So, how tough are the new "Skinny" Strings

[Earl E. Nov...mber]

Part of the logic of the 12 and 14 strand strings we are all familiar with was safety by over kill. They were overly thick so we could actually loose a strand or two while in the field and still be safe to shoot.

So can the new strings take 3 months of getting drug through the brambles? Or does one need to keep a back up handy in the case a strand fails..

I guess I am asking if this dog will hunt or is it strictly an indoor or mowed grass 3D thing?

[JRY309]

They are pretty tough in my opinion,the newer low stretch materials are not easliy cut.When I am using one they won't cut with a scissor you need to cut with a razor or knife.Dacron I can cut it off with a dull scissor.I don't feel that they are real skinny,I mean I used to make all my D97 a 12 strands,now I make them 8 strand for my bows under 60#.I still make a 12 strand D97 for my bows over 60#,a 12 strand D97 is strong enough for a 100# bow.JMO

[James on laptop]

Well they will not be as tough as a steel cable but are tough enough.  :D  

They are much more abrasive resistant than the old b-50 strings and about 3 times stronger.If you look at it that way an 8 strand d-97 should be at least as tough as a 16 strand b-50.That should be plenty tough.    You can cut any string with a sharp broadhead while the bow is strung but the modern strings are strong enough even a couple strands will hold the bow together untill you change the string.Just like cutting the b-50 string that is overbuilt. jmho

[Rob DiStefano]

it's all in the numbers and how personally 'safe' you feel with any string fiber type and strand count.  as an example ...

you have a stick bow that holds 50# @ your draw length.  

your string is 12 strands of 50#/strand dacron, which equates to 600# of tensile strength or 12x the bow's holding weight.  break 2 strands and yer now at 500# tensile stength or 10x the bow's holding weight - yer still good to go, though the bow might just shoot differently.

your string is 6 strands of 100#/strand hmpe (pick any modern string fiber flavor) which equates to 600# of tensile strength or 12x the bow's holding weight.  break 2 strands and yer now at 400# tensile stength or 8x the bow's holding weight - i'd call this marginal at best but the string will still be viable and will still be huntable.

personally, i use 6 and 8 strand strings and i always carry a few spares.

ymmv.

[FlintRiverKen]

Ive had an 8 str SDB on one bow for 2 months and another for 1 mo. Every day possible after work i take a break from the target and stump shoot along the mtn side to the ravine and back. I try to be careful but you cant help but a little scraping on trees and rocks and hang up in the brush some. My mtn is one huge limestone outcrop after another and im always busting my b. So far I had to add wax once right below the ctr serving cuz i slap my forarm occaisonally but thats it so far. Ill carry a spare sure but i'd do that anyway.

[swampmaster]

i hunted with an 8 strand 8125 string the entire hunting season.  i was a little concerned that it might get a lot of wear and tear on it and come apart. just the opposite and i hunt in some thick stuff.  kept it waxed good and had no problems.
                                    jim

[Jeff Strubberg]

/shrug

I've had an 8 strand D97 on my MOAB for close to a year now.  I made two, just because I always do.  Only one has spent any time on the bow, though.

[NDTerminator]

The skinny strings spook me a bit.

I've seen strings accidentally touched by a broadhead in the field, I have a hard time invisioning this with a six strand string that doesn't end in disaster.  At least a 12 or better strand has a better chance of not blowing completely, thus not potentially damaging the bow or you, and giving a chance to swap it safely for a spare.

I still carry an extra broken in string or two and will swap out if I lose even a strand or two...

[Rob DiStefano]

a string break on a braced, but not drawn bow ain't gonna hurt the blow (unless a limb hits something really hard).

[Jeff Strubberg]

Originally posted by NDTerminator:
The skinny strings spook me a bit.

I've seen strings accidentally touched by a broadhead in the field, I have a hard time invisioning this with a six strand string that doesn't end in disaster.  At least a 12 or better strand has a better chance of not blowing completely, thus not potentially damaging the bow or you, and giving a chance to swap it safely for a spare.

I still carry an extra broken in string or two and will swap out if I lose even a strand or two...

I've done more than touch a string with a broadhead...I sliced right through one on a Bear recurve trying to get an arrow on the string quickly.   Staring down at a doe staring up at you with a bent, useless stick in your hand is not a great moment.

Didn't hurt the bow a bit, though.

[George D. Stout]

Well, paranoia aside, I have never touched my bowstring with a broadhead in five decades of hunting; if I did, it didn't hurt even one strand of B-36,  B-43,  B-50 that I ever used....respectively.  Of course I may have been lucky.      :rolleyes:    

I hunt, and have hunted, in some pretty funky stuff; limestone boulders, devil's club, multiflora rose thickets, and I have used my bow to push my way through some pine boughs, etc.  I've never hurt a string of any kind by such adventures. At least not to the point off rendering it useless.     :p    

The newer material is also tougher against abrasion and cutting then my old stand by strings, and I don't know what else I could do to my bow and string to create such a terrible strain as to negate the use of less strands.  Just me.        

I was a little apprehensive at first as well, but used the skinny string all year (6 strands 450...12 strands in loop).  The string looks as good as any other in my possession, and I expect it could go another season rather easily.

As for keeping another handy?  I do that anyway. Heck I never go past the back yard without a spare string.....a habit I started on good advice in 1965.          

Skinny strings don't scare me.  Biting dogs, rattlesnakes, and mama bears with cubs do.  And of course, those mean gray squirrels.  Can't trust em' I tell ya'.....can't trust em'.      :eek:      :D

[NDTerminator]

Originally posted by Rob DiStefano:
a string break on a braced, but not drawn bow ain't gonna hurt the blow (unless a limb hits something really hard).

Or something soft, like a limb tip in an eye!  

[Bjorn]

Whether it is thick or thin stuff can happen-carry a spare that is ready to go regardless. I see no difference in durability after very frequent use at 3D's and hunting for over a year. Works for me.

[George D. Stout]

Yes, and we might get struck by lightning too while 3D shooting.      

For pete's sake, just use whatever string makes you comfortable, and won't send you into mental trauma if you drag it through some briars.        Life is too short to live in fear.  

[shadman]

You got it George. Seems like sometimes we want to live in a bubble. Life ain't that way. If you hit the string on a braced bow with a sharp broadhead I don't think that your strand count is going to matter. All that other stuff that you encounter while hunting isn't going to bother either string in my opinion. It all comes down to...use what you're comfortable with.

[frank bullitt]

Yeah, don't worry! Heck I'm thinking of changing all my treestand cables to D-97.  

[Predator Man]

I have been shooting a 10 strand padded loop 8125. I figure I could loose 2 - 3 strands no problem.  If I lost 1 though I would replace the string when I got home or put my backup string on. Oliver Stacy is a sponsor selling strings on here and he makes an excellent string.

WAX IS KEY!!!

[Predator Man]

Originally posted by frank bullitt:
Yeah, don't worry! Heck I'm thinking of changing all my treestand cables to D-97.    

FUNNY!!!

[pdk25]

Originally posted by frank bullitt:
Yeah, don't worry! Heck I'm thinking of changing all my treestand cables to D-97.      

What are you waiting for?  I switched from B-50 years ago.    

[jrchambers]

i have cut through a six strand 450+ with a broken nock during a shot.  im asuming that the nock cut some not all of the strands but the dry fire then finished the job. with enough force a dull plastic nock can cut serving and strands like buter wish i had just a couple more strands to atleast stop the dry fire, although it didnt hurt the bow one bit,  sad thing is i did go to a slightly thicker string and never was satisfied with it.