I am wondering what are the benefits the different types of bow string materials. But more importantly, i would like to get a new string for my Hoyt Dorado and self made longbow. One is 60" and other is 66".
Dorado is ~#64@28.
Longbow is ~#58@28.
Thanks in advance!
TTT
It all starts with how well the string is made. Then material type can make a bow quieter, pick up a few fps, and less stretch/creep.
A good string can make a soso bow a good.
String material and carbon in limbs are the two biggest changes in recurves and longbows in the last 40 years
With HMPE--"High Performance or "Fast Flight"--materials, the benefits are: less stretch, less creep, increased durability, and in some cases a mild performance increase (comparing equally well made strings).
8190 is the best of the HMPE string materials. It's the only one (to date) made from SK90 Dyneema. Dyneema in a brand name of HMPE, or High Modulous Polyethelene--a type of super strong plastic fiber. The Dyneema brand is the best made, and most expensive. SK90 is exclusive to BCY.
To put it in perspective, original "Fast Flight" (created by the founders of BCY) is SK65 Dyneema. Revolutionized the world of bowstrings in it's time, now it's considered outdated. It has the most stretch and creep of the HMPE bowstring materials (not as much as polyester/Dacron though).
Jump ahead several years, you have Dynaflight '97, 8125, and it's copies. These are made from SK75 Dyneema--a very significant jump in quality, as the better grade of Dyneema became available.
For a short time we had Dynaflight 10, which was/is SK78 Dyneema. The difference was so small that BCY didn't bother keeping it in their product list, although it is still available as FORCE 10 x-bow string material.
Jump to 8190, and SK90 Dyneema. Another leap in quality--very expensive material to get. On our side of the sport the difference is not so noticeable, but there is a difference. Considering we have bowyers chasing 1-2 fps by tweaking designs, I guess you could say it's a significant improvement.
Then you have the blended materials, like 450+, 452X, and Trophy. These are SK75 Dyneema and Vectran. They actually feel softer, because the Vectran doesn't absorb dye as well, but they actually have less stretch/elasticity. On some bows the Vectran makes for a bit more noise, on some not. It is a brittle material, so while it actually makes the string have less stretch and creep, the fibers break and the string will fuzz up quicker and generally not be as durable. Again, on our side of the sport, it's not as noticeable.
Any of these can be made into an excellent bowstring. Some won't work as well if you try to go too low in strand count; some bows seem to "like" one material better than another, but they have all been time-tested and proven to work great.
For selfbows, you might prefer B-500 or B-55. Both are polyester (commonly referred to as "Dacron", but technically that is incorrect), both are safe for any bow. B-55 is a bit stronger with less stretch and creep than B-500 or B-50, but not in the same family as the HMPE materials.
Which one is "best"? Depends on who you ask, plus a ton of other variables. My preferance in the past was Dynaflight '97, then 8125. Now it's 8190, but I'd still be fine using Dynaflight '97 or 8125.
Hope this helps,
Chad
Thanks Chad for that synopsis - answered a question I didn't even know I had. Nice to see the different material discriptions all in one place.
And *that* is why I always recommend Chad for folks looking for a new bowstring. He's the only one I've seen who knows all the little ins-and-outs about string material and he isn't afraid share it.
Guy
I appreciate the good word, but I don't know all the ins and outs--I'm learning more all the time myself. I just don't have any secrets--I'll share what I know.
If anyone ever hears me speaking about "proprietary" methods, or if it just sounds like I'm not giving you the whole story...just smack me upside the head.
Very nice explaination Chad,
Thank You !
Chad, i am messaging you. You seem like the right guy for the job!
btw, thank you for the GREAT response!
Daniel
Great post Chad!
I appreciate it...guess that's why my friends call me a "string nerd"...
DANG!!!
That is a most-excellent summary on string material by the "string nerd" hisself - LBR!
:clapper: :clapper: :clapper:
The one thing that would make this message even sweeter would be for LBR to tell us how many strands minimum for the different draw weights of bows AND how much padding would be needed for the loops for the different string materials AND if the serving needs to be double served to fit the nocks correctly OR if they should be padded to get the best nock fit....
Now if that's not askin' too much this could be the most-perfect thread on strings and string material!
:pray:
Keep the wind in your face!
Shoot straight, Shinken
:archer2:
Shew.....that could cover a lot of ground!
"Minimum" strand counts are tricky. Reason being, there's a certain amount of "cya" (not referring to super glue here) involved--both with the material manufacturer and the string maker.
Even though the HMPE materials are super strong and most have enough tensile strength "on paper" to run a string with 3 strands on a 60# bow...that doesn't make good sense.
At the risk of being stoned and burned at the stake, I just don't like "skinny" strings. Now what is skinny or not could be a whole different topic in itself. More accurately, I don't like low strand count strings.
Besides that, I've just never been able to reproduce the results I read about with low strand count strings vs. moderate ones.
That's one reason I'm really liking the 8190. You can have a "skinny" string without going low in strand count, plus the same string works great for a variety of draw weights.
18 strands of 8190 is still a small diameter, but very strong and you won't have to jump through any hoops to get a decent nock fit. If you like a larger diameter string, just use more strands.
With 18 strands of 8190, I like the loops padded to 22 strands with B-55.
I'll be glad to try to help with any questions, but I don't have the time...and TG may not have the spare bandwidth...to cover all the possible combinations--or even just the ones I'm familiar with.
I do appreciate the compliment though! Honestly, I have no secrets (with strings anyway!). If you have a question on strings and I know the answer, I'll give it. If I only have an opinion, I'll state it as such.
Chad
I like D97. The reason is that I have my bows tuned well for this string material and I do not want to retune. Changing string material can change bow performance enough that you WILL have to retune to get everything right again.
And I just learned a ton of info from Chad's posts! Thanks again!
Bisch