Explain Bow Strings....

[TallTexan]

I'm still relatively new to bows. I've heard so many different opinions on what strings to buy, but what is the true difference between one company to the next?

I've heard them being made out of different material, so what the difference in the materials?

I know Korbin makes string, but what sets hit apart from others?

Those ate the beginning questions I've got, so let the knowledge flow.

[icetrauma]

In for flowing if the knowledge.

[MojoTexas]

Are you asking about compound bow strings, or traditional, or just bow strings in general?

[Okdeerhunter]

There's several good string makers out there pretty much comes down to what you want to spend an who you want to do business with really. Some material will be faster then other material some material lasts longer then other material so on an so forth. Pretty much when you decide on custom strings call up who ever you want to build them tell them what you want they should tell ya what material they recommend an go from there

[TallTexan]

Are you asking about compound bow strings, or traditional, or just bow strings in general?

Compound for now

[TallTexan]

There's several good string makers out there pretty much comes down to what you want to spend an who you want to do business with really. Some material will be faster then other material some material lasts longer then other material so on an so forth. Pretty much when you decide on custom strings call up who ever you want to build them tell them what you want they should tell ya what material they recommend an go from there

I like to be a little educated before I buy, so I know I the person is BSing me of not.

[bowhuntntxn]

http://www.bcyfibers.com/FAQs.php

There are some good answers here. Basically everyone uses a fiber made by BCY. And there is really only one way to build a string. The quality IMO comes in the servings, serving material, if it separates on the cams, number of strands per string or cable, and things like that.

You could put 4 different sets of strings on your bow made by 4 different makers, at 4 different costs, and might not be able to tell the difference. That includes most factory strings. Buy what you think is quality strings at a price you can afford, and if they start to come apart, then hit them up for repairs or replacements.

Also I have noticed that some custom makers are better at making strings for one brand and not so good for other brands. Really there is very little risk involved and nearly every maker will fit your needs.

[wassaw]

serving material (wear and tare resistance) how tight or well it hold it's protective wrap around the multiple strands making the string. proper size use of the cam serving size so it fits correctly in "your" bows mfg cam/cable groves. quality center serving material and proper serving of the center serving (center serving area, the release, D-loop and nock are attached to ) proper tensioning of string material while serving to reduce peep rotation or string and cable to settle in and change the bows tune. quality end loops that will last on the cam horns and through several on-off tunings.
there is a lot to be said for having a quality harness on your bow.

[TallTexan]

I was told Bowtech strings come with the material called Darcon, and my. PSE doesn't.

[rocky]

I was told Bowtech strings come with the material called Darcon, and my. PSE doesn't.

I'm pretty sure this is not right.
Stretch and serving separation are the two things that we can see a difference in.
The Bowtech Octane strings are very good.

[bowhuntntxn]

You mean Dacron. And all bowstrings are some form of dyneema as mentioned here:

http://www.bcyfibers.com/Bowstring.php

Read through BCYs web site, and look at the PSE and Bowtec sites to see what they list as string/cable material. More than likely it will be 452x or some variant of that for the string and 8125 for the cable set.

[TallTexan]

You mean Dacron. And all bowstrings are some form of dyneema as mentioned here:

http://www.bcyfibers.com/Bowstring.php

Read through BCYs web site, and look at the PSE and Bowtec sites to see what they list as string/cable material. More than likely it will be 452x or some variant of that for the string and 8125 for the cable set.

Yes, I meant Dacron

[TallTexan]

http://www.bcyfibers.com/FAQs.php

Lots of good answers hear

[Sic'em]

No Bowtech bows do not come with Dacron.

Most string makers use pretty much the same method to make strings. Their will be slight differences but overall pretty much the same. The good ones all prestretch the strings and serve under tension. So you don't have break in time, it doesn't stretch when you get it tuned, no peep rotation and no serving seperation.

Probably the most important thing when trying to decide who to use is the customer service. No string maker is perfect so if their is an issue how well do they help you fix it. Their is only so much you can do differently if they use the same material.

Many string makers you can pick between a couple materials either 452x, trophy, and 8190.

I like halo serving for my end servings because it lasts forever. But that might cost a little bit more if they mainly use 3d serving.

[Sic'em]

452x is a very stable material. It's been around a long time now and it's proven to be very good.

Trophy is exact same thing as 452x but they add gore fibers to make it last longer. Both do well in the Texas heat and last a long time if you take care of the strings. Trophy is a tad slower then 452x in my experiences with it but it isn't much difference.

Also keep in mind that the Florescent colors are a tad slower then the regular colors. Due to the extra wax and dye.

Usually for the cables I will use 24 strands and then the string I use 20 strands. It gives you a tad more speed but doesn't last as long.

8190 is a newer material so it hasn't had the time to really prove how good it is. I've heard some negatives and postitives but I have not used it myself so I can't give you my opinion.

For myself I use the XS2 material from brownell. It's a softer material and it is really easy to build with. It's also a lot quieter which I like a lot. The downside is it fuzzes a lot faster. But I make my own so it doesn't matter that much to me.