Walk back tuning a compound bow

Walkback tuning checks whether your arrows stay on the line your sight is looking down as the distance grows. You hold the same 20-yard pin on the same vertical line from 20, 30, 40 yards and farther. Each arrow hits lower than the last because the pin is set for 20 yards, but if the rest is in the right left-right position, every arrow lands on the line.

The fault it finds is one you can't see up close: a bow that is sighted in at 20 yards but puts arrows a little left or right at 50 or 60 because the rest isn't lined up. At 20 yards there is nothing to see, because that is where the sight was zeroed. The error grows with every 10 yards past that, so by the end of the walkback it is easy to see and measure. Paper tuning reads how the arrow leaves the bow a few feet out. Walkback reads where it ends up downrange.

What it doesn't tell you

• Vertical tune. The arrows drop on purpose, so a nock-height problem doesn't show. That is paper and bare-shaft work.
• Broadhead flight. Walkback is done with field points. Whether broadheads hit with them is a separate test.
• Your sight marks. One pin is used throughout, so the elevation for each distance isn't checked.
• The cause of the drift. A canted bow, a sight that isn't level, a torqued grip and wind all push arrows sideways more at long range, just like a misplaced rest. The checks in the next section remove those, so that whatever drift remains can be attributed to the rest.

Paper or bare-shaft tune first

Walkback is a fine adjustment that starts where paper tuning leaves off. Get a clean tear, or bare shafts grouping with fletched arrows (see the bare-shaft tuning guide), with no fletching contact. Start with the rest at the manufacturer's published centershot. If the cams need timing or cam lean work, do that first; the cam timing guide covers it. Any of those changes moves the rest's best position, so walkback comes after them, not before.

Level the sight

The bubble is only useful if the sight itself is level. If the sight's second axis is off, centering the bubble cants the bow and your arrows hit wide. Set the second axis so the bubble is centered when the string is plumb, using a bow vise and a level, or have a pro shop do it.

Hold the bubble on every shot

Canting the bow is one of the most common causes of left and right misses, and the miss gets bigger the farther you shoot. That makes it the error most likely to be mistaken for rest drift. Check the bubble before every release, at every distance.

Calm air

Wind pushes arrows sideways, which is exactly the error you are trying to measure. Pick a calm day, or an indoor range long enough for the distances you need.

Form you can repeat

A grip that twists the riser or a release that pulls sideways puts arrows left or right in a way that can look like drift. If your groups at 40 yards are wide, work on form before you read a walkback. Use your hunting arrows, with field points matched to your broadhead weight.

You need a target tall enough to catch arrows at every distance, a roll of tape, and a plumb bob or level.

The line

Run tape (painter's tape works) from the top of the target to the bottom and check it with a plumb bob or level. A line that leans adds its own error to every shot. Put an aiming mark on the line near the top: a small dot, or a short strip of tape crossing it.

Target height

With the 20-yard pin, arrows land well below the aiming mark at 50 and 60 yards. Stack two targets, or hold the pin higher on the line for the long shots. Only left-right position matters in this test, so any point on the line is a valid aiming point. Aiming at different points on the line also keeps you from hitting arrows already in the target.

Distances

20, 30, 40, 50 and 60 yards is a common ladder. Go as far as you can shoot with good form. The farther you go, the smaller the error you can detect.

The pin

Zero the 20-yard pin at 20 yards so the arrow hits the line, adjusting windage only. Then use that pin at every distance, and don't switch pins or dial elevation. If your pins aren't stacked in a straight vertical line, or the sight bar isn't parallel to the string, changing pins or moving the sight up and down can shift impacts left or right and spoil the test.

How many arrows

Shoot one arrow per distance, which keeps the pattern easy to read. If an arrow lands off the line, shoot a second one from that distance before you change anything. If you prefer groups, two or three arrows per distance, read at the center of each group, work as well.

Walk up and look at the holes from top to bottom. The 20-yard arrow should be on the tape near the aiming mark, and each farther arrow sits lower. What matters is where each one sits left or right of the tape, and whether that offset grows with distance.

The patterns below are written for a right-handed archer. The note at the end of this section covers left-handed bows.

Left-handed archers

The reading and the correction are both stated in terms of the target, so they don't flip: arrows drifting left mean the rest moves right, on either bow. What changes is the in/out label. On a right-handed bow, moving the rest right moves it toward the riser. On a left-handed bow, moving it right moves it away from the riser.

Move it toward the line

The rule: move the rest opposite to the drift, which means toward the line. Arrows drifting left as distance grows, move the rest right. Arrows drifting right, move the rest left.

