Sound observations Steve O...
Some may have gotten the impression I'm anti-elevated rest, and nothing could be further from the truth. I prefer an elevated rest and have shot a bunch, from the simplest to the more complex. There were simply some absolutes being stated, and a newbie might get the impression that a stick on rest will cure his tuning issues.
Here's what I've found, specific to my bows, shooting style, tuning needs.
At this time I own 7 bows, all fall within 51#-55# at my 28.5 inch draw. They range from a mid-late 70's Red Wing Hunter with the 90 degree flat shelf/window wall common to production bows at that time, to a pair of Kota customs built by Tim Finley, which have radiused & cupped shelf and angled in window wall designed to shoot feathers off the shelf.
I have T-300's and one old style Bear Weatherest on my bows which are made with a flat window wall, so the arrow can paradox cleanly upon release. These would be my two H2s, the Wing, and a Chiron Volcano.
The Kotas I mentioned are made specifically to shoot off the shelf, and in fact positioning a rest on the wall so the arrow sits cleanly on the rest at 90 degrees isn't possible. My Lee TD Hunter is also made to be shot off the shelf and the window wall is actually curved outward toward the shelf.
To keep things KISS, I like everything set up the same to shoot the same arrows (I tune for 53# with a 2# +/-), but the Kotas and Lee have defied my every attempt to get really good flight with a stick on. If I manage to get acceptable flight with one arrow with vanes, the same with feathers won't follow suit. I had to accept these bows require an arrow shot off the shelf with feathers to really perform well, and tuned as such. Once I did, issues solved.
The flat window wall bows, on the other hand, work just peachy with a rest. What I found is that for my specific circumstances, a rest positioned level on a square wall with the launcher arm 1/2" above the highest point of the shelf GENERALLY allow a tune to shoot both feathers & vanes well, adequate clearance for the lower vane, and allow a wider spine variance than does off the shelf.
A variable that has to be taken into account is the change to centershot a stick on rest creates, as they are almost all thicker than a the usual strike plate. Unless you are cut radically past center, a stick on almost always puts a bow at 0 or in the + centershot range. Some, like that plastic model with the spline extension at the base of the launcher arm and the T-300 with the stainless splint point left on, can change it quite a bit to the positive. This makes a big difference in the spine that will work. For that reason I like a T-300 as it has the thinnest base of any stick on I've tried. With the spline point removed it's as close to the wall as I can get.
I found that the added weight of vanes as opposed to feathers (as much as 30 grain increase, depending on the make of 4" vanes I use) makes a significant change to the spine of the arrow. I also use a 7" wrap (an additional 11-12 grains) and with alums, a uni-nock (which adds an additional 7 or so grains) to the aft part of the shaft. This is signicant enough that I have to decide if the tune is going to be optimum for one or the other. I used to tune for vanes but decided as as my other bows have to shoot off the shelf and I'm keeping it KISS, my primary tune is now for feathers. I then look for a vane/shaft combo to give satisfactory but not necessarily optimum flight with the feather tune.
Now if a guy has a berger button, he can really do some tuning. I have a button and brass insert in my tackle box, and every now & then I look at my H2's with thoughts of desecration in my head...
For the record, I prefer a T-300 with spline point removed and replaced with a piece of rug rest. With my H2s & this rest set up, and measuring with an eyeball centershot tool I use when setting up a compound, they look to be +1/16" to +1/8" centershot (Cujo advises that H2 risers are cut about -1/8" past center). I shoot 3 Under and find my nock point is slightly lower than the bows I set up off the shelf. With rests I get down to 1/16" increments when setting the nock point, and find +5/16" generally is a good starting point, where off the shelf I work in 1/8" increments and start at +3/8".
Stu's Calculator has really been a big help in my fiddling, as it allows a guy to quickly ascertain the effects of various components, which can then be tested on the range. Thanks to this handy tool I pretty much know how to get a fairly wide range of arrows/point weights into a spine range that all my bows shoot acceptably well.
The only reason I shoot most of my bows with a rest is for the economy & durability of the vane option. Weather resistance is not an issue for me as I don't bowhunt in the rain, and I simply prefer feathers over vanes for most of my trad shooting.
That, and I just love to tinker with bows...
Topic: Elevated rest ?? (Read 421 times)
