Amateur questions

Jester_6

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Being quite strapped for cash and still being a novice archer I have decided to start making my own bowstring (amongst other things but I will post other topics at a later stage). There are a few things that I have to find out before I set off though.


i am currently using a 36 lbs Ragim Wildcat recurve bow that is 68" long with reinforced tips on the limbs. Currently using straight forward dacron strings.


in my naivet? (and impulsive buying) I purchased a spool of 452x bowstring to use for my string making only to read afterwards that it is not entirely advisable to use 452x for recurve bows. Is that true? I have read elsewhere that it is acceptable when you have reinforced tips and as long as you dont keep your strand count below 14. Could anyone please clarify this for me?


in further naivit?, thinking serving is serving, I bought a spool of BCY 3D end loop serving, which is of course fine for end loops but can it be used for centre serving as well?? What is the difference?


finally, I will be making continuous loop string but is it feasible to use flemish twist string on a recurve bow with my specs? I know that flemish string is mostly used for longbows, or am I wrong? The reason I am asking is that a flemish twist jig seems a lot easier to build than a continuous loop jig.


Apologies in advance if any of these questions seem ridiculous or obvious!
 

Timid Toad

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A Flemish twist string is ok for recurves - I used to shoot them. It can be a little more forgiving (ie by creep) with very non-stretch materials.
 

Jester_6

New member
Thanks for that! Its great knowing I can use flemish string on my recurve! I know it requires a bit more skill to make, but it will be excellent practice! And I do believe that the 452x string has little to no creep which is great. I'll try upload some pics of my first few attempts
 

Timid Toad

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I'd still wait until someone with experience of 452x chips in to let you know it is safe.
 

darthTer

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Years ago I queried using 452x material on a recurve with BCY direct.

They stated there was absolutely no reason not to use it, providing the limb tips were reinforced. There was no mention of specific strand counts other than the norm that applies to all bows.

I'm pretty sure that Border Bows have also confirmed no issues with using 452x with their products.
 

Jester_6

New member
Thanks darth! I'm glad to hear that. The FAQ on their website also refute any problems. From what I gather a lot of people are apprehensive to use it but I have not found one case so far of anything negative happening to a bow with reinforced tips.

I'll be starting off with a flemish twist using 452x and then move over to continuous loop and compare the results.

thanks to you all for giving clarity on my string issues, however I am still curious about the serving. Can I use end loop serving as center serving or will I have to go out and get serving specifically branded as centre serving?
 

darthTer

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From what I gather a lot of people are apprehensive to use it but I have not found one case so far of anything negative happening to a bow with reinforced tips.
If you dig deep enough, or ask enough people....you will find examples. However, this also applies to every other string type/brand.

As for using end serving as centre serving....it ain't going to damage anything, so give it a go. You may find that it wears quicker than specific centre serving material, but you don't know until ya try.
 

carl7

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Jester_6 I did the same thing as you, when first starting making strings, bought a spool of 452X. After hearing a mix of pros and cons, I got a spool of 8125G the old "standard", and several other materials. Have made several strings of each material, including 452X, I figured I'll find out what all the fuss is about with 452X.

I have no way of measuring what the stresses are on the limb tips with different materials but just from shooting it, can say I see and hear no difference in 452X compared to other materials whatsoever.

I do however just to be safe, make the 452X string a bit longer, (1/4"-1/2") requiring more twists to get it to the minimum and max BH. The extra twists should tend to act like a spring hopefully. Also use about 24 strands.

Carl
 

darthTer

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I do however just to be safe, make the 452X string a bit longer, (1/4"-1/2") requiring more twists to get it to the minimum and max BH. The extra twists should tend to act like a spring hopefully. Also use about 24 strands.

Carl
24 strands - sounds more like a rope than a string.....

I don't think I've ever made a string with more than 18 strands....normally 14 or 16. That's the same for 452x, Dynaflyte97, 8125 & 8125G
 

Tuck

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The Brownell catalog recommends different thread counts for different materials ranging from 14-16 for B50 to 20-24 for XCEL



Eat, Drink, Shoot, Enjoy.
 

Jester_6

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I did the same thing as you, when first starting making strings, bought a spool of 452X.
Lol that is a bit of a problem. Alas, the 452x put me quote out of pocket for a while so I am just going to have to dive in and use it. I quite confident that it wil work just fine!

24 strands does sound a bit steep though, how did that affect the knocking of your arrows after you added the serving? I think I am going to start of with two strings of 8 threads for my flemish twist making a total of 16. I really dont want to go lower than that as it would create a faster string and I really do not want to hurt my bow.
 

Tuck

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The 20-24 strand is recommended for compounds, usually shot at 60-70 lbs in the USA so a recurve should be ok with 14-16 strand, assuming the same 3 lbs per strand.



Eat, Drink, Shoot, Enjoy.
 

Jester_6

New member
Gosh... Apologies for the horrible typing!! Had to type that quite in a rush!

I am interested in the extra twist resulting in a springy string... will definitely experiment with that a bit! As I mentioned in my first post, my bow is 66" so initially I want to make a 63" string, but I'll make another maybe adding an extra 1/2" with extra twists as well to see how it compares when I shoot it.

But I am getting ahead of myself!! Will first have to make a few dodgy string to get my technique down! Haha
 

Tuck

New member
The Brownell recommendation is 0.5 to 0.75 twists per inch for a 60" string.
I never use less than 10 twists and up to about 40. For a 68" bow so about .2 to .6 per inch.


Eat, Drink, Shoot, Enjoy.
 

carl7

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Lol that is a bit of a problem. Alas, the 452x put me quote out of pocket for a while so I am just going to have to dive in and use it. I quite confident that it wil work just fine!

24 strands does sound a bit steep though, how did that affect the knocking of your arrows after you added the serving? I think I am going to start of with two strings of 8 threads for my flemish twist making a total of 16. I really dont want to go lower than that as it would create a faster string and I really do not want to hurt my bow.
According to the string builders on AT, they say 452x is half the thickness of say 8125 and that seems to be true because the nocking diameter came out perfect (.010) for G Nocks with 3D.

I also compress the fibers tight with a loop of D loop material to get it nice, round, and solid, also to remove excess wax before any serving. (thanks Geofretired)

So I went with 24 strands of 452 and I'm kind of glad I did because I made another string with 452 but 20 strands and you can tell just by the sound it is a bit faster but harsher. I shoot the 24 str 452 regularly and it works well.
 

Tuck

New member
According to the string builders on AT, they say 452x is half the thickness of say 8125 and that seems to be true because the nocking diameter came out perfect (.010) for G Nocks with 3D.

So I went with 24 strands of 452 and I'm kind of glad I did because I made another string with 452 but 20 strands and you can tell just by the sound it is a bit harsher. I shoot the 24 str 452 regularly and it works well.
What bow and poundage?
 
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