Two Finger Release?

aequinox

New member
Hello, I'm new to archery and I've bought a beginner's recurve to start out with in my backyard. I have a physical disability which affects my fourth and fifth fingers, making it hard to use my ring finger in my release. Is there any major disadvantage to using just my index and middle fingers in my release / any tips I should know about?

Thank you!
 

KidCurry

Well-known member
AIUK Saviour
There was a thread on this in 2007. Worth a read...
 

aequinox

New member
There was a thread on this in 2007. Worth a read...
Interesting! Thanks for the information.
 

Geophys2

Active member
AIUK Saviour
Perfectly possible to shoot well using just two fingers, Check this video of the 2012 Olympic final where Oh Jin Hyek won the gold medal, he starts with the third finger sort of on the string but by the time he is at full draw it is almost straight and playing no part.

 

jerryRTD

Well-known member
There might even be an advantage to be gained from using two fingers ,a faster cleaner loose. I used to shoot limited compound with a two fingered loose because that way I was less prone to nock pinch. I fouind that I had to back my peak draw weight off by 3lb because the arrow was acting weaker due to an increased amount of energy put into the arrow.
 

Stretch

Well-known member
If you have a physical reason for shooting on two fingers then it is little impediment to making progress. Angus Duggan who shot for Scotland and Great Britain in the 1990s shot on the 1st and 2nd fingers by choice. He used a home-made two finger tab. No reason for not using a modified off-the-shelf tab. Just don’t shoot a 3 finger tab without cutting out the leather you don’t use. You may also want to modify the tab to control the location of ring and pinky fingers (Elastic maybe).

FIVICS even make a two finger tab, the Polite 2? Something like that. They are quite expensive but you could use the design as a basis for modifying something cheaper.

The only performance negative is that with 2 fingers some people struggle to control the wrist rotation and back of the hand, that can lead to inconsistency. The third finger helps control the hand position. BUT you can get the consistency without. The FIVICS tab uses the metal plate for this.

Long term you may run into issues of comfort as you increase bow weight (more weight on smaller surface area and more stress each joint). You may also find that you have some tuning preferences around tiller and nocking point that differ from normal (depends on how you use those two fingers). They will not affect performance as long as you just accept that it matches how you shoot.

Stretch
 
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