Good article on waxing bow strings

[bigbuck150]

Seen this on another site and thought I would share.

Waxing your bow string is an essential part of bow maintenance and knowing How to Wax a Bow String properly is as critical as the wax itself. This applies to all types of bows including compounds, crossbows, recurve and longbows. Waxing your bow string will extend the life of your bow string by keeping it from becoming frayed, damaged by dirt or water and will help to keep the strands from becoming dried out and less flexible. Waxing your bow string is very simple to do and only takes a couple minutes of time. Here is a quick rundown on how to wax a bow string.

The first thing is to make sure that your bow string is clear of any dirt or debris. This can be done by wiping with a clean dry cloth. Another little trick is to take a scrape piece of bow string serving material. If you do a half wrap with the bow string serving and lightly pull it down the bow string you will see dirt and old wax being removed.

Next you want to take your tube of bow string wax and rub it up and down on your bow string. You want to make sure the bow string wax is sticking far enough out of the tube that the tube itself is not contacting your bow string. Letting the tube rub on the bow string will cause premature wear. You want to apply a good amount wax but be careful not to overdo it. Ideally you want to make sure the bow string wax covers the bow string with a thin coat. While doing this you only want to wax the exposed portion of the bow string. You want to make sure that you do not wax any of the bow string servings.

Now that you have wax on your bow string you want to take your finger and thumb and just rub the wax into the bow string. The heat and friction will cause the bow string wax to melt and make it easier for the wax to penetrate each individual strand and cover the entire bow string. Some will recommend to use a piece of leather instead of your fingers but I have found that you can build up quite a bit more heat with leather. By using your fingers you will not add excess heat to your bow string which could contribute to premature wear. If your fingers get hot you will stop and your bow string will thank you.

Once all of the wax has been rubbed in you can take the cloth you started with and wipe off any excess wax that might have built up. This will usually be where the bow string meets the servings. By keeping your bow string waxed it will last longer and perform better. It's a great idea to regularly wax your bow string. How often will depend on how much you shoot your bow and the age of your bow string. In general the more your shoot and the older your bow string is the more you will need to keep it waxed. Stay tuned for more helpful archery articles from 60X Custom Strings.

[Indian Summer]

Thanks BigBuck. I'll add that it is a good idea to wax your string at the end of the season before letting it sit off season. Lots of people only wax theirs when they are using it the most.

[zpd307]

that reminds me, I need to do this to my bow....

[pointysticks]

that's the way i do it.

i rub a fair amount down one side and i rub it vigorously with my fingers and warm it up..and work it around the string.

my first bow; the shop talk me i was waxing to much. he showed me the right way and i have been doing it that way ever since. i do it about once a month, and i pay attention if i plan on hunting in a rain storm.

[vertical limit]

that's the way i do it.

i rub a fair amount down one side and i rub it vigorously with my fingers and warm it up..and work it around the string.

my first bow; the shop talk me i was waxing to much. he showed me the right way and i have been doing it that way ever since. i do it about once a month, and i pay attention if i plan on hunting in a rain storm.

I do mine about once a month, especially when it is getting used a lot. Sometimes more often depending on use and conditions. I always do a good once over on my string before leaving for a hunt.

[Mike_Parson]

my 16 yr old daughter and i always wax after every time we shoot as we usually get some blowing dust and stuff on the bows. its kind of our cool down period after shooting to just sit and chat about how things went during our shooting and how we can improve things next time.