Hand shock would be a complete non-issue if I were to shop around for a new compound.

You're right, my trusty Bear Polar II has absolutly no handshock and it does not affect my accuracy whatsoever. ps-- if you shoot your bow with your hand open like that out a treestand you'll likly drop it on the ground.

Dave,

You may call it hand-shock but I call it vibration. When you feel vibration in your hand it has traveled from the string or limbs, down your riser, through your wooden handle and into your palm. The little vibration you feel in your palm started as a much bigger vibration elsewhere on the bow. Did it affect your arrow flight? I doubt it. Especially if you have a drop-a-way rest.

BUT...

Vibration causes loose sight pins, accelerated string wear, uneven limb movement, shortens cam life and will wear out your limb pockets. Will these items affect accuracy. You betcha.

Todays risers are great at asorbing vibrations that reach your hand but have zero impact on the vibrations moving the other direction from your limb pockets, through your limbs, into your cams and into your string. In other words the little jiggle you feel in your hand is a much bigger jiggle to the rest of your bow.

Is any of this true? I'll be happy to show you my bills for replacing limb pockets, cams, strings and cables over the years.

Sorry,
Should be: "…like that all the time…" Not like, you know, like all the time.

Walt,
I shoot my bow with my hand open like all the time too. It just depends on what you are used to.

Dave,
For a brief moment I thought you were trying to connect with the younger generation...

Great you know I never had a problem with until now.;0b that being said I never had a problem with target anxiety either until someone told me about it. Grip it and rip it the last time I looked the vitals on a deer are much bigger that a soda can. I can easily hit that at 40 yards unless i have target anxiety or now hand shock.

Dave-
I'll have to shoot you down.
Hand shock does effect accuracy, but not as one might think. Having a Mathews bow with every known gadget available, allows one to become more confident, focused and accurate. One doesn't have to worry about the minutia of details with the advancement of technology that has been taking place in regards to the modern day bow and accessories.

The 'ol addage, "you pay for what you get" still holds true for all outdoor enthusiasts.I had an 'ol Indian bow given to me at an early age and was constantly checking the sights, arrows for accuracy due to the vibration that came at the release of the arrow.

The bow seemingly would vibrate several times in my hand after the release resulting "sometimes" in a missed target. I would have to compensate, actually over compensate, due to the nature of the Indian bow.

Now, flash forward to last deer season. I had been sitting close to a Monster Buck's bedroom and had made all of the necessary precautions and preparations. My Mathews was in tip-top shape and so was I. I had started practicing with my bow in late June and would shoot a minimum of twenty arrows at a time,sometimes several times a day.

Deer season in Kentucky comes in early September. Everything was ready. The day I waited on the Genetic Giant, I was focused and well prepared, and hiked several miles before daylight to his bedroom. I sat in the tree stand all day seeing several deer, except the one I was after.

I decided to make a "sneaky stalk" back to the truck, while it was still daylight, hoping for an encounter with the denali of all bucks, but the Genetic Giant had disappeared that day.

While walking back to the truck I noticed several does browsing within 50-yards of my destination. I decided to take one for jerky. After stalkin' in a creekbed within twenty yards of my quarry, I released the lethal projectile to only see it hit the grass several feet in front of the lead doe.

I quietly and quickly nocked another arrow only to have the same result. Insanity comes quickly to those who "think" they are totally prepared for any type of situation that may bring the desired result of success, only to see failure face to face.

What had happened?
My form was perfect, I had put in the days of "perfect practice, makes perfect" concept, only to make one of the worst shots ever at that close of range.

Even though my bow and accessories had performed flawlessly since June ... hand shock, vibration ever so slight, was the real culprit! I probably practice shooting my bow more than the average guy. Over the months of repetitious practice, the vibration, hardly noticeable, caused a set srew to s-l-o-w-l-y loosen the perpendicular adjustment of my sight causing my point of aim to be flawed allowing an errant shot to miss the mark.

And I quote:
" As it applies to today’s compound bows, it should be called “hand-nudge” or “hand-almost-imperceptible-tremor.” Yes, back when everyone was shooting a D-shaped bow, most of us noticed that the unloading of the limbs caused the riser to recoil forward at the shot."

After reflecting back, I have come to the conclusion that the "hand-nudge" or the "hand-almost-imperceptible" is almost imperceptible, but more than that, can be down right deceptive causing one to be more lax, almost to the point of being negligent, not perceiving that the gentle nudge may result in the miss of a life time.
Since then a Limb Saver has popped off.

If I had to describe it further, it's like tooth decay and a cavity. A cavity doesn't just appear, but over a period of time as the enamel gets eatin' away unnoticed, surprise, surprise, surprise!

OUCH!
Hand Shock does effect accuracy in modern compound bows, it just takes longer for the symtons to appear to the archer. I have since placed lok-tite on all screws.

Dave-- you must be a real quick grabber not to drop your bow!!

Walt,
Actually, my goal is not to grab it at all. As hengst notes, that's what my wrist sling is for. Maybe I'll post about this topic later this week.

Walt Smith
I made my wrish strap for free. And almost every bow hunter uses one!

I started using a wrist strap after reading an article by
eeither Randy Ulmer or Chuck Adams. I tried it and liked it. They are cheap and are a great help...give one a shot you might like it

you have a point a hand shock dose nothing.(i think) as far as im concerned people need is stop beleving markerders and find a bow that accually works. ya it might be the most expencive bow or the cheepest. buy what works for you. not what people tell you that works for them. that bow might be the worst thing that you ever bought. so just go out and try differnt bows and find the one that you like. than find the best price in your area.

I have been shooting an old darton ranger (some people dont even know what a darton is) for 20 plus years it does have a little viberation to it but does not affect the shot it is time for a new bow will probably be a diamond the wife loves hers but for dave other than loosening screws and the such hand shock does not affect the shot unless you let it