Brian,

Welcome to TBM, as well as a hobby that will probably soon turn to a passion. Personally, I prefer to shoot 3 fingers under, as it puts the shaft of the arrow closer to my line of sight. However, how you shoot is up to you. Whatever feels the most comfortable for you will be your best ally. Just be sure to pick the same consistent anchor point when you shoot, and always remember to follow through with your shot. By follow through, I mean keep your bow arm up, and when you release, make sure your hand comes straight back from anchor to somewhere right behind your ear. Good luck and keep shooting. This is a great bunch of people on here, and there’s lots of helpful information and advice for the novice or even experienced shooter.

Michael

hey Brian how do you like that bow? i have been playing with it at BassPro, and it feels nice. would you recommend it to a new trad archer as well?

Hi, Brian… I totally agree with Michael – aka MontanaFord. Sound simple good advice as I’ve ever read.

Brian, I also shoot a Bear Montana longbow. I have tried three under, split and even tried string walking a little. I went back to split that works best for me; but whichever you end up using just be consistent with the way you hold shoot anchor and release. The bow is great.

To some degree, the bow you shoot will tell you whether it prefers three under or split. Split is far and away the most common, but likely because that’s how we tend to be taught. Experimentation is a big part of the fun. I personally find more “finger confidence” re keeping the arrow where in belongs on the string with a split hold. Different holds for different folks.

I favour the split finger draw, since that was the way I learned it. However, some archers prefer a “three fingers under draw” for a close shot. Although I have tried that method, I still prefer the split finger hold and release for all shooting.