# Free Your Form



## M.J (Nov 1, 2010)

Let me start by saying that this would be a much more impressive and informative thread if I had pictures or video. Maybe I'll do a video about it tomorrow.
Anyway...
I have always used some sort of on-the-face anchor point, like alot of us here do. Corner of mouth or cheekbone or back of jaw, there are several variations and I've tried most of them. Recently I switched to a different kind of anchor and I've found that it really frees up my shooting.
How it happened was that I got a Hammermil from BunnyBuster and it came set-up with a set of pretty long gum rubber bands. I had decided I was going to shoot 1/2" steel with this one and that it probably wouldn't be a good idea to shorten the bands any so I went for it.
At first it felt weird. I was trying to hold the pouch the way I always did and that made it uncomfortable to draw back past my usual anchor point. Accuracy was pretty poor, even from 20 feet away. Then I remembered watching Bill Hays shoot and thought that he might hold the pouch different than I was. Sure enough, I grasped the pouch "upside down" (knuckles up, thumb down when drawn back) and tried and it was much better. After a few shots I was hitting good up close and after an hour or less I was back to shooting from 35'. I made a set of tubes that were the proper length for how I was drawing and haven't looked back.
How I do it now is that I hold the pouch the way I described, pull back to somewhere behind my ear with the tubes _just _grazing my cheek. One of the fun and liberating things about shooting this way is that I can draw back as far as I want. If I need more power now it's just a matter of drawing back more and it doesn't affect the shot. Before, my draw length was static and if I wanted more power I had to change bands. Since I don't like to shoot heavy bands that meant I had to either shoot lighter ammo , less distance or use bands that were very fast but broke very quickly. Now I use 4-strand 2040 tubes which draw light and pack a real wallop when stretched way out. I'm shooting 1/2" accurately out to 25 yds no problem. They last a long time too.
Give it a try!


----------



## AJW (Apr 24, 2011)

Good posting M_J, I'm going to try it this morning. Appreciate your sharing.

Al


----------



## Melchior (Dec 27, 2009)

Hey M_J, the "thumb down" style is pretty popular in some coutries, I see it frequently on Czech torunaments and also on photos from Russian slingshooter. I guess it works just as well.


----------



## NaturalFork (Jan 21, 2010)

It is funny that you posted this because I tried a similar approach the other day ... I cannot seem to hold that way.


----------



## M.J (Nov 1, 2010)

NaturalFork said:


> It is funny that you posted this because I tried a similar approach the other day ... I cannot seem to hold that way.


You're a good shooter, you could do it if you wanted to








When I first started doing it this way I used the pouch rough side out, which provided better grip and helped the hold alot. I go smooth side out now but the other way helped me learn to hold that way


----------



## slingshot_sniper (Feb 20, 2011)

I sorta shoot like this(no anchor point) but I only twist the pouch a tad under a quarter turn,with a 40..42 inch draw I get plenty of speed I've just never looked into the best length to cut my bands...I maybe missing out on a little more speed


----------



## -SRS-45- (Jul 7, 2011)

Yeah this is how I shoot too, the knuckles up thing is way more comfortable, my anchor point is way back behind my head even when shooting normal style, I've only smacked my check twice with a pouch, but its more of a passing graze so nothing to worry about. Your right too, sometimes my shots don't feel powerful enough so I grit my teeth and pull back that extra inch and bam... it flies away


----------



## M.J (Nov 1, 2010)

I've nicked the cheek a couple of times too, usually when I'm getting tired and sloppy with the pouch hold.


----------



## flippinout (Jul 16, 2010)

I have been recently tinkering with this style as well. It is well worth mastering, as MJ said, it really frees up your ability to shoot just one slingshot. I have a natural that has been my go to shooter for about a month now. I keep it set up to shoot 5/16" at a face anchor, but have been shooting 7/16" with the extended draw and the power and trajectory is great.


----------



## shooter452 (Nov 6, 2010)

I've been trying this. Still slow going but it feels good and I do have "moments" of great shooting. I've also been incorporating the dankung flip (which when watching some videos looks more like a throw...and also feels like a throw when done well) with moments of "wow, this is awesome", and moments of " aaaaarrrrrrggghhh"


----------



## AJW (Apr 24, 2011)

M_J, tried your Thumb down knuckle up method - instant results. I'm definitely shooting straighter and everything seem more comfortable. I'm now running out of reasons why I don't score well. I'm still a little clumsy getting the pouch griped, that will get smoother quickly I'm sure.

Some others seem to have been aware of this grip, but hearing it from you was a first for me. So, I really appreciate your sharing. To anyone who hasn't tried it, you owe it to yourself to do so.

Al


----------



## M.J (Nov 1, 2010)

AJW said:


> M_J, tried your Thumb down knuckle up method - instant results. I'm definitely shooting straighter and everything seem more comfortable. I'm now running out of reasons why I don't score well. I'm still a little clumsy getting the pouch griped, that will get smoother quickly I'm sure.
> 
> Some others seem to have been aware of this grip, but hearing it from you was a first for me. So, I really appreciate your sharing. To anyone who hasn't tried it, you owe it to yourself to do so.
> 
> Al


That's great! 
I'm still pretty slow to load too. I always start the same as I did before and then have to sort of turn the pouch over.


----------



## lightgeoduck (Apr 3, 2011)

This is how I started out shooting, and with great results as far as improvements. I actually learned it from dgui..and the picklefork,, when I draw way back I hold thumbdown knuckle up (this is with OTT ) and when I softshoot (pulling only lenght of arm) I do thumbs up and knuckle down, actually angled a bit so the pouch wont hit my ss hand after release.

LGD


----------



## M.J (Nov 1, 2010)

Here's a video where I shoot this way, incase it wasn't clear to anyone:


----------



## AJW (Apr 24, 2011)

M_J .... Ya, the thumb down grip shows up really well. I'm having moderate gains in my shooting, that means I miss by less than I used to. It takes so few good shots to keep my spirits high and keep me trying to stay inside my 4 foot by 4 foot ball catcher.

Al


----------



## Bob Fionda (Apr 6, 2011)

I saw a video posted by Torsten on You Tube about the butterfly (or albatros) style in wich he held the pouch upside down and it seemed to me very effective. I tried to post this video but I'm sorry I couldn't be able to.


----------

