carbon limbs

hombre

New member
I am at present using Win and Win Challenger fibre glass limbs. As a relative newcomer to archery I would welcome some advice. What are the advantages of carbon fibre limbs as opposed to fibre glass? Looking on Merlin Archery website there is not much price difference in what I am now using now and the Challenger Carbon limbs. As I will soon want to increase my draw weight would it be any advantage to go for carbon? Thanks.
 
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rgsphoto

Guest
Carbon is light, light =speed. So all things being equal you get more arrow speed for the same draw weight when comparing a wood/glass limb to a Wood/carbon limb. The added advantage of composite/carbon limbs with foam cores instead of wood cores, is again they are lighter still and they are not influenced by air temp and moisture. They can also suffer less from stacking and can be nicer to draw.

With carbon/composite limb, technology is doing the work for you, so you can draw less weight to get the same arrow speed.

As you progress with your archery it is almost inevitable you will buy some carbon limbs, but without good form no limb will make any difference to how well you shoot. To assist with good form, it's important to keep the bow weight within the limits of being comfortable. Carbon limbs will help you do this.

The price of good quiality carbon limbs are so low now, I see no advantage in buying wood/glass limbs, unless you need to keep the price down to a minimum, ideal for starter bows and for kids. But even starter bows are now turning up with carbon limbs too.

If you do buy carbon limbs, go for full on composite limbs, wood cores will not give you as much advantage and the noticable difference/advantage will be small.

Please consider faster limbs mean faster arrows. You may need to budget for new arrows too...
 

JohnK

Well-known member
You won't notice much difference between the Challenger and Challenger Carbon limbs. You're better off sticking with the wood/glass limbs until you have settled at a good draw weight and want to spend your hard-earned dosh on some nicer limbs :)
 

joetapley

New member
Second JohnKs view. There is no great advantage per se in Carbon limbs as opposed to glass. Limb performance comes down to to the detail construction/design not carbon/glass. Some limbs are better then others. Unfortunately the better limbs (unsurprisingly) are considerably more expensive then the general run of the mill.

Initially spend your money on anything but the limbs as far as the "good stuff" goes.
 

Random_guy

New member
I really like my winacts (they're not the new 06 ones, have no clue what they're like) despite them being made with wood and carbon rather than magical foam :raspberry but i tried some cheap carbon ones and they were horrible. Have to agree there is alot more to good limbs then what they're made of....
 
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rgsphoto

Guest
OK whe you mix these answers together you may feel a little confused:boggled: It depends on how long you have been shooting and how well you are shooting.

I do not advise one way or another if you should buy carbon limbs, I am just trying to highlight the advantage of using them, and the term "all things being equal" is import here. A good quality Carbon/composite limb will outperform a wood/glass limb whatever it's design. If you need them is another question.
 

Big Boy Blue

New member
Fonz Awardee
Ironman
Just to echo what everybody else has said.

Spend as little as possible on limbs until you get to your elected shooting weight, then buy good quality limbs. I would stay with the challenger craft and see if you can get the supplier to allow you to change free of charge as you move up the limb weight. My local shop allows people to do this and it will save you huge amounts of money. The limbs they supply are not new but they are good condition second hand and as your not going to be using them that long it does not matter.
 
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rgsphoto

Guest
joetapley said:
Random Guy
A standard foam core is no lighter then a wood core (same density). No real difference. There are lighter synthetic cores coming out but **** expensive limbs.
As the youth of today would say...Whatever!:raspberry
 

Rik

Supporter
Supporter
rgsphoto said:
A good quality Carbon/composite limb will outperform a wood/glass limb whatever it's design. If you need them is another question.
I don't think that's true. Look at Samick Masters limbs - wood/carbon and faster than most other things on the market. The thing is that carbon/composite limbs tend to have been aimed at the upper end of the market, so more design goes into them.
 
