bow question

fishlis 1 · 01-15-2003, 01:14 PM

after fishing the other day i went into " the manly,man room" where i keep all of my outdoor gear and noticed that my bow which has been sitting on my gun rack idle for about a month was just hanging there, half on the rack and half on the computer moniter. i looked closer and the string had broke! no one touched it not me or my wife. the string is only about a year old. i told one of my professors that is an avid bow hunter what had happened and he asked if i had lowered the poundage before i stored it? i have never done that and have never had a problem prior to this. so the question i have is. Is it common practice to lower the poundage when storing your bow for a month or so? finally, would you get it x-rayed or heavily examined because to me this is worse than dry firing a bow!

Norm · 01-15-2003, 03:17 PM

I've had my martin strung for a decade without any problems. I put a new kevlar string on it every other year. Unless it's a recurve, I wouldn't bother un-stringing it or lowering the poundage. Sounds like just a bad string. I doubt you have any limb damage, but check it carefully before shooting it. Most limb cracks are prett easy to spot.

stick flicker · 01-15-2003, 06:37 PM

Sounds just like a bad string. I have never had to let the poundage down while storing it. When you get a new string get a good one, the bowrack in Eugene is a really good place to start. I bet you'll endup buying more than a string though.

lightline · 01-15-2003, 06:50 PM

stick flicker: You don't use the archery hut in town?.

bigshark · 01-15-2003, 07:33 PM

A friend owned a couple of archery shops some years back, you older guys might remember Bow&Arrow Lanes, Cascade Archery,
and a small shop on 82nd after they moved out of the lanes place. Anyway, he had all these compound bows for sale and they were all at various weights. He never backed off the poundage on any of them. I think the prior post of a bad string is correct. You might have cut it part way and didn't notice it or something made it wear in one spot, but I don't think you need to back the poundage off to store it. The excentric(sp)wheels or cams are down in the rest position so the poundage on the limbs would be light.

[ 01-15-2003, 08:43 PM: Message edited by: bigshark ]

crabbait · 01-19-2003, 10:07 PM

Bigshark - When the cams are rolled over in the full draw position the pressure on the string is reduced. When the bow is "at rest" the pressure on the string is at one of its higher levels, although the pressure does increse as the bow is drawn.

It is recommended that you reduce the draw weight whten the bow is not going to be shot for a long period but most people don't bother. You can simply back off the poundage adjustment a full turn and retrun the bow to full poundage when ready to shoot. Check the bow for square before and after the adjustment.

Release aids are very hard on strings. because the string is covered with serving at the point that the aid contacts it, it is easy to have a damaged string without any visible problem.

String failure happens. Inspect the bow and if you do not see any cracks have a new string installed and give it a test. Todays limb materials are incredibly strong as compared with just a few years ago. I bet it came through this just fine.

[ 01-19-2003, 11:08 PM: Message edited by: crabbait ]

Gun Rod Bow · 01-19-2003, 10:17 PM

Think a mouse could have chewed on it? I've had them chew some strange things..phone cords etc..?

I have much confidence in the crew at Archers Afield in Tigard. Ask for John. Anyone there is qualified.

Good Luck

GRB

bigshark · 01-20-2003, 10:10 AM

Crabbait

Interesting, as an old longbow shooter I had one of those machines when they first came out. Darn thing taught me you have to be a better shot than me to make it hit the mark. Too unforgiving. Anyway, thanks for the explaination.

outdoor.spec.ops · 01-20-2003, 10:23 AM

I had the same thing happen to me this summer. I had the bow inspected, and was informed that the string didnt just break, it was chewed through. Evidently the cat or something?

Luckily all the other strings and limbs checked out ok. I recomend getting it checked out. Good luck!

Gobbaworms · 01-20-2003, 08:43 PM

I have never back off the pounds and have never had a problem. Some strings are just more prone to breaking (don't remember the brand but it has red servings).

Anyway, this may sound weird, but is your computer (the one it landed half on) on a lot? I'm assuming the bow hangs pretty close to it since it landed on it. If so, it may produce enough warmth to put unecessary stress on the bow. The heat rising on a portion of the bow not only creates uneven heating but changes the relative humidity over portions of the bow. (we're talking 300+watts for the computer and at least another 100 for the monitor.)

Again, I know it sounds weird, but the first lesson I learned about bow storage in the field is keep it out of the sun. I've seen limbs delaminate due to uneven heating.

fishlis 1 · 01-21-2003, 08:00 PM

thanks to everyone that replied i appreciate the insite. It simply does not make sense. like i stated the string was only a year old. I may have just gotten a faulty string or something. i suppose i will just have to go to kuch archery to get another one and i will probably start to lower the weight. thank you all again.