Author Topic: Best/favorite string material  (Read 4296 times)

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Offline AndrewS

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Re: Best/favorite string material
« Reply #15 on: August 08, 2020, 01:18:01 am »
I like D97 on all my SB's with either Majesty or XS serving for hunting. Not much of a reason to put low stretch string material on a selfbow unless you can kill animals or shoot regularly at 35 -50yds. 452 and 8190 are virtually no stretch materials. You can use them on a selfbow but if the bow has any flaws at all those string materials will amplify the damage it will cause by using that stuff. I can see using 8125 if you have wood that is Arvin quality. Even that stuff is very low or no stretch.
The problem with those materials is not so much shooting it, it's what it does when the bow snaps back to full brace after the shot. All selfbow are going to give it up someday. Shooting no stretch material just brings that day nearer everyday you shoot it.

Shawn~

You can use any material on a selfbow and you will not wear it out quicker or affect it at all. If a bow has a weakness it has a weakness and will fail there regardless of string material.

Kidder - the strands aren't meant to 'stick together' it is the act of twisting that holds things together. I never use wax to make a string as there is no need. Wax a string after it has been made to help sheds water but to be fair with modern materials wax isn't even needed for that ;)

For a very long time i have wondered about everything stated within these two comments, still not sure the concrete answer...

Linen, hemp and nettle is a low stretch material.
Dyneema is a low stretch material (very low) and the newest Dyneema (SK 90, SK 99) is very very low stretch material.
Vectran is nearly no stretch
B50 and B55 is a stretch material (not so much than a rubber cord but....)

Also more stuff (thicker threads) has less stretch than thinner threads...
If you build a very thin string it has more stretch compared to thicker  ones.

Twisting brings a little bit of more stretch in the string - an untwisted endless string has less stretch than a much twisted flemish string....

None of the materials is orginal made for bow strings. The archery stuff is a by-product.




Offline AndrewS

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Re: Best/favorite string material
« Reply #16 on: August 17, 2020, 09:47:12 am »
In addition to my posts I have included a table with the "modern" string yarn available in Germany. A friend of mine worked in the field (ropes and cordage for professional applications such as sailing and climbing) and has compiled this table with the specific values of the string yarns based on the manufacturer's specifications.
In addition to the yarns from Brownell, which probably now belong to an Italian company and BCY, there are also yarns from Germany (Lippmann) and Japan (Angel).
The basic fibres from Dyneema, however, all come from DSM*  (except Spectra from Honeywell) and Izanas in Japan. Vectran as an auxiliary yarn for the hybrid yarns comes from Japan and polyester (B50, B55) is produced by various manufacturers.


* DSM = Dutch State Mines  from the Netherlands



« Last Edit: August 17, 2020, 10:00:01 am by AndrewS »

Offline George Tsoukalas

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Re: Best/favorite string material
« Reply #17 on: August 17, 2020, 11:44:59 am »
There is no consensus, as you can see. I use B 50. Jawge
Set Happens!
If you ain't breakin' you ain't makin!

Offline stuckinthemud

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Re: Best/favorite string material
« Reply #18 on: August 17, 2020, 04:43:04 pm »
Linen for me,  18/4 grade unwaxed.  If you used the waxed type maybe that's why you had trouble?