This is not the same rule as broadhead tuning. When you compare broadheads with field points, the rule is to move the rest toward the broadhead group: broadheads left, rest left. Walkback compares your arrows with your sight line, not with other arrows, and its rule points the other way. Don't carry one over to the other.

Small steps

Move the rest 1/32 inch at a time. Near the end, a 1/64-inch move can be all the line needs. A large move overshoots and makes the drift switch sides, which costs you a full round of shooting to find out.

Re-zero, then walk back again

Every rest move also shifts the 20-yard impact. Go back to 20 yards, bring that arrow onto the line with the sight's windage, then shoot the distances again. If you skip the re-zero, the line starts off the tape and is harder to read.

One change at a time

During the walkback, the rest is the only thing that moves (plus the 20-yard windage re-zero that follows each rest move). Leave the nock point, cams and sight elevation alone, or you won't know which change straightened the line.

When to stop

When the long-distance arrows land on the tape, or as close to it as your normal group size at that distance allows, the rest is set. Tighten it and mark its position on the scale or with a paint pen, so you can tell later if it has moved.

When moving the rest doesn't fix it

If the rest has moved well away from the manufacturer's centershot and the line still leans, stop moving it. Check the bubble and the sight's second axis again, then your grip. Then look at cam lean. Compound cams often lean a little at full draw, which is one reason the best rest position can sit away from the center you measured with the bow at rest. A large lean is better corrected at the cams than chased with the rest. If all of that checks out, re-test the arrow with a bare-shaft test before going further.

It's tempting to fix the long-distance arrows with the sight. Move the rest, not the sight, and touch windage only to put the 20-yard arrow on the line.

The reason is what each part does. A windage change at the sight moves your impacts the same direction at every distance. It can put any one distance on the line, but not all of them at once. Move the sight until the 60-yard arrow is on the tape and the 20-yard arrow moves off it. The drift comes from how the arrow leaves the bow, and the rest is the part that controls that. So the work is split: the rest makes the line of impacts vertical, and the sight puts that line on the tape.

French tuning, below, splits the work the same way: the sight is adjusted at close range and the rest at long range. Once the walkback is done, check your pins or your sight tape at each distance. The sight tape guide and the sight tape tool cover building marks for a single-pin slider.

What it is

French tuning checks the same thing as a walkback, the rest's left-right position, from two distances instead of a series. You shoot first from close to the target, about 6 to 10 feet away, and then from 40 to 50 yards. The same pin is used at both distances: the pin, or the slider setting, for the long distance.

The procedure

1. Hang a plumb vertical line on the target, the same as for a walkback.
2. From the close position, shoot one arrow at the line with your long-distance pin. If it misses left or right, move the sight's windage until it hits the line. At this distance you adjust the sight only.
3. Move back to 40 or 50 yards and shoot at the line with the same pin. If the arrow lands left, move the rest right; if it lands right, move the rest left. At this distance you adjust the rest only.
4. Return to the close position and re-center with the sight, since the rest move shifted that impact too.
5. Repeat until arrows hit the line at both distances without any adjustment.

How it differs from a walkback

• Two distances instead of four or five, so a round takes fewer shots and less walking.
• The pin matches the far distance, so the long shot lands near the aiming mark and you don't need stacked targets.
• The sight and the rest are adjusted at different distances on every round. In a walkback, the sight is touched only to re-zero at 20 yards.
• A walkback shows the drift across several distances, which makes a single bad shot stand out. French tuning has two points per round, so one poor shot at 50 yards can send you the wrong way. Shoot a second arrow at the long distance if the first one looks off.

Which one to use

This is a judgment call; both find the same rest position. A walkback suits a range with marked distances and a tall target, and it shows you the whole line. French tuning suits a backyard with one close spot and one long one, or a session where you want fewer arrows. Nothing stops you from using both: French tune to set the rest, then walk back to confirm the line holds at the distances in between.

Some archers run a short version at 3 and 10 yards when they have no long range. It gives a rough setting at best. Confirm it at full distance before the season.

• Canting the bow. Check the bubble on every shot; a tilted bow produces drift the rest can't fix.
• Trusting a bubble on a sight whose second axis was never set. Centering it then cants the bow.
• Switching pins or dialing elevation between distances. Use the 20-yard pin and one sight setting for the whole walkback.
• Moving the sight to chase the long-distance arrows. It moves the error to another distance instead of removing it.
• Forgetting to re-zero at 20 yards after a rest move, then reading a line that starts off the tape.
• Moving the rest in the direction of the drift. In a walkback the rest moves toward the line.
• Tuning in wind. A crosswind adds exactly the kind of sideways error you are trying to measure.
• An eyeballed line. Check the tape with a plumb bob or level.
• Reading one bad shot as drift. Confirm an odd arrow with a second shot from the same distance.
• Form that changes at distance. Gripping harder or punching the release on the long shots throws arrows sideways.
• Large rest moves. Work in 1/32-inch steps or smaller.
• Skipping paper or bare-shaft tuning and starting here.

