Trad Gang

I recently decided to try a skinny string for my hunting bow. I ordered a string from SBD bowstrings off the Sponsor's Classifieds. They were really easy to deal with. Excellent service and the turnaround was really fast. I haven't ever used a skinny string before so I was concerned about the quality of the loops, roundness of the string and the serving being done well. No need for concern, though, their quality is very, very good.

The bow I'm shooting has been equipped with both a 14 str. dacron and 15 str. TS+ string. Dacron was slightly quieter than the TS+ and 2-3 fps slower. This new skinny string, an 8 str. D97, is quieter than the Dacron with less silencing and quite a bit faster. I stopped at the bow shop the other night and the SBD string is giving me an average of 9-11 fps more than dacron and 7-9 more than the TS+. I was expecting an improvement in performance but I was really surprised to gain that much.

I'm off for a few days but I thought I'd give you guys a heads up. I'm glad I tried this new string. I'm really pleased with the overall results. I've dropped down in draw weight and this the performance boost, along with the reduction in noise, has given me more confidence in my equipment.

Hmmm... Might hafta try one myself. Thanks for the info

I've been thinking of building some skinnies too....might have to when I get back from chasing whitetails...thanks for posting!

Curious how many pound bow you're shooting the 8strand dyna on?

yeah i recently got my first skinny strings( CJC)...i was using 18 strand ff from 3rivers but i switched to a 10 strand d97 on my chekmate....i gained 12 fps!! and youre right, it is quieter to. i was worried about creeping but i havent even had to unstring and twist the string up, thats after about 400 shots!

Chris,

I'm glad that you have confirmed our testing results once again.  

Good luck and send us some pictures when you score...

>>>-----> SBD Bow Strings... (http://tradgang.com/noncgi/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=48;t=000953)  

Thanks and God Bless,  Pierre and Jean-Pierre

I shoot d97 on all of my bows. Don't be suprised if the eight and ten strand strings start to creep a little when shot in hot weather.

I recently decided to try a skinny string for my hunting bow also. I also ordered a string from SBD bowstrings. I gave them a pile of requirements just to see how they reacted and how close they got to what I wanted.  They were great about it. Excellent service, fast communication and the turnaround was really fast. I totally agree, their quality is very, very good.   They padded the serving so it is not the small serving that is hard on my fingers like a couple other skinny strings that came with a couple bows I have bought or traded to get.  I even told them what my brace height was and sting length for that brace height; then I told them what brace height I wanted the string to be at before twisting up so I could tune from my minimum brace height with the base string length.  They are real good or lucky because the first time I put the sting on the bow it hit exactly my low range brace height.  I probably could have untwisted my string to see what string length I needed for that brace height, but I thought I would give them a challenge.  

I am hunting and when not hunting cutting meat at night.  I have it ready to go now, but have not been able to shoot it yet.  Maybe mid day between hunts this weekend I can get some shooting done to try it out, and get over to the bow shot to shoot it through the chronograph.  If it performs as well as it looks I will be very pleased.

for some reason mine hasnt stretched. i have shot mine in warmer weather and my bow stays strung hanging from the string on wooden pegs.?? maybe i got lucky:)

"They are real good or lucky because the first time....."

I take that any day,  Thanks

God Bless,  Pierre and Jean-Pierre

I use an 8 strand D-97 padded on the loops to 14 strands of the same.  No real creep noticeable.  Had to add a couple of twists very occasionally, but nothing that i would consider a worry or problem.

I use double layer Halo serving, reverse spiraled.

The difference it made to the dacron stock string was very noticeable.

I have some coming from SBD, and if the quality is anything like the communication and service..

I know I'll be impressed..

Do these strings cause any problems on bows when used on the older bear recurves? Like the old 59 kodiaks or takedowns?

those strings look very well made Pierre    :thumbsup:   you ever make any 450+ strings?

Thanks Andy.    We have tried 450+,8125, and kinda settled on D-97.  Its a little bit more flexible and seemed to give us the best results over the long run at this point.  We are always looking for something better.

Gary, I would not recommend the new fast flight material on the older bows.  Fast flight is harsh on the older bows.   Stick with B50.

God Bless,  Pierre and Jean-Pierre

I'm on the bandwagon. Just got my string from SBD. Pierre was great to work with and even gave my string a little extra padding at the loops like I asked for. Beautiful string and the length was right on the nuts. By the way, it's so much faster than what I was using that it's like a different bow. No chronograph around here but I don't need one. Thanks Pierre!

