material to make bow strings

[larze_fat]

i need help finding a material to make a bow string out of. i heard dacron makes a good string but i have no idea how to get a hold of any. im wondering if anyone could give me some sugestions on other materials. I also need to make a tillering string.

[nugget]

There are several places to buy it. I am not sure which ones are contributors on this site, but Three Rivers is a place to start. Look on the internet and search out archery suppliers. If they sell trad gear they shoold have dacron.

[youngbowyer33]

i make strings with some waxed string i found lying around.It is flat, and has lots of little fibers in it, and it makes good string, and mighty strong. Its extremely hard to break just one strand of it, but it makes my hands all smelly.

[Dauntless]

Sisal twine from a hardware store can do for bows to about 50#.  I've had them snap like crazy after that, then bought dacron at an archery shop. 

I made some from packing twine (plastic stuff) that worked well, although they didn't last very long because of friction at the nocks.

[Hillbilly]

B50 dacron is your best bet for an all-around string material. Three Rivers Archery (http://www.3riversarchery.com/) carries it, as does Kustom King Archery (http://www.kustomkingarchery.com/.) Both are good suppliers. You can use almost anything for a tillering string as long as it's strong and not stretchy. I usually use clothesline rope for a tillering string, and sometimes just make a dacron string for the bow when I get it tillered out past brace height and use it to finish tillering it out.

[woodstick]

i use b50 from 3 rivers archery, a 1 lb spool is only 28 bucks and it will go along way.

[wolfsire]

From wiki on Dacron:  Polyethylene terephthalate (sometimes written poly(ethylene terephthalate)), commonly abbreviated PET, PETE, or the obsolete PETP or PET-P), is a thermoplastic polymer resin of the polyester family and is used in synthetic fibers; beverage, food and other liquid containers; thermoforming applications; and engineering resins often in combination with glass fiber.

I'm sure it is very effective.

[aznboi3644]

i have used hemp  on a couple bows...one is a 45lb bamboo bow that is doin just fine

[Hillbilly]

I tried hemp for a couple strings and didn't like it at all-bulky, weak, slow and fluffy. The hemp we can get here is too variable in diameter to make a decent string, you have to build the string oversized to compensate for the weak spots in the threads. If you want a true primitive natural materials string with good performance, go with rawhide or sinew. To my way of thinking, if it comes on a spool from a factory, it ain't "primitive" to begin with, so you might as well use what works the best.  Good linen makes a decent string, but it's not nearly as durable as dacron, and it comes on a spool from a factory, too.

[chasing crow]

My wife reverse wound 4 strands of waxed linen thread for the bow I made for my daughter. I have used the bow several times and the string seems to work very well. Pulling around 40#. You can find this type of thread at most muzzleloader shops. The log Cabin Shop in Ohio carries it.

[aznboi3644]

but doesnt dacron come on a spool from a factory?

[George Tsoukalas]

I use B 50. Jawge

[Hillbilly]

but doesnt dacron come on a spool from a factory?

Yes, that's the point. I was referring to Wolfsire's wisecrack. I don't see any factory-made material as being primitive, so if I'm gonna buy something pre-made and commercial, I'll just buy the best bowstring material. If I want a primitive string, I'll make it myself from natural materials that i gather and process myself.

[youngbowyer33]

if im gonna buy something pre-maid and commercial im gonna get the cheapest stuff i can find