String material for flemish twist

[NW Jamie]

I am embarking into the world of making my own strings using a jig from a posting here on Tradgang (there is an amazing amount of info when you use the search feature). What is puzzling me are all of the choices for string materials! It would be very helpfull to understand some of the differences between the various materials. My goto bow is a R/D longbow pulling 53# at my draw length as well as a couple of older recurves in the upper 50# range. So any help that you can give in sorting thru the many different string materials would be helpfull, thanks.

[DanielB89]

Jim,

any material will work.  IF your're wanting something that'll work on both old and new bows, you'll need something like B55 or B50.  I have used both and I believe they're both good materials.  

If you're wanting the most out of each bow, I'd get a modern FF material for my newer bows and a non FF type material(B55 or B50) like mentioned above.

[8upbowhunter]

FWIW I made a FF (D97) string and a B55 string for 1 of my longbows a few weeks ago. I don’t see where the D97 is much faster than the B55 but the B55 is a whole lot quieter so I kept the B55 string on it. This is just my observation on my bow only, others may have different results. I can give up a couple fps for a quieter bow.

[moebow]

Use the Dacron material while you learn to build strings.  Much cheaper and if a bad string (and there will be some) just toss out and start over.  Once you have the technique down, then go for other materials.

Arne

[old_goat2]

Originally posted by moebow:
Use the Dacron material while you learn to build strings.  Much cheaper and if a bad string (and there will be some) just toss out and start over.  Once you have the technique down, then go for other materials.

Arne

This, B50 is a third the price of the others! I recently went down the same road, I can't recommend enough to buy the string making video from Champion Bowstrings, they also give you plans on the video for making a string jig. When your ready for modern string material I've been really impressed with the Fury! 18 strands with .024 serving makes one hell of a string!

[Tedd]

It would be cheaper to make a few with lower priced material. So start there. Later, the goal should be to make the best string for your current bow. String material can make a huge difference in how a bow shoots, sounds and feels. And if you make your own you can enjoy spending money on string types to find what works best! The longer your draw length and higher the bow poundage the more critical string material is. As well as some bow designs. Even among the top FF materials there are noticeable differences.
Soon you'll have a pile of spools.
Tedd

[LBR]

You have three basic types of string material.  

Polyester (dacron), which is B-55 or B-50.  B-55 has slightly less stretch and creep, but either are safe for any bow...except Jack Harrison (Black Wolf) would void your warranty if you used dacron or a Flemish string (go figure).

Next is 100% HMPE or UHMWPE.  A couple of popular brand names are Dyneema and Spectra.  The original Fast Flight material (invented by Ray Browne and Bob Destin, founders of BCY) is SK65 Spectra but the better HMPE materials now are Dyneema.  The best of these IMO is Mercury, but there are many professional archers including Olympic archer Brady Ellison and recent World Champions Dewayne Martin and Calvin Smock still use 8125.  Dynaflight '97 is also a very popular version of a 100% HMPE material.

Finally you have the blended materials.  The first was 450 Premium, invented by Bob Destin of BCY.  This led to 450+, then 452X and Trophy, and the newest is BCY-X.  BCY-X is my current favorite, and unlike pretty much every other material it's patented so nobody else can try to copy it.

The only material on the market I know of that's not recommended for Flemish strings is Angel Majesty.  It's for endless only.

How the string is made...the twists, the strand count, etc. makes as much or more difference in how it feels and shoots as the material it's made from.  

Don't expect to pick up 20 fps when switching from dacron to one of the other materials.  Where these materials really shine is in durability and stability.  They do cost more--price per spool is noticeable, price per string difference is negligible.  

I usually have some extra material around that I can sell at a bargain, and I love to see someone getting started making strings.  From what I've been told our video is pretty helpful.

If I can help, feel free to e-mail me at [email protected].

Chad

[Terry Lightle]

Pretty much been covered above with GREAT advice.I am a B-50 fan myself,guess my age is showing.
Terry

[Tedd]

I have settled on the BCYX. Chad is a profesional so thats your best place for advice.  Though I would argue with Chad that I can tell the difference between some performance materials and  they can change the shooting properties of a bow considerably. Example 452 x will give me some limb slap on my 2 current hunting bows, where BCY-X will not. But the 452 gives me a little softer feel to the shot and seems better on my fingers. And you can tell there is just a bit of give when the limbs strike home. Also 452 shows just a little better speed with a bare shaft tune. On both my Kanati and Javaman the BCYX gives a noticeable more "dead in he hand" feel and it never stretches.  On the same bows Dacron would put a welt on my bow arm but I can shoot the FF materials with no arm guard.