I just got my string set-up and back on the bow.  It was dark after hunting so I only shot a few arrows, but it sure is a lot more quiet than my other D-97 string.  My nocks fit the serving great, and the serving is not real small like other bows I used to have shot with skinny strings.  I can't wait to shoot it more tomorrow.

How would those strings be on a self bow? the bow in question is 67" 60# @ 28" made of osage.

Thanks Jeff

I rec'd my new string from Pierre last week, a day before my Sovereign Balliistic showed up. I can't compare it to anything else because I've not enough experience with ff strings. What can I say, I shoot mostly old bows.
Service was superb and shipping superfast.
2 thumbs up.
Fred

Ductape I use 6 and 8 strands on all my wood bows.As long as the tips and string grooves are made so the string makes a nice tear drop shape when strung you should have no problem.Incorrectly  cut string grooves and overlays is what hurts bows,not the kind of string material.An 8 or 10 strand d-97 string would make a new bow out of the selfbow.

I've always liked D97 for the same reasons you mentioned.  If you want to go "skinnyer" and lighter, try 8125.  Same material as D97, just processed a little differently to make it skinny.  It fuzzes a little less than D97 and you will get a few fps over D97.  One thing however, you may have to go up in spine if you get too crazy with the skinny string syndrome.

I would like to add my 2 cents about the quality of their work, excellent strings that are well made.

I have used SBD strings for over 6 months now on various bows ...Zipper,Bear T/D, and Ancient Spirits.Increased performance across the boards.I know Pierre and Jean-Pierre personally.Both are FANATIC about testing their product,performance results, and quality .Their attention to detail drives me nuts at times because i just like to shoot so i trust what they say as it is the truth because they put so much time and effort to achieve perfection....and i just shoot stuff.You can't go wrong with the SBD strings.Well worth trying.

Well I have my string all shot in now and I love it!  I noticed less noise and more speed.  I had to change my brace height some and drop 25 gr. point weight to stiffen the arrow back up due to the higher performance.  I still have not shoot it through the chronograph, but I know it is faster.

Ordered some strings for two different bows from Pierre , hope to get them these week , it sure will be exciting if my bows, increased in performance

Let's talk about older bows.  I'm shooting fastflight material on three old ones now.  A D97 on a 1972 Bear Takedown, a 450+ on a 67 Shakespeare Necedah, and a TS-1 on a 1961 Bear Polar.  I've not found the "too harsh" factor to be true....and if you remember correctly, I've been a B-50 friend for decades.

As a matter of fact, I find the newer strings to be less harsh, as far as vibration goes, than the B-50 dacron.  The 1972 Bear Takedown is quieter and has much less vibration with the D-97 than a comparable B-50.  The Shakespeare now has over 2000 arrows through it with 450+ and shoots quietly and like a bow five pounds heavier.

Nobody has done a study using new strings on old bows, so everything you hear is rumor, or based on one or two breakages that may have been a bow problem more than a string problem.  That's why I have decided to give it a fair chance.

My bows show no ill-effect, or even moderate wear on the limb ends.  I make sure they are rounded well, where the string loops over the limb, with no sharp edges.  The up side is the extra overall performance, including a bow that is much more dead in the hand with very little vibration, as well as extra oomph.  

By the way....the 450+ I'm using on the Shakespeare is a 6 strand with 12 strands in the loops.

George, I've had the same suspicion that the FF effect hadn't been researched fully possibly for ulterior motives. Since I started using these skinny strings on my FF bows I wanted to try a heavily padded loop skinny string on my Bear Takedown limbs. Especially the ones with Micarta tips. It seems the the only difference in speed with my older and newer limbs is the string material.
George, what are the tip material of the bows your testing FF on? Do you think it matters?

Two of mine have wooden ovelays...the 72 Bear and the Shakespeare.  The 72 Bear is one piece Futurewood and the Shakespeare three piece shedua/maple.  The 61 Polar is three piece fiberglass.  I think the real key is in how well the string attachment area is rounded.
The 450+ is nearly a "no stretch" string and as I have mentioned I have over 2000 shots through that one.  The others show no effect so far either other than less vibration and better performance.  

I can only speak of my experience after all of these years shooting B-50.  It appears to me that the new strings are getting a bad rap when talking about their effect on old bows.  I do think you need to be vigilent about the string nock area when deciding to try one, but I see no reason not to if all else looks good.  I don't issue guarantees though 8^).  I have my own money invested in my old bows so I am not risking anyone elses equipment.  So far, so good, and the results exceed expectations.

