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Split Vision with a fixed crawl

7K views 17 replies 9 participants last post by  rusty craine 
#1 ·
So I started this journey years ago shooting instinctive, had a spell with hard gap method, then settled into split vision for the last couple years.

I'm just wrapping up a full hard week of 200+ arrows per day + 2 local 3D shoots with a dedicated string walking effort.

My entire rig is tuned to my 25 yards crawl and is shooting very quiet and my bareshafts are flying great out to 45 yards.

I'll be honest, I've had moments of pure eagle eye accuracy, and moments where my arrows were flying around like the day I first picked up a bow. I am really enjoying the process, but I am finding that I've had an extreme desire to address the string the same way every time and to shoot both eyes open.

So last nights practice session consisted of shooting split vision from my 25 yard crawl only, and the enjoyment and accuracy has gone through the roof.

It seems like I am getting the best of both worlds here. My sight pictures from 15 to 40 look so dang similar, and my arrows are striking perfectly.

Is there anyone else that is using the benefits of a fixed crawl with a different aiming theory than a hard gap or point on the target?
 
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#4 ·
You know that the high anchor and the depth of the crawl set the shot up. Middle finger anchor. 5/8" crawl, 1" of arrow in front of the back of the bow sets up my shots for the point being on the target for most of my shots. Why this is so good for me is I don't judge distance well. I have a near, middle and far shot. It works for me. :)

I did a lot of experimenting but nothing worked better for me than the above
 
#7 ·
I see my point. I also see my target. But I pay little to no attention to either as I run my shot.

Once the sight picture (target and point relationship to eachother) looks good, I commit to the shot, and start my expansion to lock the sight picture in until my release happens.

I see both my point and the target, but hold neither higher in importance than the other, other than their relationship to eachother. If that makes sense.
 
#8 ·
I think some call that "gapstinctive". Your brain has been trained to recognize the sight picture at proper aim by virtue of thousands of arrows using an aiming technique. It is therefore a result, not a method. I flinch when I hear the term "instinctive" because there is nothing innate or automatic about shooting a bow, and the apparently subconscious aiming is the result of massive amounts practice. This is a very deliberate learned behavior, not at all an instinct.

I am a facewalker, which is a close cousin to stringwalking. Each anchor point corresponds to a different distance, but of course the distances are not uniform between anchor points, nor are they exactly the same horizontally. Each regular distance (10/20/30/40y etc) therefore has a small amount of aiming-off (gap). I practice by shooting walk-backs at 10y increments to reinforce and fine tune. I achieve paper plate accuracy using that technique out to about 60y. When shooting irregular distances, like 3D, Field, or Stump, I estimate the distance, take the appropriate anchor, do a rough aim, then keep both eyes open during expansion and let my brain fine tune the shot. If I misjudge the distance I will miss.

Can I win tournaments with that? Yeah, sometimes, but I am not out to collect medals and often do not turn in a scorecard. Is it good enough for hunting? Heck yeah! I like paper plate accuracy because it is practical, inexpensive, achievable, and good enough to play the target archery game too. In the end, the aiming system and equipment should match the intended purpose and level of accuracy desired. Thus, FW is good for me, although I dabble with SW as it is indeed more accurate and can totally see why barebow target archers would do that.

I hope that helps provide some insight!
 
#9 ·
Is there anyone else that is using the benefits of a fixed crawl with a different aiming theory than a hard gap or point on the target?
I practice, and hunt with, a 20 yard fixed crawl. For 20 yards and under my anchor is index finger in corner of mouth, string touching the side of my nose, and string blur on the right side of the arrow shaft. My main vision is on the target, with all else visible but blurred. 20 yards is point on. Anything under 20 yards is done by gaps. I currently have a nock on my string at the 20 yard crawl. Don't have to look at my string to find my crawl that way.
 
#12 ·
two NP one above arrow one below. span nocks on arrow. measure one inch down string. got 18 yards from target. from three under index finger anchor draw your bow onw inch under the nock point. aim the point of the arrow where you want to hit. you will be on the target. now adust the djstance of your crawl up or down till you are hit the spot you are aiming at. thus string walking and shoot from a crawl down the string
 
#15 ·
I put a little severing there at 5/8". This is so I can reach down with my tab and come up to the serve that stops my tab. Easy to do with out looking.

If you do the calculations you see that from a 5/8" I can stay in the kill zone for a number of yards if I am shooting 190fps. It is pretty well a no brainer.

12 to 16 yards I gap about 3 - 4 inches under. At 25 yards I am for high lung shot.

So I have my point on the foam target for 12 to 25 yards. Most of that distance (well at least 1/2) would be in the kill zone if I held on the 10

A little practice and it becomes very lethal
 
#16 ·
I played with the string walking and shot exactly like you(cpn….) described. I just used string walking to make for closer arrow to target gaps and shot just like I always have, focusing on a spot and let my 'instincts' take over. And it worked very well for me when I was experimenting with string walking..

I ended up changing some other things based on recommendations from this site to close my gap and am not currently string walking so I don't consider myself a string walking expert by any means…..

I think it was Rod Jenkins in one of the Masters of the BB videos who said something like after you've learned and shot your gaps long enough, you will kind of naturally know how to hold. At least that's what I got from what he said - not his exact words but the closest to what I remember he said…That makes a lot of sense to me based on the way I shoot...

At ranges close enough to pick a small spot, I've always done my best shooting without conciously putting my point on a spot, but instead focusing on the spot and then adjusting my 'gap' until it feels right.

At longer ranges where I can't see well enough to pick a small spot I do 'think' more about the gap but still releasing based on 'feeling' the gap is right.

The only time I really put my arrow on a spot is my point on distance….Which may be different than most as I call my 'point on' when the spot I want to hit is floating on top of the arrow/point(not sure which one as I don't think I can see my actual point when I shoot).

I kind of do sights that way too when I shoot a compound. i.e. focusing on the target and kind of looking at the sight pin in my secondary vision instead of looking at the sight pin and putting it on what I want to hit….

Bottom line is I can relate to what cpn… is saying and found it worked for me well also….
 
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