Recommended brace height

[yeager]

A new youth member in our archery club just bought a Samick Phantom recurve.  Would anyone know what is the recommended brace height for this bow.

Many thanks,

Bob

[McDave]

The recommended brace height is 8 1/4 - 8 3/4.  Probably just keep it at about 8 1/2.  Check it after every shooting session for the first few times until it settles in.

[yeager]

Dave,

Thanks for the reply. This teenager is just getting in to arhery and has never heard of this website. I told him there are a lot of knowledgable people here and are more than willing to help archers out.

Thanks,

Bob

[Devo]

I just purchased a Phantom as well and have been searching for the recommended brace height. Samick's homepage shows the brace height as 8 4/16"-9 4/16"! I've seen 8 1/4-8 3/4 on other sites. 3Rivers told me today to try 7 1/2-8". I'm around 7 3/4" now but I think the string they sent may be too long because I have to twist it a lot to get it there. Not sure how many twists is too many. Please post how that brace height works out for him. It is a fun bow to shoot and it doesn't look too bad either.

[McDave]

I've never shot a Phantom, but it looks like a typical 62" recurve.  One of the problems with Samik is that they are vague about brace height.  Any other recurve you buy will have fairly specific recommendations for brace height; e.g 8 1/4 - 8 1/2, a 1/4" range.  As many bows as Samik is selling now in the US, you would think they would do some testing of their own and narrow down the range a little.  A range of 8 1/4 - 9 1/4 is a joke.  Samik makes pretty good bows, but this kind of thing doesn't help them any.

I have two Samiks, a Red Stag and a Night Hawk, which I haven't extensively tested for brace height, as they are intended for use by grandchildren or in classes I teach, although I have managed to get good bare shaft flight out of both at the mid-point of their recommended brace height ranges.

The 8 1/4 - 8 3/4 range that I posted came from Lancaster, which is a major distributor of Samik bows in the US. They have sent representatives to Samik in Korea and vice versa to help get the brand established in the US.  That doesn't make them right, necessarily, but they do have a commitment to Samik bows.

If you twist up the string to where there are more than two twists per inch, you should consider getting a shorter string.  I can't tell you if 7 3/4 is the right place, only that it's a little lower than I am using on my other Samik bows.

[Devo]

McDave, is that two twists pre inch of brace height (approx 16 twists) or two per inch of string (approx 116)?  I think two twists per inch would equate to a max of 116 as well? 116 twists seems like an extreme amount. Thanks!

It is really frustrating that the bow showed up without any manual or paperwork with specifications, etc. I emailed samik asking for string length/type and brace height specs but I would be surprised to hear anything back.

[McDave]

If you take a ruler and place it on the string about halfway between the serving and the end of the string, there should be less than two twists in a measured inch, for a Flemmish string.  Probably less than that for an endless string.  I don't know what the recommended maximum twists are for an endless string, but people commonly shoot endless strings with few or no twists.

There can also be too few twists in a Flemmish string, as the twists are needed to hold it together.  I would imagine that 16 total twists (not counting the tight twists near the string loops) would be pushing it on the low side.

These are just guidelines I have heard, not hard and fast rules.  I believe if the string is twisted too much, the twists can bind against each other weakening the string.

[Devo]

I believe my string is an endless loop or double loop (serving on the end loops with straight/untwisted strands between when new). At this point I have about 1 twist per inch and the string seems really tight. I'll order a slightly shorter string this weekend.

This is all really valuable information! Thanks for the advice.