Archery glove or tab - What is best for me?

In our checklist for beginners we have already explained to you that the protective equipment in archery is important. This includes, among other things, the archery glove. In this blog post, we would like to introduce you to another option for protecting your hands with the so-called "tab". Which of the two alternatives is ultimately the right choice for you, you will find out here.

What is the difference between the shooting glove and the tab?

A archery glove is a glove that covers the three fingers of your hand. This sounds unusual at first, but it is perfectly adequate, since you only use your index, middle and ring fingers to pull the string backwards. The so-called tab is a kind of "lappet", which is usually made of leather. In contrast to the archery glove, you insert your middle finger into a hole provided for this purpose, so that the tab rests protectively on the three middle fingers. A plastic finger separator between the index and middle fingers also ensures that there is enough space and stability for nocking your arrow.

What should I choose?

Since this decision must be made individually for each archer, it is not possible to generalize the question accordingly. Nevertheless, we advise everyone to try both the shooting glove and the tab at least once. This is the best way to decide which hand protection is best for you. It is important that both the shooting glove and the tab fit well on the skin, do not slip and feel good. Some shooters also have both and switch depending on their mood, providing a little extra variety. For beginners, however, we definitely recommend you get a shooting glove, such as our Classic Archery Glove.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of archery glove and tab?

With a shooting glove, your fingers are well protected and also warmed in colder seasons. With a glove you can also shoot "Mediterranean" or "Three Under" as you like.

Excurs: What is meant by "Mediterranean" and "Three Under"? Mediterranean is a grip technique of the string. For the so-called "Mediterranean grip", one places the index finger above and the middle and ring finger below the arrow of the string. "Three Under", on the other hand, describes a grip technique in which all three fingers are gripped under the socketed arrow. This type of gripping is preferred especially in the USA. 

The tab is usually cheaper than a archery glove and you can put it on or take it off faster. While the clean release when shooting is another advantage, the risk of frequently misplacing the tab due to its size is a minor drawback to the purchase. Also, if you want to shoot "three under" with a tab, you will need to purchase an additional tab, as you will not need a finger separator in this case. For these reasons, we recommend the tab mainly for advanced archers. In our BEARPAW online shop you can find tabs made of leather and calf hair with finger separator.

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