Flatbow form problem

[the badger]

The title maybe a little misleading as I dont have much "form"
Bear in mind I belong to a field archery club, and having started my archery with a recurve (sighted), then bought an AFB and I really enjoy shooting it, (albeit not very well at the moment).
I was on the practice butt when the club "coach" said to me that I was shooting with a "broken wrist" and that I should have my wrist straight.

I continued shooting as he had advised and found that as the handle is a lot straighter on a flatbow/longbow, all the pressure is now on the web between my thumb and forefinger, and it hurts after a while.

When shooting with the "broken wrist" the handle/grip was supported along its length by the fleshy base of my thumb.

I'm of course not saying the coach was wrong far from it, I just wondered if it mattered as much as he said, (I didn't seem to shoot any better after I corrected it.)

I would appreciate comments from more experienced exponants of the flatbow/longbow brigade.

Thanks

[ChakaZulu]

Can't help on the right technique, but you could try wearing a cycling/weightlifting glove on the bow hand.

[steve58]

Not sure what is meant by shooting with a "broken wrist", but a while ago Alanesq started a thread called "technique for pulling a longbow", or something close to that, some of the posts included pictures showing good and bad form with the bow hand. Might be worth a look.

[robtattoo]

I would guess that he means you are shooting with a low wrist grip, rather than the high wrist that most modern recurves force you into. There's absolutely nothing wrong shooting with a low wrist, if that's what the grip on your bow dictates. If that's how you feel comfortable & you've got the accuracy, go with it. I shoot a low wrist myself & have enough trophies on the mantlepiece to convince me it's ok!

[Haywain]

I would have to agree with Rob on this. Modern recurve handles force you into the type of grip associated with a "straight" or "high" wrist grip. What you have to remember is that archery form is as much finding what suits you and your equipment, as it is listening to the advice given by others, and what suits the coach is not necessarily right for you.

The types of grip on most flatbows lends itself to a low wrist grip where your hand is completely on the handle. I shoot like this myself, after years of following advice from others and finding that they were wrong (for me anyway). With more grip on the handle I can control the shock of the bow more and shoot much more consistently.

[the badger]

Thanks for the replys, it helps my confidence a lot to know that otherrs successfully shoot that way.