unstringing necessary?

[Dan Aadland]

#2378

This has probably been covered before, but with modern laminated recurves, just how important is it to string and unstring your bow? Can a modern bow be left strung for long periods of time without damage or “string follow?”

[David Petersen]

#8840

Welcome to tradbow, Dan. Your answer is yes, so long as it’s not in direct sunlight or extreme heat. A friend who owned a trad bow shop here left dozens of bows strung forever and re-weighed them every year or so and found zero draw weight loss in any of them. This has been my experience as well. However, if I’m traveling any distance with the bow in a vehicle, horseback, etc., I unstring it in case it gets dropped or such. Others may have had other experiences but I believe this is the majority opinion. Another reason I prefer longbows — no bow stringer necessary so it’s easier to take it up and down.

[James Harvey]

#8852

I don’t know anything about it myself mate, but I know an old fella up here who is a pretty high quality coach, he’s trained a couple of world champs. He’s always happy leaving glass bows strung as long as they’re in air conditioning. But he has a shop that is pretty well air conditioned 24/7. His big thing is always unstring them when you’re putting them in your car.

[Dan Aadland]

#8913

David Petersen wrote: Welcome to tradbow, Dan. Your answer is yes, so long as it’s not in direct sunlight or extreme heat. A friend who owned a trad bow shop here left dozens of bows strung forever and re-weighed them every year or so and found zero draw weight loss in any of them. This has been my experience as well. However, if I’m traveling any distance with the bow in a vehicle, horseback, etc., I unstring it in case it gets dropped or such. Others may have had other experiences but I believe this is the majority opinion. Another reason I prefer longbows — no bow stringer necessary so it’s easier to take it up and down.

Thanks, David, for the welcome and the reply. Horseback use is an issue in itself. You should have seen the scramble when I rode into a herd of elk with my take-down recurve dimantled and packed behind the cantle.

[Dan Aadland]

#9736

I should add that I wouldn’t carry arrows in the fashion shown above again. They interfered with neck-reining the horse, tended to catch on branches, and worried me generally, since I consider arrows to be one of the more dangerous things you can carry horseback. For the next pack-in I enclosed them in a stout tube, inaccessible, yes, but safely stored until hunting out of our base camp began.

[Stephen Graf]

#10694

I thought you were a rifle man. Glad to see you’re getting more serious about your bow. TR would be proud. Welcome.

[ChumpMcgee]

#10814

Even thou I have heard that keeping a bow strung time and time again will not cause damage, I feel that a strung bow is a working bow. When it is unstrung it is now at rest. I also always store my bow horizontal to keep the weight off of the limbs as well.

[Steve Capps]

#10993

At home on the rack mine are strung. I only unstring for transport because its the law here in Illinois.

[lyagooshka]

#11050

stchunter48 wrote: At home on the rack mine are strung. I only unstring for transport because its the law here in Illinois.

I am wondering how that affects compound bows, or even crossbows. Do you have any idea why they do this? Seems if they single out traditional gear, there is some reason. Interesting piece of information. Be well.

Alex

❓

[Etter1]

#11274

lyagooshka wrote: [quote=stchunter48]At home on the rack mine are strung. I only unstring for transport because its the law here in Illinois.

I am wondering how that affects compound bows, or even crossbows. Do you have any idea why they do this? Seems if they single out traditional gear, there is some reason. Interesting piece of information. Be well.

Alex

❓

They have to put a lock on the three strings to put on a motorized vehicle. Pure foolishness, I think.

[lyagooshka]

#11831

Wow! Some rules are just dumb. Here in PA the only thing you have to do for a crossbow at full draw is to remove the bolt. Obviously no arrow on the string, but that’s about it. I can understand the reasoning, especially for crossbows, but are they really having problems with people driving around and shooting deer with a 6 foot longbow out of the window of their smartcar? Really? I would actually want to see that. Be well.

Alex

😕

[Steve Capps]

#12055

compounds and x-guns have to be cased or a lock affixed to cables and stings. Who knows why? Chicago politicians make our laws for us. Maybe afraid the gangbangers are going to do driveby arrowings.

[Dan Aadland]

#14851

Steve Graf wrote: I thought you were a rifle man. Glad to see you’re getting more serious about your bow. TR would be proud. Welcome.