Walkback sits between the close-range tests and the broadhead check. Paper and bare-shaft tuning get the arrow leaving the bow cleanly. The walkback sets the rest's left-right position at distance. Then broadhead tuning confirms that your hunting heads fly with your field points, and long-range groups confirm the whole setup. The compound bow tuning guide lays out the full order.

Standard tune order

Contact check → paper → bare-shaft → walkback → nock tuning → broadhead → long-range groups.

Which way do I move the rest if my arrows drift left during a walkback?

Move the rest to the right, toward the line. If the arrows drift right, move it left. The rest moves opposite to the drift. Move 1/32 inch or less, re-zero the 20-yard shot with the sight, and walk back again.

Why use the 20-yard pin at every distance?

One pin and one sight setting keep the sight out of the test. If the pins aren't stacked in a straight vertical line, or the sight bar isn't parallel to the string, switching pins or dialing elevation can add a left-right shift that looks like rest drift. The cost is that arrows hit lower at each distance, so you need a tall target or a higher aiming point on the line.

How far back should I go?

As far as you can shoot with good form. Small drift is easier to see at long range: an error that is hard to read at 30 yards is plain at 60. For a hunting bow, go at least as far as the longest shot you would take at an animal.

Is French tuning the same as walkback tuning?

They check the same thing, the rest's left-right position, but the procedure differs. Walkback uses one pin over a series of distances and moves only the rest. French tuning uses two distances, a few yards and 40 to 50 yards, with the long-distance pin at both. You correct the close shot with the sight and the long shot with the rest, and alternate until both hit the line.

Should I walkback tune with broadheads or field points?

Field points. Walkback sets the rest's left-right position with the arrow that is easiest to read. Broadheads have their own test: once the walkback line is straight, broadhead tuning compares broadhead impact with field-point impact.

Do I need to paper tune before walkback tuning?

Yes, or bare-shaft tune. Walkback assumes the arrow already leaves the bow cleanly. It only reads left and right, so it can't show a nock-height problem, and fletching contact makes arrows erratic enough to hide any drift.

My arrows won't line up no matter where I put the rest. What else causes drift?

Canting the bow, a sight whose second axis isn't level, grip torque, and wind all push arrows sideways, more so at distance. Check the bubble on every shot, relax the bow hand, and pick a calm day. If the rest is already far from the manufacturer's centershot, stop moving it and check cam lean and arrow spine instead.

Does the walkback rule change for left-handed archers?

No. The move is stated in terms of the target, so it stays the same: arrows drifting left mean the rest moves right. Only the in/out label changes. On a right-handed bow, moving the rest right moves it toward the riser; on a left-handed bow, moving it right moves it away from the riser.

Do I need to re-sight after walkback tuning?

Yes. Every rest move changes where the 20-yard arrow lands, which is why you re-zero windage during the test. When the line is straight, check each pin or your sight tape at its distance, because those marks were set with the rest in a different place.

How often should I walkback tune?

After anything that changes how the arrow leaves the bow: a new rest, new string and cables, a draw weight change, a new arrow build, or cam adjustments. A walkback at the start of each season is a quick check that nothing has moved.

Walkback tuning

Shooting one sight pin at a vertical line from increasing distances to check the rest's left-right position. Impacts should fall in a straight line down the tape.

French tuning

A two-distance version of the same check. Sight windage is corrected at close range and the rest at 40 to 50 yards, using the long-distance pin at both.

Centershot

Left-right position of the arrow relative to the bowstring and riser. Each manufacturer publishes a starting value; walkback refines it.

Drift

Impacts that move progressively left or right of the line as the distance grows, while the 20-yard arrow stays on it.

Plumb line

A truly vertical reference, set with a weighted string (plumb bob) or a level. The walkback line has to be plumb for the test to mean anything.

Windage

The left-right adjustment on a bow sight. In a walkback it is used only to put the 20-yard arrow on the line.

Second axis

The sight's rotation around the line you look through. When it is set, a centered bubble means the bow is plumb.

Cant

Tilting the bow left or right at full draw. Pushes arrows sideways, more so at long range.

Torque

Twisting force on the riser from the bow hand. Throws arrows left or right and can look like rest drift.