Paper Tuning Distance

[farmlegend]

How far away from the paper to stand?

One text guide says six feet. Another says eight yards! What's the difference, other than eighteen feet?

My results from six feet, by the way, weren't so hot.

[Trushot_Archer]

Easton says 6 feet. The closer you get, the harder it is as the fletch has less time to stabilize the shaft.

This give the most accurate reults though as you want the arrow as straight as possible right off the nock.

With a new setup....I start at 15 feet and tune, 10 and tweak some more and than go to almost point blank range.

You can't always get a bullet hole at the ranges I shoot at the end even if your properly spined...I generally shoot arrows that are overspined for my setup though.

[east bay ed]

the most important things with paper tuning is rest placement, nock placement, arrow spine, spring tension, and wrist torque.
the first thing i correct is right to left tears, then up and down. i will work a bow until i get less then a 8th inch tear up and away from the riser. anything else keep working it.
if you still can't get the bow to stop tearing paper one last thing to try is to have a friennd shoot the bow. if they get a good tear, then you know it is wrist torque. i cant tell you how many times i have had a guys keep ripping a good size tear then hand me the bow and i shoot a bullet hole. a lot is in the wrist.
for field points i paper tune at about 6 feet, for broadheads about 10 yards.

[DaveK]

What exactly is wrist torque? How would you correct it?

I had a problem paper tuning my bow last year and was not able to get it paper tuned. The guy at the bow shop was having a problem too so I don't think is was all me (form, wrist torque, etc. - although I have an ongoing battle with target panic). My bow is a Jennings Carbon Extreme XLR and is about 8 years old. The riser is not center cut and I switched to feathers to try and eliminate any problems with contact.

The tears we were encountering were to the right. We got it down to about a 1/2" right tear but could get it no better. I am a right handed shooter and understand that a slight left tear is ok but not a right tear. We kept moving the rest to the left until it the tear went from getting better to worse. We were paper tuning at 6'.

He, bow shop guy, thought that arrow spine might be a problem but I didn't try any other arrows. I am shooting a 2512 carbon 30" arrow with a 100 grain field point/broadhead, using a 31" draw (small overdraw). The bow is maxed out at 60#s.

Any thoughts/advice for my setup?

Thanks,
DaveK

[east bay ed]

dave,
my suggestion is to check arrow spine and spring tension.
arrow spine is pretty easy. go to a shop and buy 3 125 grain field points and 3 85 grain field points. see if these make any difference in your arrow flight. if i had to guess i would say you might be to stiff.

as far as wrist torque goes with all the new short and light bows out there it can be a real problem for some people. your bow hand should be relaxed and the bow should ride in the area between your thumb and index finger. also if you have a sling on your bow make sure it isn't pulling the bow one way or the other. your sling should be loose fitting.

[ArrowHawk]

10 yards min. an arrow does flex as it comes out of your bow and it springs back beyond straight so it needs time to stabilize. Any arrow that shoots a perfect bullet hole at point blank range is to stiff.

[Trushot_Archer]

Do you shoot a release or fingers DaveK?

[NorthJeff]

If you shoot with a good, relaxed grip, paper tuning can really help...if not, well, it sometimes won't tell you much at all.

I only ever shoot paper at about 6'. At this distance it will tell you if your arrows are spined properly. Don't be as concerned about where the tear is...somwhere a little high left, high, high right, bullet, just as long as it isn't low and the tear is very clear and easy to distinguish the vanes. A 1-2" jagged rip to the right or left, down, up whatever, tells you your clearance is terrible, arrows are poorly spined-either stiff or light, or you are torquing your bow.

With most one-cams out there today, and ALL of my Mathews I've ever owned, I start out like this:

1. First, I pick out the right arrow
2. Set the nock slightly above 90 degrees(just slightly with your eye.
3. Align your arrow and rest position by sighting down the shaft of an arrow, and ligning up with the idler wheel, placing the rest slightly outside of center(a little left for a right-handed shooter) of the idler wheel.
4. Shoot through paper at 6'

If the arrows are spined properly, I've never not gotten a good tear with this method, and use that as a starting point for optimum rest position. My nock always stays in the same spot on the string, and then I move the rest to get the desired tear I want. After that is accomplished, I then go out to 40 yards and group test. I move the rest right a couple of clicks, and see how my groups go, left a couple clicks, and see where my groups are trending. When I easily notice the groups getting bad on each side, I set my rest in the middle. Micro-adjust helps greatly!

I'll play with the height slightly, but if the foundation has already been layed for the tear I wanted at 6', I've found I really don't usually have to bother.

For me, paper tuning at 6' is always the foundation of tuning, but if you tourque your bow or use an improperly spined arrow, you are in for a big headache. When I say "properly" spined, I mean the arrow that works the best on your bow, not on a chart somewhere. The charts will get you close, but not perfect.

Especially when using carbons, it's much better to start on the weak side of spine, and move stiff if you have to then start stiff and move weak. One of your only options to weaken a shaft is to use a heavier point, which especially with carbons, really throws your front of center out of wack and will result in especially poor broadhead flight. On the contrary, if you start with a shaft a little on the weak side, you can cut an inch off, and/or lower your point weight to get your desired effect. Also, you can adjust poundage as well either way and with a weak shaft, you need to drop pounds instead of add, which is much easier to adjust too and something the certainly wouldn't hurt most of us.

[DaveK]

Trushot I shot a release.

Looking at another, not thru their website, Easton arrow chart it looks like the 2512's are too stiff for my setup. Looks like 2314's might be better suited for me. I'm going to stop into another bow shop and see if I can't get this resolved asap.

[Banditto]

Keep in mind the easton chart isn't always right for all bows. I had a flight problem where easton recommended one stiffness too much. Backed down one level and it was corrected.

I hope you get it figured out. Flight problems are annoying.

[ArrowHawk]

DaveK you have mail