AUCTUAL draw length what an eye opener!!!!!!

[adkmountainken]

i have shot trad for many years now on and off. when i switched over from compound i was drawing 28 inches so now knowing that much about trad i allways figured my draw was a solid 28 inches. well today after watching ken Thornhill shoot my Kanati i sold him i was blown away. the arrows were lasers, i mean unreal fast!!! i knew there was know way 1 inch in draw would make a difference like that. i had Ron w measure my draw THREE times. would ya believe 23 1/2 inches!!!!!!!! i never would have know. a simple thing like this makes me feel like an idiot!!!

[BOWMARKS]

Ken  

I remember Killy said you were shrinking.      

[wooddamon1]

Whew! I just re-measured mine to make sure it's still the same...all good! Seriously though, 4 1/2" is a huge difference!

[adkmountainken]

yeah now consider i juat bought a new bow #56@28 and i'm drawing 23 1/2!!!!! love the bow but will order another as well.

[leatherneck]

Ken, that seems real odd to drop that far in draw. What method did he use to check your draw?

[Rob W.]

I went from 29" plus a string loop(compound) down to 27" and I'm 6'2". Amazes me when I watch my wife draw the same.

[1Longbow]

I did the same thing,
 I ordered a Kanati with a 29 inch draw length@ 58#'s. My buddy was watching me shoot and told me that I was way short drawing it. We measured and found out that I'm drawing it to 27 inches?!  I was dumb founded,I've always shot at 29 inches,do you shrink as you grow older? I was wondering why I was having arrow flight problems. I love the bow ,and work with it. Very interesting--1Longbow

[RonD]

I did a impromtu study at a 3D shoot one afternoon and found out of sixteen shooters, 14 were an inch to two inches shorter than they actually claimed to draw.

[kat]

I have heard a lot of people say that they have to order new arrows after attending a shooting clinic.
A positive change in form will often yield a longer draw length.
It is easy to fall into a 'slumping' posture. It is a real draw length killer.

[adkarcher]

Same thing here Ken, ended up with a 24" draw with the longbow.

Adkarcher

[Rob W.]

I put a clicker on last year and couldn't believe what I was actually drawing. Now I'm a good 27" and my groups are better than ever. Also seems to have taken away that bad first shot on cold muscles. Rob

[joe skipp]

Holy Cra....even Ciccone draws more than that!!!

   

[Zbearclaw]

I shot a compound @ 27" and draw right at 28" with trad bows.

[wapiti1997]

I shot 30" with compounds and release aid, 28" with my longbow.

[Jeff Mundy]

That seems awful short, you need to take a good hard look at your form. I've been where you are & and after working real hard on my form & trying to fix the bad habits I had since I picked up a recurve as a kid I gained a solid 2".

[amar911]

I think the issue with short drawing comes from not maintaining good form and failing to fully expand at full draw. I was amazed how some guys had their draw length increase by inches at one of Rod Jenkins' clinics because they improved their form and shot from a good position. I am a solid 29.5", and I hit it almost exactly on every shot because I am fully expanded and cannot get the string back any farther if I have my dual anchor point firmly in place. Much of what I have seen that contributes to bad form is snap shooting or using such a high weight that the shooter either cannot fully draw the bow or collapses his body when trying to hold at full draw.

I think the shooter needs to start with a light bow (10 pounds lighter than what is thought to be comfortable) and draw the bow, anchor, and then continue to expand by pulling the elbow all the way back to the point it starts going to the left (for a right-handed shooter), while squeezing the shoulder blades together in the middle of the back. Have a friend pinch his fingers on the arrow where it meets the opposite side of the shelf, and pull the arrow off the string. Then measure from the deepest part of the nock to where the friend's fingers are on the arrow. Do that several times with the light bow until the longest consistent reading is reached. That should be the correct draw length, no matter what weight bow you shoot. Now repeat that same process with a normal weight bow to see whether you are getting out to full draw. Many people will find they don't. Part of that problem is strength, and part is routine/habit/muscle memory. Practice a lot with the lighter bow to get your form consistent while pulling heavier bows or something like a BowFit strictly to build strength. A Formaster also helps to make sure your form is correct, as will a good instructor/coach.

Ken -- I bet if you do those things I just suggested, you will find your draw length increasing to well over 23.5". You can't be THAT short, especially if you were actually drawing 28" with a compound!      :eek:  

Allan

[huntingarcher]

mountainken are you sure.....have you done the clothes pin thing to measure your draw.Could you be letting go before you come to full draw.I have seen guys at 3D shoots say they have 30" draw etc.but while watching them shoot they will have 6" of arrow hanging out when the let go.I have a 28 1/2" to 29" draw and my arrows are 29 1/2" long and sometimes my broadhead will bump ,I know then I am getting all of it.

[JoeM]

Might want to check that again.  I'm a small guy 5'5" stocky wrestler build and I draw 25".  Joe

[pdk25]

Not to beat a dead horse, but I agree with everything Allan said. I put form as the culprit. Work on getting that elbow 180 degrees from the target without having your shoulders collapsed,  and then measure your draw length.

[Frenchymanny]

Originally posted by kat:
I have heard a lot of people say that they have to order new arrows after attending a shooting clinic.
A positive change in form will often yield a longer draw length.
It is easy to fall into a 'slumping' posture. It is a real draw length killer.

I'm with Ken on that one:
I am sure ADK will draw at least a couple of inches more when fully extending his reach: The guy is built like a bear      

F-Manny