Thanks, Steve. I still consider myself a rifleman, hopefully in the traditional American model, but bows were an equal fascination. We’d alternate carving crude ones of willow with forays into the hills with .22 rifles and dogs. A parade of kids with rifles and dogs normally went down main street on Saturday afternoons. The compound craze turned me off, and a separated shoulder from a horse accident made bows uninteresting for a while. (I’m afraid it’s rebelling a little again–probably some arthritis in it.)

I guess for me it’s about the challenge one enforces upon himself, and that can be furnished with either rifle or bow. Here in Montana where bait and dogs aren’t allowed I’ll hunt this spring horseback in vast open country where if you spot a bear it’s likely to be a mile away. I’ll take my iron-sighted .45-70 and consider the challenge of getting close enough fully equal to that of waiting for a whitetail to walk by my stand in the woods below our house.

I’m enjoying this forum!–Dan

[coastalbendbows]

#15785

I unstring my bows if they are to be kept in my truck for a few hours. Although I do bake them at 160-170 degrees and most of the time vehicles don’t get that warm I still unstring.

When stored in the stable they get hung up by two pegs and they hang from the string. Hope this helps you out Bud.

[Dan Aadland]

#15835

coastalbendbows wrote: I unstring my bows if they are to be kept in my truck for a few hours. Although I do bake them at 160-170 degrees and most of the time vehicles don’t get that warm I still unstring.

When stored in the stable they get hung up by two pegs and they hang from the string. Hope this helps you out Bud.

Thanks, Bud.

[Doc Nock]

#42198

Dan,

That’s a well-trained horse right there. I “borrowed” one in MT or was offered one to hunt “back in” on a rancher’s place in Judith basin. He admitted he was “cut a bit too late” and had a bit more testosterone in him, but the smell of blood made him NUTS! (more nuts?) I’m impressed with that picture!

My most recent bow purchase I asked that stringing question. The bowyer commented that he’s seen way more bows damaged in the process of stringing or un-stringing and recommended I leave mine strung… and hung!

[Dan Aadland]

#42399

Doc Nock wrote: Dan,

That’s a well-trained horse right there. I “borrowed” one in MT or was offered one to hunt “back in” on a rancher’s place in Judith basin. He admitted he was “cut a bit too late” and had a bit more testosterone in him, but the smell of blood made him NUTS! (more nuts?) I’m impressed with that picture!

My most recent bow purchase I asked that stringing question. The bowyer commented that he’s seen way more bows damaged in the process of stringing or un-stringing and recommended I leave mine strung… and hung!

Thanks! Partner was a colt at the time, and neither he nor his older sibling Redstar (my wife’s horse) was bothered by the dead antelope. An old-timer claims antelope blood doesn’t bother horses as much as that of deer or elk, but I haven’t done a real test. Redstar has packed both elk and mountain goat meat without incident. They’re both Tennessee Walkers, a possible brag for the breed.

In any case whether with bow or rifle, horseback is a great way to hunt antelope, and almost no one does it. There’s often a shortage of places to tie up, so three-legged hobbles are helpful. Partner was unphased by carrying the pronghorn, except when a leg came loose and stuck out to one side. Horses hate that.

[tradarcher44]

#49310

when you store a bow with the string on it creates unnecessary tension on the limb of the bows and can damage the bow the bow

[Viking Hunter]

#10491

tradarcher44 wrote: when you store a bow with the string on it creates unnecessary tension on the limb of the bows and can damage the bow the bow

Traveling on horses with a strung bow has its challenges. I have tried both carrying my takedown in a unstrung bow case, carrying it in a takedown case, and carrying it strung while still handling the horse. Camping restrictions in a Wildlife Management Area which is frequently 4-5 miles from my hunting area almost necessitates some compromise in handling equipment. Arrow protection seems best with a Safari Tuff quiver, but that has its issues as well. But then, this is probably another subject.

[BuckyT]

#11244

lyagooshka wrote: [quote=stchunter48]At home on the rack mine are strung. I only unstring for transport because its the law here in Illinois.

I am wondering how that affects compound bows, or even crossbows. Do you have any idea why they do this? Seems if they single out traditional gear, there is some reason. Interesting piece of information. Be well.

Alex

❓

I’ve deer hunted for years in Illinois with a compound and you don’t “unstring” the compound. You have to put a lock around the cables and the string to keep the string from being pulled back..

I will say, hunting with trad equipment is much nicer up there. I’d rather unstring my recurve and re-string it, than put that dang masterlock around my bow…

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