[LostNation_Larry]

Chad is pretty spot on.  I'm not sure why but I will add my $.02.

The name Fast Flight is the property of Brownell and they do not make it anymore, not since 2004.  So if somebody says the have a Fast Flight string they are probably using FF as a generic "low stretch" label.

Chad didn't open the discussion serving.  I recommend one spool of nylon serving for your first few strings, then Halo once you get strand count and serving diameter figured out.  Halo is much more expensive but worth it in my book.

[LBR]

I won't try to argue perception, and there are exceptions to every rule...but the general facts about the materials are easily verifiable.

452X is 33% Vectran, 67% SK75 Dyneema.  Vectran has no give, although it does feel softer to the touch.

BCY-X is 17% Vectran, 83% SK90 Dyneema.  Slightly less stable than 452X, not enough to notice on traditional bows.  The formula will be changing to SK99 Dyneema around the first of the year which will make it even more stable and durable.

Vectran is a heavier material than Dyneema, so if the strings are the same diameter the 452X string will weigh more than a BCY-X string.

100% HMPE strings will be the lightest, but are more susceptable to temperature changes, especially when it gets hot.  Reason being, Vectran's melting point is about double that of HMPE so the blended materials are more stable.

Serving is a whole 'nother ball of wax.  Halo, 62XS, Power Grip, even Polygrip are way better (more durable) than nylon and comes in different sizes, but does cost a lot more (usually).  I have a bunch of discount serving also.

[LBR]

I should mention...although Brownell does own the name "Fast Flight", but the material itself was invented (and named) by Ray Browne and Bob Destin when they worked for Brownell.  The original material is still available in BCY's 652 Spectra material.  It's still quite popular in some markets.

[NW Jamie]

Thanks for all of the information, it made wading through the basic materials easier. Being able to make my owns strings, and see how it changs the bow character, is my goal. Thanks to all.

[RJonesRCRV]

Just my two cents...

Before you mark string lengths on your jig, pick a pin spot and make a string from that point. Take notes of your twists per inch, lead length, etc. Stretch it how ever you plan to do it. Maybe shoot it in if it fits your bow.  THEN measure the finished product and mark your pin holes accordingly.

My reasoning is that I made a jig and marked the pin holes according to the template I found.  But because of how I make my strings, ie. twist tightness and lead length, those numbers dont exactly come out right.

[NW Jamie]

Originally posted by RJonesRCRV:
Just my two cents...

Before you mark string lengths on your jig, pick a pin spot and make a string from that point. Take notes of your twists per inch, lead length, etc. Stretch it how ever you plan to do it. Maybe shoot it in if it fits your bow.  THEN measure the finished product and mark your pin holes accordingly.

My reasoning is that I made a jig and marked the pin holes according to the template I found.  But because of how I make my strings, ie. twist tightness and lead length, those numbers dont exactly come out right.

That makes a lot of sense! I found at least three different layouts for a jig and yet they all seemed to have the same numbering system for the pegs? Also, it seems really undifed when it comes to making the small and large loops. I picked one jig and built it. As soon as I get some dacron I will start working on one and see if or how I have to modify to what I do, thanks.

[LBR]

Great advice from RJones.  Also, mark your board by STRING length, not bow length.  Although AMO says the bow is supposed to be marked 3" longer than the string that puts it at proper brace (paraphrased), lots of bows are not marked correctly according to AMO.

When you switch materials, you'll have to adjust your lengths slightly also due to the amount of stretch/creep one material has vs. another.  If you can master Dacron, you can use any material.

[SteveB]

Chad is right - different materials will need adjustment in your measurements. B55 was the hardest for me to get targeted length without relying on adjusting twists more than I want. Take detailed notes on every string you make until it is 2nd nature.

I work with several different materials and each is slightly different. I now measure for length after making the 1st loop to set the length for the tag ends on the second. Takes a minute, but the best way I have found to be consistent.

[M60gunner]

This has been a very informative discussion. I don’t make strings, I am challenged at that and making bows. But I have used all the materials in strings made for me. Each has attributes to themselves. These days I prefer the BCY X strings because of high temps here in desert. Tomorrow who knows.