Yes I intend to be very careful. I'm just going use one set of limbs at first that I don't favor that much and that I don't intend to sell to someone else later without specifying.
I just wanted to add; when checking the string grooves one should check them at full draw as well. That is where the real force is on them and the angle changes as the limbs go further back. A tiller stick might be useful for that.
I think it will work though. I have even went as far as wrapping a serving thread around the loop by hand to pad it even more (tedious). And also you only need to double serve a skinny string in the finger/nock area, saving some weight on the string again.

Good luck with a skinny D97, I had 2 8 strand, padded loops from a very good string maker, I wont mention his name because the quality of his work is impeccable and the failures were not a result of his craftsmanship.My bow is a 66" 53@30" R/D LB. The strings never stopped creeping, every day for over a month I had to reset my brace height. I did and do leave it strung as I shoot every day. Finally gave up on D97 and switched to 8125, less creep, faster and quieter...PR

Hi Paul.  Unless the D97 was defective, it wasn't that.  I have a couple that stay put...have not moved much at all since I got them.  The 450+ is solid stuff for sure, I rarely have to even check the brace when it is on the bow.

I am using a 6 strand d-97 that is padded to 18 at the loops, on a supermag 48, 70's vintage.

Makes the bow shoot like a different one.

Definitely faster.   Seems like it draws easier.  I know this might sound weird, and it may be all mental, but groups seemed to tighten up a little.

CJC double served it for me.   Have a twin to it that I need to shoot in, but will wait until after season for that  :)

farmer

I'm thinking of trying an 8 strand D97 on a couple of my longbows, replacing their 14 strand strings.

With the increased performance I'm reading about, are you all finding a need to change your arrow tuning, ie point weight, arrow length, spine?

Yep it will change the tuning. I put a 12 strand 8125 padded loop on my 36lb SAIII and it souped it up enough to shoot full length 400s, front loaded. It was to fast for 3555/480s at 29 3/4 and couldn't quite bend a 32" 400 at a comfortable draw. Now it will do the trick and it is noticeably quieter as well. I think the skinny string might work even better on long bows, according to mine anyway. I have tried a skinny string on one of my pronghorns and it really warmed it up. And their not slow to begin with. And their even quieter too.

LOVED my SBD string from Pierre, haven't test it on a chrono but i am very impressed on the silence of the bow and how smooth it became , will post again when i compare it to the other one in a chrono

You have to try a string !!!!!

  :thumbsup:

6 strands of D97 is my standard for 50# bows, and have had skinnies on 2 1959 Grizzlies for hundreds of shots, and no negatives. Better performance, less shock no worries. Works great on self bows!
Chad at recurves.com is a sponsor and makes great strings.

i want to thank you for sending me my skinnie string Bjorn it is great and whats more it is way faster than my other strings.  :thumbsup:

QuoteOriginally posted by Gerardo:
LOVED my SBD string from Pierre, haven't test it on a chrono but i am very impressed on the silence of the bow and how smooth it became , will post again when i compare it to the other one in a chrono

You have to try a string !!!!!

   :thumbsup:  

Gerardo,  Thanks,  Please let us know how it compares.  

We have been doing some extensive testing working with a bowyer and   SBD Bow Strings...."not just another bow string >>>----->" (http://tradgang.com/noncgi/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=48;t=000953)    are showing to be one of the quietest and fastest strings out there.  Our highest preformance string we are testing is being shot on hunting bows without silencers and is dead quiet and fast...>>>----->    

Thanks and God Bless,  Pierre and Jean-Pierre

Hey Folks,

The first archery season is now offically over and we have meat in the freezer so the pressure is off. Now we can look forward to the second archery season that comes back in after Christmas.


Thank God for for those Silent But Deadly bow strings and Jean-Pierre's excellent shooting ability.

 (http://i245.photobucket.com/albums/gg54/PierreLucas/JPBDD2.jpg)

We want to thank everyone for their patience and understanding during hunting season and we are now completely caught up with all your orders. We appreciate all the phone calls, e-mails, and PMs about our strings and most importantly the feedback we receive after you shoot them.


Please do not hesitate to call with any questions...

