brace height adjustment

[Mr Green 740]

Hey everyone, my question is about brace height adjustment. I shoot a Morrison longbow with a recommended brace height of 7 inches. If I adjust the brace height from say 6- 3/4 to 7-1/4 what should I look for in performance or shooting differences? I see a lot of talk about brace height but I really don't understand what the changes do.

[chuck jones1836]

I own a PSE longbow and its brace height is recommened to be between 6 1/2 7".  When set to 7" the bow became very noisy and increased vibrations and handshock.  When set back down to 6 1/2" the noise went away and became a smoother shooter.  I now have it set at 6" with no change in response....there are others that can give you specifics hope this helps some....chuck

[Tom A]

As for shooting differences.

Less brace will cause your bow to shoot a little faster but it also will cause your bow to require a weaker arrow. Raising it will have the opposite effect. Slower but require stiffer arrow.

[Frank V]

Mr Green adjusting the brace height & shooting arrows from it at different heights will let you get the best flight,smoothest performance,& quietness from your bow. Most bows need to have brace height adjusted till they perform their best. It is easily done by unstringing your bow, twisting the string raising or lowering brace height till you get the best performance from your bow. This is part of the fun of shooting & getting the best from your bow. Recommended brace height is the place to start, & may be very close. Hope this helps. Frank

[Turpentine]

Mr. Green,
Most bows have a sweet spot for brace height.  go above or below and you should notice increased noise and hand shock.  You have to experiment to find that sweet spot.
Increasing brace height will normally make the bow a little slower but will enhance stability.  Decreasing will speed up your arrow but may make the bow less forgiving.
Going up may require a less stiff shaft while decreasing may require you to go stiffer.
A lower brace height usually increases the chance that the string may contact your arm.  A higher brace will give you more clearance.  It is for this reason that I prefer a bow with a higher brace height.  I personally don't shoot a bow with a brace of less than 8 inches very well.  To many this may seem huge.  I have large forearms and need the extra clearance.  My widow is braced 8 15/16.  Its the most accurate bow I've ever shot.  Also the highest brace height.
In recent years, the compound industry has tried to ring every possible bit of speed out of the bow.  One way to do this is to decrease brace height.  They got their speed but they sacrificed stability in the process.  Nowadays, brace heights are creeping back up in an effort to make the bow more forgiving.  I hope I've helped a little.
Turpentine