Well Last hunting season I used a shorter a2a bow and a release and took a deer and shot 3d. I switched to a newer bow still with a short ata. I couldn't see a whole lot of gains and felt odd. I had a couple different releases fire early and finally had enough.I traded around and got a Mathews Conquest 2 and went back to fingers and it has been like coming home.The only difference was I traded off alluminum arrows for carbons. I have been shooting with they same crowd all along and now I do as good or beat them. So no more switching. Can't leave them at home and early fires have come to a halt.I was just curious how many over here shoot fingers with compounds?

I shoot fingers and release. Hoyt Vantage Ltd fingers bow and Hoyt Carbon Matrix release bow. For target archery I shoot the Vantage Ltd as my finger bow as well and a Hoyt Contender Elite for my release boy.

If you can shoot as well as you want to with fingers, there is no reason not to. I shoot a critical bow better with a release.

Must be just my brain, but the less "stuff" I have to worry about the better.

Compound with sights, glove, wrist guard, release etc - I couldn't hit to save my ass.

recurve, fingers, a little moleskin rest and I do a whole lot better.

That will probably be my next evolution... back to where I started. I shot a compound many years fingers, with a nock on the string where my eye met as a back sight, got so I didn't need a glove or guard. Killed stuff fine.

Funny how the older we get the more we revert back to the vintage years.

Kent

I shoot a longbow a lot more than my compound(s) and would go traditional only, but I still like the taste of meat.

I tried to go back to fingers 2 winters ago but couldnt get the draw length I wanted out of my old PSE. About early summer I gave up and bought one of the new bows (short ATA & lightweight). I shot it OK, but never really felt comfortable with it. So...I went back to shooting the PSE with release and 2413's like I always had and got my deer ~15 yards.

Now Im back to playing with the short/light "new" bow. Its coming around with some tweaking. I also received a longbow as a christmas present last year, so use that when I get the fingers urge.

I was never able to shoot real good with fingers although I can see how it would be nice to not have to worry about a release. If you were having problems with "premature release LOL" you were either hitting the trigger, setting the trigger to light, or using cheap releases.

That may be but they were tru ball and cobra and scott. Just seems more natural for me using fingers. Nice to know others have done it.

For me, traditional screams fingers.

And compounds scream release. I know Chuck did fingers and can/could shoot 90 yards or so... I never got that good with fingers and was thinking more along the lines, a compound is modern, and we use peeps, slings, sights and so on, that says release blends best with it...

Me too. I still love my Mathews Rival Pro with fingers though.

Ya can love a compound with fingers, but its never taking full advantage of it.

My train of thought, and granted I"m weird, is its akin to putting open sights on a 338 Lapua.

I get what you are trying to say,but disagree with you.

Because it is a harder discipline doesn't mean you aren't or can't get the advantages of the compound. One certainly still gets the reward of its speed, it's let off, or any other advantages.

The only loss of advantage is of the release aid and not the bow.

That is very true.

And agreeing or disagreeing is no big deal(contrary to some)

My train of thought is if you are going to use something, then you use it to the best of its ability, not just utilize some of its positives, but not all of them.

Really it all boils down to preferences.

I shoot the traditional bows with carbons for a bit more speed, thats against the grain of many traditionalists.

I use a release and all kinds of other gadgets with my compounds just to be able to get the most out of them. Two very different directions.

In fact it doesn't make sense to me why either, because I don't shoot at deer beyond 15 steps anyway even wwith a compound. At least not our whitetails.

IMHO the letoff makes it much harder to get clean releases with fingers, than with more weight, but if you have that one covered its no big deal really.

The worst part about fingers for me, is being able to get a glove or tab that allows me to FEEL my precise anchor point.

Which is why when using fingers I rarely use anything other than the fingers. Figuring I need to shoot enough in practice anyway such that I"ll have callouses and deal with it anyway.

But then I don't shoot lots of weight like I did when I was younger and much more stupid about a lot of things.(can't believe I shot 96 pounds for a few years at whitetail... WTF was the purpose of that...)

You are utilizing all of its (the bows) positives shooting either fingers or release. The advantage you speak of is in the release not the bow.

And Chuck Adams doesn't? I realize he is hardly typical of most of us. A bit like Miculek and a revolver.

Chuck is a great archery hunter. I doubt he would make it in the 100 best finger shooters out there.

I dont think theres anything goofy about compounds and fingers. The whole traditional bow vs. compound comes into play with shooting styles. Do you want to aim with sights or instinctively shoot. Then again Im gonna put some sights on a recurve someday to give it a whirl.

I remember when I got into bowhunting, the best archers in my area shot compounds with flipper rest, brass sight pins, and no peep. Their finger shooting technique was so good, they just anchored, looked around the string and shot.

Finger shooter here. Tried a couple of releases in years past but never really liked the feel of pulling a trigger to shoot a bow, traditional or compound.
My hunting friends all have went to releases but I just like the feel of shooting bows with the feel of my fingers on string. No sights here either.
Anymore I just like to be able to go hunting & see deer. Turn down does hoping for a nice buck to come by in my range. If I don't get a bow buck then it's nice to carry a firearm when that season starts. Then I'll take a nice doe when weather cools down for better hanging temps.
I shoot more deer(many times the same deer) with my homebrew trail cam that with bow & arrow or firearms now. I like getting great deer pic's, family also likes to see what I got on trailcam when I come back with pic's. Only way I can have family involved with hunting. And I can shoot them again next year sometimes.

That is true in a way, but if you arent' getting the best release with fingers, are you ever seeing the best accuracy the bow is capable of? Kind of a stalemate we are at.

That too can be said for those that use a release. I teach and coach and see it all the time release shooters punching the trigger. Not to mention a hoist of other errors in shooting.

Yes, but inherently its easier to properly use a release than it is fingers, once you get a release, it is mechanically the same every time.

Just think if the folks "punched" the finger release.

IMHO a screwed up release shot will hit closer to center, all other things the same, than will a pooched finger release.

At least thats been my experience.

I've not taught and coached I"m sure as much as you have. I've only shot since about 78 or so, and only coaching done was about 10 years of 4H shooters. So I do not have full exposure to everything.

Bad forum is bad forum.

Yes there is less contact with a release so in general it is inherently easier, or should I say more accurate.

What I have seen is that the majority of finger shooters are more experianced archers. In general more consistant shooters, meaning practice more.

Shooting fingers or release is a choice. Niether is wrong just two different disciplines.

Hoyt Pro Vantage still shoot fingers like with long bow and recurves

Bow Tec shoot Carter release

Yup, I've seen some in both disciplines. Although traditional bows and shooting fingers will yell at you louder for bad form, as in your shots/groups will really show it

"Bad form is bad form". Amen Brother!

For years I got along mainly by brute strength.
After my illness I had to learn to use the proper form for my skeletal/ muscular type.

I went back to 35 lbs. and worked back up. The hardest part has been learning to draw, hold and release with these nerve damaged fingers.