How to Tune your Bow: DIY Bow Tuning
One of the most often asked questions I hear in the shop is "Can you tune my bow?" Short answer - yes. Long answer - let me show you how to tune your bow yourself at home or at the range.
It seems that more and more each year we get a lot of questions in the shop about tuning bows. New archers are joining the sport every day, and the interest of working on their own equipment is at an all-time high. The amount of information available on the internet is staggering, but it is a lot to sort through to find the little nuggets of gold that are going to be useful. Most of the articles out there also use some terminology that assumes you've already got some working knowledge of bow tuning under your belt.
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Initial Bow Setup and Different Types of Tuning
Because some tuning needs to be done to the bow during initial setup and will require a bow press, it is best to seek out a local shop - I'd highly recommend your local North 40! This includes timing the cams, checking for cam lean, adjusting the tiller, and setting the peep height. After you leave the shop is when the real work begins.
There are several types of bow tuning... Paper, Walk Back, Bare Shaft, Torque, Super, Broad Head... the list goes on and on and on depending how much time you want to spend perusing the internet and finding different ways to do the same thing. I'm going to talk about the 3 most common that are easy to do on your own - Paper, Walk Back, and Broad Head - and will get your equipment prepared for the upcoming season.
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They are all simply named, and that's because they are relatively simple ideas. Shoot through paper, shoot while walking back, and shooting broad heads. Sounds simple, right? Well, as with anything they can all be over complicated and lead to frustration. Hopefully this little guide will get you on your way without too much hassle or range time on your part.
How to Tune your Bow: Paper Tuning
Paper tuning is by far the easiest way to see what your arrows are really doing in flight, and by far the most time consuming for those that just can't stand for their setup not to be "perfect." (You know who you are!!!) All you need here is a stand to hold a piece of paper - I prefer butcher paper, but anything stiffer than notebook paper will work - and a target backstop. I have had people tell me that you should stand as close as 3 feet from the paper, but I like to be further away so that the arrow has a chance to recover after being fired. In the shop I set up the paper rack at 7 or 8 yards.
*Remember, we aren't achieving perfection here, we just want to know what the arrow is doing.*
The following diagram will give you a good indication of what the arrow is doing, and how to correct your REST to ensure proper arrow flight coming off the bow.
*I want to add a little disclaimer here that I personally set my bows up with the nocking point about 1/4" higher than level. This often leads to a slight tail high tear through paper, but not much. The tail high tear shown in the picture would definitely need to be corrected. I have found that this does help a little bit with broad head flight - but we'll discuss that in just a bit!
Paper Tuning Perfection: Dos and Don'ts
As I mentioned before, I'm not looking for perfection when it comes to shooting through paper. The biggest thing I'm looking for is to get rid of any left or right tear that might be present. Once this is done, I move to Walk-Back Tuning. This is exactly like it sounds. The only step that you need to have done prior is to be sure that your 20 yard pin (or whatever your top pin is set to) is hitting where it should be.
The next step requires some out-of-archery-box materials. I use a golf tee, 3 feet of string, a few washers, and a sticker. I place the sticker near the top of the target, and push the golf tee in about an inch above the sticker. I tie the washers to one end of the string, creating a weighted plumb line, and tie the other end to the golf tee. Since your top pin is already sighted in, there is no need to start shooting at that distance. Instead, simply walk back.
I like to start at 30 yards for my first group, then 35, 40, 45 and so on. You will shoot your top pin at the sticker for all of the distances - the further you are from the target, the further down the target your groups will land. The size of your target will ultimately limit just how far you can keep moving back.
The key to this type of tuning is to make sure that you are paying attention to your bubble level in the sight. If you tip your bow one direction or another it will not give you consistent results. Shoot at least 2 5-shot groups to get an average at each distance. Ideally, your groups will stay centered around the string as you move further back.
If your groups fall to either the left or right (moving further away from the string as you walk back), then you will need to move your REST to tune it. If your groups are landing to the right, move your rest to the left. If they are landing to the left, move your rest to the right.
Remember, everything in moderation! We are talking small adjustments until your arrows group back around the string. I will keep moving back until I run out of target; I love our range for this as they have 4-foot tall bales and I can usually get back to 60 yards.
Flies Like a Field Point: Tips & Tactics to Shoot Broadheads Straight
"Flies just like field points!" This is the claim that some broad head companies make, and it's right there on the front of the package.
So how come when I screw them on my arrow, they don't land anywhere near where I was aiming? I guess if by "flies like field points," they mean that they fly down range in a more-or-less straight line until they hit the target, then I guess those companies are correct. Most broad head companies nowdays do make a product that flies very consistently. THAT is the key to our success! Consistency breeds accuracy, and there are so many variables at play against us that we need our equipment to remain constant to properly tune it.
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It IS possible to get your broad heads to impact the "same" as your field points, but it requires a little bit of work on your part. Let's start with the basics of what your arrow is doing in flight. Remember when we shot through paper about 5 paragraphs ago? You want your arrows to be coming off the bow as straight as possible, because when you put a fixed blade broad head on your arrow, you are now creating wind resistance at the front of your arrow. Your fletchings create rotational torque, and therefore stabilize your arrow in flight - much the same way that a motorcycle or bicycle want to remain upright - and they have to have enough rotation to overcome the effects of the broad head.
If you don't tune your bow to the broad heads, it is difficult to maintain that stability and your accuracy diminishes. Once you know where your broad heads impact the target, you're only a few steps away from having your bow opening-day ready.
Steps to Tune your Bow for Hunting Season (Heavier Broadheads)
I like to start this process at 20 yards, that way if my broad heads do fly differently, it shouldn't be so much that they are off my target completely. Similar to when I walk-back tune, I place a bright orange sticker on my target so I have a solid aiming point. I also make sure to keep an eye on my level in the sight so that I'm not tipping the bow. Here is a quick rundown on how things went...
Step 1) I shot a 3 shot group at 20 yards with field points (orange circles). As expected, my group was right with my sticker on the target. I then shot a "group" with broad heads (red circles) - I only shoot them one at a time because I've sliced through several vanes and even arrows. My broad heads all grouped in about the same place (that's why I shoot one at a time), but they were all about 2 inches low and right. My first correction here was to take out the horizontal difference. I moved my REST to the left just a little bit at a time, about 1/16 inch at a time until my broad heads were hitting directly under my field points.
Step 2) Now that I had my horizontal corrected, I needed to take out the vertical. Just as before, I moved my REST up just a little bit at a time. When I know the arrows should be coming together, I shoot my broad head arrow first, and a field tip arrow second, this way I'm not cutting off any vanes or slicing into an arrow. After a few minor adjustments, I had both my field points and my broad heads grouping in the same place.
Step 3) Now that my groups are on top of each other, it is finally time to move my SIGHT. Here you move your entire sight housing, NOT individual pins - your pin gaps will all remain constant. Using just my field points I got sighted back in at 20 yards. Now I move back to 40 and start the process over. Once I'm solid at 40, I'll move back to 50, then 60 and so on. How far out you want to broad head tune is completely up to you, but I would definitely make sure you are tuned at least 10 yards further than you are planning to take a hunting shot.
*As a side note, at 40 yards my broad heads were still hitting a little low, just not enough to be seen at 20. I ended up having to make minute vertical corrections all the way out to 60 yards.
After I'm finished broad head tuning, I like to keep shooting field points all the way through season. This is why it's especially important to make sure your equipment is all tuned together. If all you do is move your sight, you are limited to only shooting broad heads at that point and you'll spend as much time sharpening them as you do hunting with them.