FF or Dacron

[jimneye]

I currently use FF strings on my bows but I was wondering if they are worth the added noise and wear(on the bow and glove)just to gain a few FPS.

[jacobsladder]

I would say no.... youll need to watch your brace height closer with dacron.. But dacron is quieter.  Easier on the bow.  FF pounds the arrow with no give and requires a slightly stiffer arrow.... my two cents.

[Pete W]

Try DF97 or 8125, made properly and you will find them not only faster but quieter also and far less problems with stretch and arm slap.

[LBR]

You have to weigh the pro's and con's with your specific bow and decide for yourself.

For me, I'd use Dynaflight '97 on my bow if it was slower.  It's VERY quiet (properly tuned), my brace height isn't constantly dropping (even during the summer in MS heat), handshock is reduced, it's a much tougher string (less chance of an accident in the field), and after a good 10 years and thousands upon thousands of shots there are no signs whatsoever that this string has been "hard" on my bow--I'm pulling [email protected]", so it's been tested pretty well.  I will say that some bows seem to "like" one material over another--but there's no one string that fits the bill for every bow.

I've seen and heard of more bows failing that had dacron strings on them vs. any other string material;  when a bow fails and it has a FF type string on it it's automatically the string's fault, when it has a dacron string on it then the problem was something else.  'Course I wouldn't use a FF type material on a bow that wasn't designed for it.

The type string won't affect wear and tear on your glove.  You can serve a FF string with nylon, or you can serve a dacron string with Spectra.


If you just like the feel of a dacron string better, no reason why you shouldn't use it.......just base your decision on facts and your preferances rather than misconceptions.

Chad

[Randy Morin]

Agree with above from Pete and Chad on quietness etc.  Less arm slap with the lower brace heights is big for me.  Could mean a miss or worse poor arrow flight and terrible penetration on a hunting shot with arm slap.  Toughness is a biggy too.

[Guss]

I'm with Pete and Randy, I like a padded 8125. Guss

[Bjorn]

Dynaflight 97 is my fav-I only use Dacron when it is the only alternative. Ever since Rod Jenkins got a real job I started making my own strings-thanks Rod!

[md126]

tried FF many times and always come back to dacron. i just like it better.

[BCD]

After shooting ff for several years, I've tried dacron on my habu and my marriah-in both cases going to the dacron resulted in increased handshock and noise. Fastflight all the way for me. I've also had several neck and shoulder surgeries and only shoot around 50 pounds these days, so I'll take all the extra speed and power I can get.

BD

[jimneye]

Those of you that make your own strings, how many strands of DF 97 do you use for a 2ply 60lb string.  Do you pad the loops and serving areas with dacron?

[Bjorn]

I pad the loops with DF 97 and build up the serving only as needed for my nock size. If the bowyer suggests dacron padding in the loops I do that too. A typical string for me has 12 strands of DF 97 and 16 strand loops. 12 strands of DF 97 will pull a car out of a mud hole.
Most new bows arrive with surprisingly poor strings IMHO.

[JRY309]

I think if your bow can handle modern materials it is a personal choice.For me I like D97,it is quieter then FF.I only use dacron on older recurves.Everyone always talks about the speed increase,I shoot D97 for the feel on a bow not for speed.It makes the bow feel more solid to me,not springy like dacron does.On certain bows dacron does feel like it creates more handshock.D97 is strong enough for all my bows,I make them all the same 12 strands with padded loops with .024 halo.Gives me the same nock fit and the same 12 strands for bows from 50# to 83#.

[Orion]

I agree with Pete, Chad and Jry309.  D-97 makes a really nice string.  I use 14 strands and pad the loops with 6 strands of dacron.  Serve with Halo.  Very quiet, solid string, easy on the shooting glove, and bows as far as I can tell.