Bow press...do I need one?

[tree_ghost]

Ok fellas I have a guy who I trust exclusively to do all of my bow work. But I have found myself here lately entertaining the idea of getting a "starter" press to tinker or to have in case of an emergency. I'm not skilled enough to do a full breakdown on a bow, I am a novice when it comes to that but I want to start learning. I was wondering how many of you guys have your own press? And how often do you use them?


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[TNDeerGuy]

I have a LCA EZ-Green press and love it. I'll put it like this, no one, and I mean no one, will be able to put the time into fine tuning and tweaking your setup like you can do if you have one--it's just not profitable for them. One of my best friends in the world, and someone I trust with my kids, has a shop and even then I will not bother him to ultra fine tune my setup--it takes hours and days to tweak this, that and you. Can you out-tune your shooting abilities? Absolutely you can and many, many do, but that way you can only blame the Indian and not the bow. Let's talk about convenience for a minute. There is nothing more convenient than having your own equipment, especially when you have to take a few hours or if you're day to fix something you could have had done in a few minutes in your garage.

As far as not having the knowledge, that is easy and just tinkering around will gain you a world of knowledge and that is key to understanding the mechanics of the sport--it can make you better.

If you can get a press, and have a wife willing to let you pull the trigger, then I would've done it before typing this post! :D

 

[LanceS4803]

The current American Hunter magazine (NRA publication), Jan 2016 issue, has a great article about setting up your own dream home "bow shop".
Some of the stuff is pricey, some isn't.
X-Press Pro Bow Press
Easton 12-Piece Pro Shop Tool Kit
Bitenburger Fletching Jig
Cabela's Arrow Cut-Off Saw
NAP American Quick Fletch
Apple Archery Economy Vise

 

[Crow Terminator]

LCA is running a sale on their presses until the 31st with free shipping. I took advantage and bought the Easy Green with draw board attachment and the draw stop adapters for $570 total. I got mine through Southshore Archery online and it came the next day via Fed Ex. $570 seems like a lot of money but most guys will spend $1,000 on a new bow every year and then 7 or 8 months later, sell it for a $500-600 loss and never think twice about it. The press is something you should only have to buy once and then you will always have it. You will NEVER get the attention to detail or service with a dealer or bow shop as you will by learning to do things yourself and being your own technician. The nearest shop to me is 30+ minutes one way for me. That is quite a drive for something simple like putting a peep sight in or turning it just a half twist to make it not rotate.

Get a press, mount it to the top of a rolling tool box. Put your archery tools in the box drawers, and you have a movable work bench for all your bow needs. So now I have a press, drawboard, arrow saw, LCA fletching jig, chronagraph, and all the standard tools. The only things I do not have are a bow vice and string making jig.

 

[tree_ghost]

Ok I see the points from everyone and agree. So where will I get the information to begin learning more advanced aspects of tuning a rig?


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[smalljawbasser]

Tag. I got me and 4 little archers coming up, so I can see where it would be a worthy skill.

 

[TNDeerGuy]

Ok I see the points from everyone and agree. So where will I get the information to begin learning more advanced aspects of tuning a rig?


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Honestly, a lot of reading information, asking questions of people, watching videos and basic trial and error. The internet can be your best friend or worst enemy. Just remember that any adjustment you make you pay attention to it, so you can reverse the process to return how you had it. I promise it seems more complicated than it actually is--working on a bow is actually fairly simple, it's just kind of intimidating.

 

[Crow Terminator]

The standard/basic stuff like installing and tying in a peep, making a d-loop, etc are readily available on YouTube "how to" videos. A lot of the tuning process with cam syncing and that sort of stuff is too. The big piece to the puzzle is knowing what cam system you have. Some cam systems that have been around a while have a lot of data out there, and tuning tricks that people have figured out. Some of the newer stuff will just be trial/error and experimenting. Just remember that a bows axle to axle length and brace height measurements are all APPROXIMATE figures. Your biggest objective is always getting the draw weight where it is supposed to be when maxed out according to the limb rating, and draw length correct. When those two are correct, you let the A-A and brace height be whatever they happen to be at.

Each bow will "like" certain things too. Example...the PSE cam system seems to shoot best with the top cam hitting a little ahead of the bottom cam vs being perfectly in sync. The binary cams like on Elite need to be as close to perfect as you can get. A lot of the Pro shooters agree that the Mathews AVS cam system shoots best with the bow backed out one round from max on poundage. Particularly on the ChillX bow. It is a lot like tuning a race car...some things you find out by just experimenting and taking notes.

 

[elroyjr55]

Check out nighthawk archery very portable and easy to use

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