I was just reviewing some videos from last years flight shoot and I noticed when my student shot the arrow was clear of her thumb for it whole passage. This is when using full length arrows without a siper. I think that with the right release and a bow with its limbs adjusted properly, the arrow would be clear of the hand or the siper while moving.
My shooting was not as good. With the same arrows I had them moving in close proximity to my thumb, though I cannot be sure if they touched it. Unfortunately I did not have any video of shooting barrelled arrows. I think it might have shown more interesting movements as the arrow passed the hand. I will try in future to do some videos.
Flight shooting machine
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Kviljo
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Bede
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In a manuscript on Persian archery soon to be published, the author mentioned centre shot bows. It was written in 1701. However, the reference was almost certainly a figurative one and the author was referring to target archery.
He also said that flight shooters sometimes put lifts in their shoes to increase their height to gain an extra few inches in distance. I think this shows how old gimmicks are in archery. The section on flight archery is quite good; when the article comes out I will post the details.
The non-contact of the arrow with the bow hand thumb has to be related to the requirement to have the thumb relaxed. In a standard square grip, the thumb only lightly touches the tip of the index finger and the side of middle finger. When using the siper, the hand is firmer, but a properly made siper is contacting the arrow only at one point. Even the slightest, most imperceptible, vertical flexing of the arrow would move it out of contact. I am thinking of experimental ways to check this.
Using a siper requires that there be no pressure on the nock of the arrow at full draw. When you combine this with the very light tips on pishrev arrows, the buckling of the arrow should be reduced to only that inherent in the physics of the arrow. Since most of the flex occurs at the centre section of the arrow, a barrelled arrow is designed to minimize the bending. This is not to say Turkish flight arrows did not flex a lot, but that they flexed less than other equivalent designs at the same draw weight.
He also said that flight shooters sometimes put lifts in their shoes to increase their height to gain an extra few inches in distance. I think this shows how old gimmicks are in archery. The section on flight archery is quite good; when the article comes out I will post the details.
The non-contact of the arrow with the bow hand thumb has to be related to the requirement to have the thumb relaxed. In a standard square grip, the thumb only lightly touches the tip of the index finger and the side of middle finger. When using the siper, the hand is firmer, but a properly made siper is contacting the arrow only at one point. Even the slightest, most imperceptible, vertical flexing of the arrow would move it out of contact. I am thinking of experimental ways to check this.
Using a siper requires that there be no pressure on the nock of the arrow at full draw. When you combine this with the very light tips on pishrev arrows, the buckling of the arrow should be reduced to only that inherent in the physics of the arrow. Since most of the flex occurs at the centre section of the arrow, a barrelled arrow is designed to minimize the bending. This is not to say Turkish flight arrows did not flex a lot, but that they flexed less than other equivalent designs at the same draw weight.
Bede