Does anyone shoot like this. I seem to shoot better with my bow elbow very slightly bent instead of locked. I know about the bone-on-bone thing..but just curious if there is anyone else??
thanks, Joe D
Never found a bent arm to be consistent plus you are entering muscle into the equation.
There are really three choices: bent arm, locked out arm, and arm almost fully extended but not locked out, which is what I prefer. I teach archery to kids, and often find that girls hyper-extend their arms. In other words, when they fully extend their arms, their arms bend back the wrong way a little. This almost guarantees that the string will hit their arms, and since they can't really extend their arms in a straight line, I recommend they bend their arms a little. Rick Welch recommends you bend your arm a little. Many longbow shooters bend their arms. If it works for you, then do it.
Thanks guys.. McDave your third choice describes what I'm experimenting with. Almost straight but not locked. Seems I can also get my eye over the arrow a little better for some reason.
I find that if I try and keep my arm slightly bent I start to collapse my form, especially after shooting for a bit. I'm still in the phase of trying different methods but as of now I find a locked bow arm to be much more consistent and repeatable.
Slightly bent for me.