Skinny strings on older bows?

[slayer1]

If you had a mid 70's bear re- curve would a skinny FF string be ok if the loops were padded with B50? I have heard that it would be ok and I have heard it would not be ok. Which is correct? Anyone tested this before?

[Froggy]

You could be the tester and your bow the testee..... just kidding ! Wish I could answer it bud....  somebody help him out please ...

Froggy

[Dale in Pa]

Opinions will vary,but I and many others shoot non stretch strings on all bows.The main thing is to have thicker,padded loops.

[LBR]

If you value the bow, I wouldn't.  Might hold up, might not.  If you go with it, I'd shoot heavy arrows and pad the loops well.

If you don't mind my asking, what are you trying to get out of it that you can't get with polyester?

[Bjorn]

I do it on some old bows; but nobody knows for sure if it is harmful and under what conditions, I agree with LBR if the bow fails-is it a heartbreaker for you or not, you decide.

[chanumpa]

I think with the loops padded with B-50 especially if the tips are phenolic or with some real hard wood.On the other hand good ol B-50 worked good for us all before all of the new stuff came along.You just have to keep in mind that it never quits stretching and more periodically check your brace hiegth.I have a skinny on one of my older Bob Lee bows with phenolic tips,with no problems,lots of years lots of shots,no problems.Best of luck.

[slayer1]

Originally posted by LBR:
If you value the bow, I wouldn't.  Might hold up, might not.  If you go with it, I'd shoot heavy arrows and pad the loops well.

If you don't mind my asking, what are you trying to get out of it that you can't get with polyester?

Well I have a 1971 Bear Super K. and I does not shoot as well with a Dacron string. When you put on a skinny FF with padded loops(B-50) the bow shoots like a million bucks. It makes it quieter, faster and the groups tighten up etc. It has Phenolic tips and I have padded the tips of the limbs where the string touches them.  The guy I bought the bow from swears its ok. I looked for a 71 for a long time before I found one. I just don't want to mess it up. As always, thanks for the help!

[Precurve]

Have Chad make you an endless loop B55.  It won't continue to stretch after the break-in like the old B50 flemish, and I'll bet your performance will be about the same as the skinny flemish, plus your old gem is protected.  And I'll bet the B55 will be quieter than the skinny string.  This is a great option for the older bows, and in my experience you're giving up little to nothing in performance.

[ddauler]

I wouldn't use a skinny non stretch but I have had great succes with 12 or 14 strand dacron strings on 45-55 lb bows. A well made dacron string will really improve noise issues over a junky overbuilt one.

[Burnsie]

George Sto** uses them on all his older bows and has talked about them working fine without negative effects for a long time.  But only you can decide how you'll feel if the bow looses a tip - the jury is still out on this one,  some say go ahead and use them, they work fine,  others say under no circumstances should they be used?

[Paul_R]

I can see where skinny strings with skinny loops would be a problem on a vintage bow.

I would have no problem using a skinny string with a well padded loop, like an SBD, on my '64 Grizzly. And I do just that.

I do it for equipment uniformity. All my bows have the same string and shoot the same arrows.