basically the bow tips define up and down for me. I shoot multiple groups before I make decisions, and when I am close to tuned I do multiple sessions. What I mean is, I always write down how the shooting is going one day, then if the next day or twos shooting results agree, I make the change. But I am a perfectionist or so I have been told.

[JimB]

OL says hold the bow straight up and down while tuning.

[skarcher]

I do like Greg. If I try to hold my bow straight up, my draw length seems to change somewhat which screws up the results for me. Maybe not the best way, but i do manage to get my arrows flying straight this way.

[Bjorn]

Straight up and down-even if you don't normally shoot like that.

[Greg Owen]

Can someone point me to where OL said the bow should be vertical? I just can't see the release being the same for someone who is used to canting the bow when they don't cant it. Thanks

[wisconsinteacher]

Man I am ready to give up.  It is hard to do this as a rookie who is just trying to hit the target in the same area.  I am suppose to shoot groups, heck my groups with fletched arrows looks like a shotgun pattern.  How close can I get to the target to make this tuning effective?  I am comfortable shooting at 12-15 yards.

I group tune 3 arrows and two shaft at 10 yards--been doing it that way for years.  You should easily find your nocking point, then the rest will fall in place quickly.

[b.glass]

No cant. Straight up and down.

[Don Stokes]

It makes no sense to me to tune while holding the bow differently. No sense at all, especially for a beginner. It can change your bow hand grip and your release. The dynamics are too different, and that can't be good. Shoot the way you're most comfortable holding the bow. For some it's vertical, for some it's not.

Wisconsinteacher, I suggest you try bareshafting at close range first, and look for nock left or right, high or low. I do it at under 10 yards, and don't worry about accuracy, just how the arrow hits. Shoot multiple shots to be sure you get a decent reading before changing anything. Your form and release have to have some consistency, and multiple shots will average out the flawed shots. OL's method is good for someone with more experience, I think, but for someone who can't group yet, closer is better. You can always do it OL's way later for finer tuning. You have to get your spine close before you can group.

Others may disagree, but it works for me, and has for decades.

[Greg Owen]

Don't give up Wisconsinteacher. 10 yards is good enough to start. Even if your groupings aren't tight you can tell the trend. If 90% of the time your bareshafts are right of the fletched then you have a good indicator. Just take it slow and steady. With great form, someone might be able to tune in an hour or 2. With my form, I can take a week to a month. Actually. I never finish tuning. I always shoot a bareshaft with my fletched shafts and see if there is any indication of change needed. I even change which arrow is my bareshaft from time to time.

[HATCHCHASER]

You should shoot like normal.  If you cant the bow then tune that way.  Shoot some broadheads and feild tips of the same weight and see how they fly.  If broadheads fly good then you are good.  Don't make it complicated and relax and just have fun.  Shoot at 5  yards till you start busting nocks then back up.  Get your form down first and the rest will come.  

[Kenneth]

Wisconsinteacher, As new as you are to the sport I wouldn't stress so much over tuning. Get some 40/45# woodies and just practice shooting to improve your form and accuracy. The only tuning I would do now if I were you is just to get my nock point set. Once you've developed consistent form and accuracy then you can worry about getting fine tuned.

Some of you are suggesting that if an archer shoots with a cant, he should do so while bare shaft group tuning.  IMO, it ain't gonna work for a professed newbie. By group tuning you're wanting to first: find the correct nock height; second: the proper spine.  Canting the bow will give false information.  The vertical bow will give correct and immediate readings to tune without misleading variables for a newbie.  You can always go back to canting after you're tuned.

I agree completely with Greg Owen.  No matter how you shoot, at close range, over time, you will see a pattern develop, then tune to the pattern.  

I might also suggest, while agreeing with Kenneth, that trying to bare shaft tune without the confidence in your shooting ability to pull it off may be an exercise in futility.  You might be better served to work on your form and shooting for a while.

[Predator Man]

Im not a beginner but I dont see any difference in tuning my arrows with a little cant vs straight up and down.  I guess if you cant or lean with incorrect form it could change your draw lenght a little, but if you want a bullet hole in paper they make compounds for that.

Gee Whiz!  It never hurts for an arrow to stabilize quicker and fly true as it goes through the chest of deer.  I never paper tune, but I do shoot through a lot of hide. It's all part of being a hunting archer, and it's all good.

[Steve O]

I think Jim is giving VERY good advice.  Get the bare shafts and the fletched shafts shooting together at 10 yards to start and move back to fine tune.  When you think you are goo, shoot fletched field points and broadheads and fine tune with them.  I think you'll find when that happens, you'll have a bullet hole if you shoot thru paper.

[Jeff Strubberg]

Originally posted by Don Stokes:
It makes no sense to me to tune while holding the bow differently. No sense at all, especially for a beginner. It can change your bow hand grip and your release. The dynamics are too different, and that can't be good. Shoot the way you're most comfortable holding the bow. For some it's vertical, for some it's not.

Absolutely.  Why would you tune your bow to a shooting style you don't use?

For you canting tuners... a question.  A canting "newbie" is trying to bare shaft group tune.  His bare shafts fly to the right and a bit high.  What does that tell him?