waxing bowstring

[ericmerg]

how often do y'all wax your bow string? can you over wax a string? i seem to do it every 400 shots so every 3 days or so

[JRY309]

I wax mine when it looks and feels alittle dry.

[smokin joe]

Often. The string needs to look like it is all one thing stuck together by wax. If it starts to look a little fuzzy, or if it separates into strands easily, it is past-due for new wax. Wax is a cheap way to extend the life of your strings, and to avoid broken strings.

[ericmerg]

not sure if it matters but i use a flemish string made of b50

[eflanders]

I tend to wax my string lightly after every lengthy shooting session or after I my bow has been outside in very warm and/or dusty conditions.  Can you overwax?  Yes.  When the string has too much wax in it the string will have build-up and can collect more dirt than normal.  After you apply your wax, rub the wax into the string thoroughly with a small piece of leather.  Rotate the leather often as it will collect the dirt from your string into it. You want to rub the wax in good so that you feel a little heat.  This very small amount of heat helps the wax flow into all of the fibers of the string. If you use the leather patch as I described, it is pretty unlikely you will have left too much wax on the string.  However, some folks will also take a short piece of floss or serving material, make one loop around the string and then slide this up and down the entire non-served and loop portions of the bowstring after the wax was rubbed into it.  This removes any excess wax and build-up. Personally, I haven't needed to do this when I use the leather patch.
CAUTION: DO NOT BE LAZY AND USE A HAIRDRYER TO MELT THE WAX INTO YOUR STRING!  The heat produced by them could damage the string without you even knowing it.

[Hummer3T]

Eric, thanks I just learnt a few things.  I always use two fingers together to rub, but end up almost burning them from the friction. Leather is a great idea/option.  I almost wax every time I shoot, never really figured you could do it to much or have to much wax, but I can see the dirt issue.

Always learning from this site.

Tim

[JamesKerr]

I wax mine whenever I see any small fuzz appearing on the string.

[Night Wing]

I like to wax my strings after about a 3 hour informal target (backyard) shooting session.

[Shakes.602]

I tend to Wax Mine whenever I think of it!      Like Now!!     No Such thing as Waxing them Too Often! They do Dry Out Fast, and usually I Wax Before I do  ANY  Shooting from said Bowstring! Good Thread!!  

[mickeys4]

Most wax the string but forget the loops.Wax the loops also as this is where a lot of wear begins.

[champ38]

Good point Mr mickey4...dont guess Ive ever waxed the loops.

[Ben Tiller]

Once a year. Never had a string break on me...

[Tradtical Commando]

Wow... i am glad this thread was started... I seldom wax my string... not any more

[karrow]

i wax mine pretty often. i dont think you can wax it to much any excess wax will fly off the first shot

[eflanders]

The decision to wax string loops should be based on the type of string used in my opinion.  Here are my thoughts as to why I make this statement:

I personally wax all of my Flemish Twist strings from end to end EXCEPT any served areas.  The wax is quite helpful in maintaining the bond between all of the twists and fibers. I know some folks that will wax the center serving where the nock slides on the string to help minimize wear here. But I know many who say even this small amount of wax on the serving is a big "no-no" and here is why...

Wax on any served area tends to hold dirt in the serving and it will ultimately work it's way under the serving itself and into the underlying fibers.  The act of waxing the servings generally will not clean the dirt out from under the serving, it only cleans up the dirt trapped in the serving itself. So based on this, I don't usually wax any served portions of my string on purpose.

[robtattoo]

I don't think I've waxed any of mine in the past 3 years.

I've never had a string failure either.

Not saying this is a good idea, but I've just never seen the advantage of putting anything on the string that dirt & grit will stick to.

[Benjy]

I only wax mine when they start looking fuzzy, I have never had a string break on me. I did wax the loops one time, after that the the string would "pop" when I reached full draw because the string would stick to the limbs at the loops. (I shoot recurves this would probably not happen with a long bow).

[riverrat 2]

When they look fuzzy,I wax enough to get rid of it,2 finger friction method. Then clean off excess wax from string. Never touch the loops,or served areas. All my bows string grooves have no abrupt turns,so never see wear there.

[ChuckC]

Wax the string as often as you want, but be careful to apply wax only from the outside towards the middle. The other way is not good.
ChuckC

[robtattoo]

Originally posted by ChuckC:
Wax the string as often as you want, but be careful to apply wax only from the outside towards the middle. The other way is not good.
ChuckC

Any particular reason, or just something someone once told you?