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rgsphoto

Guest
Rik said:
carbon/composite limbs tend to have been aimed at the upper end of the market, so more design goes into them.
Whatever! I wonder why that is?:raspberry
 

nfinite

New member
Ironman
always thought that foam core limbs were less prone from affects from heat.

compaired to wood cores.

could be wrong , but if so , im sure somebody will say so :raspberry
 

JohnK

Well-known member
Sid Ball at Border once told me that the good thing about wood is that it's tremendously torsionally stable, and it's very difficult to find a synthetic laminate that will measure up to it. This is why if you look very closely at the side of a set of TX40 Gold's you'll see a two very thin light layers in the limb which are in fact extremely thinly cut wood. The core is synthetic - and no, he's not saying what it is. :)

Variation in the performance of wood/glass limbs in extremes of temperature and humidity is probably the best reasons to go for going for a part- or all-synthetic limb.
 

Little Miss Purple

The American
Fonz Awardee
Ironman
American Shoot
RGS - are your knickers in a twist?? :raspberry

I've been advised to keep my bow inside my tent when not shooting no matter what limbs I'm using!! The example given was..one limb may be getting the full brunt of the sun whilst the other not quite as much - this will have some affect on the performance.

This statement was said & seconded by 2 ex-GB team archers!
 

Wrexham Exile

New member
Ironman
Little Miss Purple said:
RGS - are your knickers in a twist?? :raspberry

I've been advised to keep my bow inside my tent when not shooting no matter what limbs I'm using!! The example given was..one limb may be getting the full brunt of the sun whilst the other not quite as much - this will have some affect on the performance.

This statement was said & seconded by 2 ex-GB team archers!
but one part of the tent maybe hotter than the other,no???

i think unless you are shooting in extreme temperatures it wont make much difference. modern limbs are designed to be temp stable anyway.
i'd spend less time worrying about the temp variations - which will effect everyone - and just go and do your thing
statement said by a current world no. 2 :raspberry
 

wingate_52

Active member
Started with Challenger craft. Moved on to Winact, very pleased, arrows go further. Aspire to Winex, Feels like you are pulling less weight, so will go up a few pounds and get a flatter trajectory. Arrows go a shorter distance between two points, therefore faster arrow speed, less prone to wind and rain, limbs "less prone" to the elements.
 

Russ

Member
From what I can gather here, it seems there isn't much difference in performance between wood/glass and wood/carbon for intermediate-level limbs; but what about durability? Does carbon stand up better to accidental knocks and twists on the shooting line or in transit? (a pressing question for those of us with soft cases on bicycles!)
 

jerryRTD

Well-known member
As for the wood foam thing a lot will depend on the grade of the wood used. It can vary with any number of factors such as difference in growth from year to year which will affect the grain density. As a general rule carbon fiber means less mass in the limbs so more speed how much carbon you get is another thing, you get what you pay for 99 times out of 100. I don't think there's a lot of difference in durability .
 

napolienne

Active member
Fonz Awardee
Having leapt from bog standard non-ILF Win and win evolution 1 limbs to a spectacular set of Hoyt FXs (carbon/foam) the difference in arrow speed is outstanding, even allowing for a 7-8lb increase in weight. And the limbs are so smooth that I'm barely noticing the increase.

So my inclination would be to say that if you are increasing draw weight, go for carbon, you'll notice it less. That said, if you intend to increase in draw weight again after the next set of limbs, and pretty quickly, then it may not be worth it. Unless you don't mind losing a little money when you sell the limbs on, that is.

I should also point out that with faster limbs, cock ups technique wise tend to be somewhat magnified...
 

Lividpig

New member
Colour...........

but one part of the tent maybe hotter than the other,no???

i think unless you are shooting in extreme temperatures it wont make much difference. modern limbs are designed to be temp stable anyway.
i'd spend less time worrying about the temp variations - which will effect everyone - and just go and do your thing
statement said by a current world no. 2 :raspberry
Does this raise a question regarding the choice manufacturers make for the colour of limbs? My Winacts being white should remain cooler in the sun whereas WinEx or M1s being black will cook?
:yummy:
 
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