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A lot of bow shops and on line gurus will lead you to believe that their ideas and formulas
and calculation and specs are the only real facts out there. After reviewing most of the
information out there it didn't take very much common sense to realize that this was
basically filler material for websites. Now don`t get me wrong I don`t feel that I am gods gift
to bows by any means, I just take a simple yet informed approach to my bow work.
We will cover many aspects of bows and arrows in this section and hope that you find it
informative and useful. I also hope it helps you come to understand your equipment better
and see the hype that A lot of people have created about bows over the years.
Arrows and Momentum vs. Kinetic Energy.
Now there are a couple of terms I am sure we have all heard over the years, I have as I am
sure you all have done research or clicked on links on websites or your favorite forum and
read all the data and input by Professors and self proclaimed bow experts. I am also equally
sure you have seen this picture on many sites.
Now if you look very very closely what the author
of this site is trying to prove is that more weight
equals more momentum and that equals better
and more penetration. Correct???????
Not exactly ! ! ! If you really look closely at this
picture you will see that the 525 grn. arrow only
penetrates about 1/2 inch more than the 375 grn.
arrow. Now what would it take to make a 525 grain arrow? Anyone?????
Well for starters you would have to have a very heavy grain per inch arrow, but that still
wouldn't get you there, second you would need a heavy tip or broadhead such as a 125
grain or 150 grain. Then you still will be off by at least 50 grains so you would have to hit your
local pro shop and buy arrow weights to bring it up. Sounds simple huh? Well with the
heavier tip you bring your Front Of Center way out of balance, thus you need the weights in
the rear of the arrow to bring that back to the 10-12% needed for proper flight. So you would
have to measure-add weight-measure-add weight etc. Until you got it right otherwise your
arrow would nose dive at 20 -30 yards. So not to mention the sheer amount of man
hours,driving time and the MONEY $$$ you would spend to get this 525 grain monster just
to achieve 1/2 inch of penetration,,does that seem like a sound investment for your hunting
equipment? For me it would be a lot more hassle than help, after many hours of shooting
different weights of arrows it is my conclusion that unless you have more money and time
than sense if you stay in the 5.2 to 5.6 grains of arrow weight per pound of draw weight
and use a tip that will enhance your front of center percentage you will save time and money
and headache. Archery has become so much of a Bragging Rights genre that it is getting
silly day by day. My philosophy is Use Your HEAD Not Your WALLET.
Bow Talk
Hoosier Outdoorsman Sportsman Society
Bow Strings 101
Now here is a subject that A LOT of hunters and archers seem to be very keen on? Most not
all but most will follow the mainstream on bow strings. Bow string along with almost
everything else in archery has become so manufacturer dependant on rating, the big
question is " What Makes A Great Bow String? " Now with all the string makers out there
and new ones popping up day by day it has turned into an all out war on the archer. First off
lets set the record straight that over 80% of the string makers out there are using the exact
same materials, the other 20% the only thing different they use is the string material itself.
There are only 2 manufacturers of bow string materials out there, Brownell Linen And String
and BCY Fibers are the ONLY 2 string material manufacturers in the US. BCY Fibers makes
the 452X material that has become so popular with string makers this is a fine string
material that has ZERO stretch and ZERO creep factors and is highly abrasive resistant.
The only downfall of this material is it only has a 95 lb. single strand breaking strength. So
you need 22-24 strands of material to keep a safety factor of 5 to 1 for todays modern bows.
The added strands also will mean more noise due to a larger diameter string moving
through the air and a smaller diameter center serving must be used to achieve proper nock
fit. With a smaller or (thinner) center serving material that opens up room for problems. The
thinner material will not protect the underlying strands of string material and this can cause
premature strand breakage. Now the string makers will very quickly tell you this is bunk and
they NEVER have any problems like this, bottom line is you will pay them your money and
walk out with their string on your bow ! They achieved their goal ! Did you achieve your goal?
Did you get the BEST string for YOUR MONEY?? Now BCY fibers does have some great
material hands down, as does Brownell Linen. Myself I prefer Brownell material over BCY
BUT the color options are limited. So after researching BCY from head to toe I did settle
On their BCY 8125 material, it comes in almost any and all colors you could want. And it has
a 125 single strand breaking strength. You can use 18 strands and have WAY more than
enough strength to keep stretch and creep to a minimum, plus you can use a heavier center
serving that will protect the strands underneath. Center servings and end servings main
function is to protect the inner strands and hold them together. BCY 3D End Loop serving is
all I use, it is .018 in diameter and can be served tightly and still retain a good flex. For my
center serving I use BCY #62xs braided center serving in the .024 diameter, this is one
tough center serving and if served correctly will not slip nor separate. So before you go and
drop $50-$60 on a new string and cable ask these questions.
1. What material is it made of?
2. What is the single strand strength of the material?
3. How many strands ?
4. What size center serving material?
If they are hesitant or tell you they don`t know but it is only the best on the market, I myself
would find a new place to get my strings. Customers usually don`t ask ENOUGH questions
about products, primarily because they don`t know what to ask. So we are left to be the
proverbial blind sheep and follow the shepherds words. The Internet is a vast sea of
information on any and every subject out there so do your homework and maybe you can
save yourself bucks $$
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