I am fairly new to the sport of bowhunting and I am trying to learn as much as I possibly can. There are some things that are still a little confusing for me though. So hopefully you guys will be able to clarify some things for me. I recently went down to my local bow shop and we paper tuned my bow. We got my bow to shoot perfect bullet holes. I was excited to get home and shoot my bow at my target from different distances and with my broadheads. My broadheads were shooting left just a little bit. So I came inside and started researching. Absolutely everywhere I read says that I need to broadhead tune and move my rest to the right until my broadheads meet up with my fieldpoints and then adjust my sight accordingly. I could just do that and not be so curious, but I am trying to learn the ins and outs of bowhunting and want to know why I am doing certain things to my bow! So, why in the world did we paper tune down at the shop and now I need to move my rest to fix my broadheads? Wouldn't the rest adjustment make my bow out of tune now? Why wouldn't I just move my sight? (This is why I am confused.) After reading articles online and doing some research I went back down to the bow shop. The owner of the shop said that you never move your rest after paper tuning. He states that after paper tuning, the rest of your adjustments for your fieldpoints and broadheads should be with your sight. Great! So I am turning to you guys to straighten me out here! I would appreciate any help/insight on why I need to move my rest or maybe you agree with my bow shop. Thanks guys!!
Im no expert but paper tuning is going to get you close, then broadhead tuning is going to dial it in beyond what paper will do. Depending on the distance from paper you can get bullet holes without being in tune. I seldom paper tune anymore, go straight to walk back tuning then broadhead tuning. If you can get your fixed blades to shoot with your field tips you can be confident you're perfectly tuned even if you're not shooting perfect holes through paper.
I believe the reason the shop is so high on paper tuning is because its easy to show a customer and say hey look we got your bow shooting perfect bullet holes and it also saves their targets from being chewed up by broadheads but to say paper tuning is the best or only way is flawed thinking IMO. No tuning is a waste of time I usually start with paper tuning then walk back tuning and broadhead tuning but if I had to choose just one it would be broadhead tuning after all you are hunting with broadheads so I want to know how my bow is shooting with them. I recommend learning to tune your bow yourself instead of relying on a shop it's not that difficult to do check out the Easton paper tuning guide http://www.eastonarchery.com/img/downloads/software/tuning_guide.pdf
Another thing when you say your broadheads are a little off compared to your field points how much is a little?
The problem with paper tuning is you can get perfect bullet holes, but if you step back or forward you can get a tear. Problem is your arrow flexes off the rest and isn't recovered while going through paper. It gets you in the ballpark so it can be usefull but you're probably not tuned enough to shoot broadheads perfectly. In walk back tuning you're able to take paper tuning to the next level, its showing your results after recovery. Now with broadheads you add steering to the front of the arrow, this will magnify any issue you may have from bow setup, to arrow spine, to form flaws.
Thanks guys for all the replies! This information has really helped me get my broadheads shooting where I want them. My broadheads weren't very far off (2 inches left), but now they are shooting right with my fieldtips after a slight rest adjustment. Thanks guys!!