Thanks and God Bless, Pierre and Jean-Pierre

I don't know how you guys are shooting the skinny D97 strings, I went through 4 of them in 2 months, they wouldn't stop creeping on a 53# lb. I had to reset my brace height every day, Tried the 8125 12/18 from Chad Weaver and it works fine...PR

Paul,  

We haven't found this to be true at all about our strings .  

Maybe as George and others mentioned earlier in this topic where you posted it before...  

QuoteOriginally posted by George D. Stout:
Hi Paul.  Unless the D97 was defective, it wasn't that.  I have a couple that stay put...have not moved much at all since I got them.  The 450+ is solid stuff for sure, I rarely have to even check the brace when it is on the bow.

We do a pre-stretching process on  all of SBD bow strings which definitely helps.

Thanks and God Bless,   Pierre and Jean-Pierre

I have 2 bows with 6 strand strings on them from SBD. One is a 55# Shrew Carbon and the other a 43# Adcock ACS.  Both shoot great and I have had no creeping after the first couple days of shooting. I also had a couple strings made by someone else from here and they didn't stretch either after a week of shooting. I have been perfectly satisfied with the 6 strand D97 strings and would recommend SBD strings to anyone wanting a new string.

I have been shooting one on my Firefly LB for a week or so, and I didn't think this bow could get any quieter, as Jim builds a whisper quiet bow.  I was amazed with the SBD string, as it cut the noise level even more!!

Not to mention I definatly see a diff in speed as well.  I do not have a chrony, but I can see and feel a difference for sure.

A very fine product I would recommend.

Jake

so how many strands is good on a 60lb longbow shooting with a 29" draw.  I'm planning on trying to make one tonight out of dynaflight 97.  figgered I'd try an 8 strand if nothing else to learn to pad the loops.   Will this be too skinny for the bow weight?

Dan,

An 8 strand D-97 will work fine.  Pad the loops to Minimum of 14 strand.

God Bless,   Pierre

My 8 strand D97 string from Pierre has been great. However, several months back I did have a 6 strand D97 string built by another well respected stringmaker and it creeped liked crazy.  Never did get it to stop.  Don't know what the differnce in construction was, but there definitely was a big difference.

Well, maybe it was a heat factor as all my problems were in summer. All I know is 6/18 D97 did not work at all, the strings were from a well known string maker and the 8125 works very well...PR

Paul,  

Nope wasn't the heat.  :banghead:
 
We shoot in 90+ degrees, high humidity, hundreds of arrows in the summer and no creep.
 
God Bless,  Pierre

I'm shooting 6 strand D97 flemish and don't get creep either.

Is it possible that creep could be due the wax people are using to make them?  Can't think of much else it could be.  D97 is D97, only thing that changes is the wax people use when they make them.

Just a thought anyway.

I wonder if it has more to do with how much b50 is added into padding the loops.  It would make a little more sense I would think.

Freefeet,

Wax???  :confused:  Don't know maybe.

Dan,

Nope isn't padding.  

Have done 6 strand strings and padded loops to 16 strand on 55# bows and no creep..  


God Bless,  Pierre

I mean I wonder if the padding is longer on the other guys string...making it come more into play in the body of the string then just in the loops and tapers.   My skinny string I built last nite started to stablize out..though I took it off and started dinking with my old string again...Never did prestretch it...didnt want to dig out the jig lol...ya ya I was tired that's my excuse  ;)

I pad with 12 inch lengths.  6 strand main string, 14 strands pure D97 at the loops - no dacron.  I use red Bohning Tex-Tite wax.

It got my newest SBD string Saturday.  I got it on my new LB Sunday and did some shooting.  I shot it more today.  I love these strings!  I really like the way Pierre pads the serving so it is not so hard on my fingers like other skinny strings I have had.  My nocks fit great.  It is not quite as quiet as my old string, but it is very close.  I have not put silencer on it yet and the old one has them so I am really surprised how close it is already.  I could easily hunt this bow without silencers with the SBD string.  I can't wait to get some on this string to see how quiet it gets.  I got 1/4" stretch in the first 100 or so arrows.  If I recall correctly that is about what I got on my last string for my curve.  Last time I checked that bow it had not moved any more after I reset the brace height.

Wanted to bring this one back up to the top.  

I had a small issue with a couple of strings that Pierre made for me, (no fault of his own I might add) and he fixed them right up and had them back to me right quick!!!

SBD strings and service are second to none!!!!

I just got one of Pierre's sting. Very nice. Its noticeably quiter than my thicker string.

