Topic: Solved -How to get arrows to shoot straight & not right on the Hwarang
Was a western recurve / compound shooter, took up trad Korean archery a few years ago and since then have totally fallen in love with this style of archery and have no intention of going back to recurve or compound, except for one problem..
For years I have searched the web, visited almost every archery forum out there (including this one, no offence) yet it seems nobody could really come up with a satisfactory answer as to why arrows fly right when shooting with a thumbring.
The best or most frequently seen answer seem to somehow be a correlation between form improvement and as a result somehow having the problem of arrow flight correct itself. There have also been many other suggested possible answers, none of which work really well when I tried them out.
In short, there seemed to be no definite answer. For years, I have been shooting by aiming the Hwarang off center so as to compensate for arrow drift, as illustrated in the pics below:
As you can see, this method unfortunately makes it rather hard to aim.
Utterly frustrated by the lack of answers to this problem, I set about looking for a solution on my own. I believe at this point I have finally “solved” this age old problem that seems to have perplexed so many, myself included, when using the Hwarang with a thumbring, once and for all. At this point, I must add that I am by no means an expert with the Hwarang, just a normal archer looking for answers.
I also believe this fix to be applicable to other kinds of thumbring bows as well.
As it turned out, the answer was there all along. I took what I already knew about Western archery and applied it to thumbring shooting with the Hwarang
In other words - arrow spine tuning and draw length tuning (to establish the straightest aerodynamic spine for your arrows in flight). These two things, if done correctly, will result in this:
So if you constantly find that your arrows shoot right, follow my guide below to get your arrows shooting straight.
Step 1: Establish correct arrow spine
Most Western style arrow charts do not apply well to the Hwarang. So you will have to do it with a little trial and error.
a) Begin by using your current arrows. Draw and shoot as per normal. If you arrows go right, proceed to b
b) Draw your arrows back a little further then your normal draw length ( we are talking millimeters here) e.g. 4-5 mm and release. Repeat the process a few times, drawing a little further back each time i.e. 4-5 mm. Provided your arrows are long enough (31-33.5”), you will eventually reach a point where your arrows start to fly left. Once this happens, you know your arrows are in the correct spine range for your bow.
c) On the other hand, once you’ve reached maximum draw, i.e. you’ve run out of arrow length to draw and your arrows are still flying right, your arrows are either too stiff or your arrows are not long enough, or, you are not drawing to your full draw length (I believe the max arrow length in trad Korean archery is around 33-3.5”, so use this measurement as a guide). You will either have to swap out the points with heavier ones or get softer spined or longer arrows of the same spine as your current arrows.
Step 2: Establish correct & consistent draw length to ensure correct dynamic arrow spine in flight.
a) Once you have found the right arrows to use using the above method, go on to step b
b) Start with your normal draw length and release an arrow. Repeat the process by drawing the bow further and further back - by about 2-3mm more each time. This can be a tricky process and a little patience is required.
Best way to do it is to mark out the last 1-2 inch of your arrows in 2-3mm increments and get a friend to spot for you with the markings against your bow thumb knuckle as a reference / anchor point. Again you will find that once you get closer and closer to that sweet spot in draw length, your arrows will start to fly straighter and straighter down range. Choose the draw length that gives you the straightest flight down range and mark it on your arrow. You have now established the correct draw distance that will give your arrows the straightest dynamic spine as they are shot.
c) Then using some thick sewing threads, super glue them on the point that you have marked. This will be your anchor point from now on. Do not worry about the threads coming off, they won't.
You should now be able to shoot your hwarang by aiming it directly toward the target and watch your arrows fly centered from now on
That's it. You are done
No more right flying arrows!!
Happy Shooting