Gilbert

Yep, the string he made me for my Kiowa is just as quiet without silencers as my other string is with them, and I get a very noticable increase in fps although I haven't chronoed it.  Combine that great product with customer service that is second to none!!  2 Thumbs Up for Pierre!!!

Ken

I ordered one for my MOHAWK. Very satisfied. A quality string that made a fast, quiet, Longbow even Faster and Quieter! I am a firm believer now! Thanks Pierre and Jean- Pierre!

Pierre Lucas how are you prestreching your strings? I make my own and would like to start doing this.

I can't wait to get mine!

I have two SBD strings that I have been shooting since I received them. One for a Shrew and one for a Bear Takedown with FF limbs. They are both VERY quiet -- almost spooky quiet. I have never experienced any strings that are so silent. At first I kept shooting just to listen.
I am also really impressed with the quality and workmanship.
Pierre and his son make a great product.
I highly recommend the SBD strings. If you try one you will be impressed too.
Joe

Great quality and even better customer service. Ordered my second one for my other Zipper and can't wait to have it to shoot in the league this winter.

SBD strings are awesome, try one, if you don't like it, pierre will take it back, but you will probably order 5 or 6 more like me!

I have the SBD stings on 6 different bows and actually all of them have become faster shooters  :thumbsup:  

Great quality and the bows is also dead silence with this set up. Their built in acrylic fiber silencers and acrylic fiber wrapped loops really do the trick  :D  

And the service from Pierre is one of the best out there, and I`ll recommend him to anybody who want the best string for their bow.

Margly

What kind of life expectancy can you expect from these bows?

what i meant to say is what kind of life expectancy can you expect from these strings on most bows.

ttt

TTT,
Again.Im curious as to the answers to this question,now that guys have been useing them for a while now.

OK" the evidence is overwhelming I am going to order a string or two in a few days I have to figure out my string colors first.

Got mine in the mail yesterday. What's that old Monkeys song "I'm a Believer". Man those strings are what everyone's crowing about. Fast and silent much better then my last thin string. Very good product

Heck if they make the Mad Man happy I am sold.LOL

Ive gone through alot of bows and even more strings from many makers.  that being said I will never buy a string from anyone else.

Aside from the new material the strings are made to perfection....zero flaws!!!!

The skinny strings Ive used in the past were great but these SBD are that much better.  Quieter, better quality, and my bow shoots like a dream.  I have bought several of them and love em!

I am most impressed with how quiet they are though...I'd get rid of all the other benefits if I could just keep the quietness of these strings!  I will be ordering 2 more for backups fon my hunting/3D bows.

Just recieved my SBD string from Brave Heart archery for my Jim Jones Firefly. Have put about 100 arrows through it so far and have had minimal creep, probably less then a lot of other strings I've used. Very impressed so far.

I think SBD strings last long as well. I shot a few 1000 arrows with mine and it doesn't show any wear. I do wax it carefully though.
It are great strings. They are so fast that it is like having a new bow. I am very happy with SBD and I am waiting now for my second here in the Netherlands.

I have worn out two of these strings.  3000 arrows is about normal it seems(to me, the way i shoot and the bow i shoot). Is that comparable to what everyone else is getting? I was a little skeptical at first, but they are growing on me.  Well worth the price tag they carry.

ordered 4 sbd's last tuesday, going to take ten days. With all the claims of improvement, it will be like getting 4 new bows, but with way less wait time and money! I can't wait!   :D

I just got one. Very nicely made. I asked for small loops and it came out perfect.

QuoteOriginally posted by BWallace10327:
I have worn out two of these strings.  3000 arrows is about normal it seems(to me, the way i shoot and the bow i shoot). Is that comparable to what everyone else is getting? I was a little skeptical at first, but they are growing on me.  Well worth the price tag they carry.

I was one answer above you, but I'll type it again: I have shot a few 1000 arrwos with my first SBD string and it still doesn't show any wear. I believe 10.000 arrows or one year is normal. I DO wax it very frequently though, seems that helps a lot!

I recently received my SBD string and was impressed.  My arrows were a bit stiff for my bow so I waited for the new string before further tuning.  I'm glad I did because now I'm throwing darts and it really does seem faster also.  It feels different on the fingers, but for me it's a GOOD different...seems like my release is better with the skinny string.
It didn't quiet my bow at all though...I'm still working on that issue.
Great string, will be ordering backups soon.

Joe