# Tuning a single cam bow??????Help



## CLAYBORN (Nov 8, 2005)

I was talking to a guy the other day and he told me it was impossible to tune a single cam bow. Well I have a Mathews Q2 and guess what it is a single cam bow. Now I'm not saying that a single cam Mathews is the best bow on the market. I just have trouble responding to his comment. Maybe you could help with a intelligent response. Maybe he is right I guess I'm not so full of pride that I can't live with that. Would like to know what you think.
Later,
Clay


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## bassman409 (Jul 19, 2006)

I think what he might have meant was it is impossible to time the cam on a solocam bow. You certainly can adjust the specs of the bow almost any way you like!


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## pblawler (Apr 7, 2005)

CLAYBORN said:


> I was talking to a guy the other day and he told me it was impossible to tune a single cam bow. Well I have a Mathews Q2 and guess what it is a single cam bow. Now I'm not saying that a single cam Mathews is the best bow on the market. I just have trouble responding to his comment. Maybe you could help with a intelligent response. Maybe he is right I guess I'm not so full of pride that I can't live with that. Would like to know what you think.
> Later,
> Clay


That is not true, you certainly can tune a single cam bow. It also has manufacturers specifications for ATA, BH and yes cam orientation, that yes will change as the string/cable creep. Spec.s certainly affect bow performance, over rotated cam means longer draw, more weight, etc... under rotated cam is right the opposite. Actual tuning of the bow is identical to a two cam.


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## Brown Hornet (Aug 8, 2002)

Tell him he is on CRACK.....there sure have been a lot of shoots won and animals killed with a single cam....and both are very hard to do with a bow that isn't tuned.

Maybe he should have said he doesn't know how to tune a single cam....that is a more realistic statement. :wink:


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## pinsight (Dec 5, 2006)

on a mathews there are two holes on the cam, if you place an arrow along these holes it should run Parallel to the string.
you should also check the idler wheel on the top, if you put an arrow so it contacts the wheel, the point of the arrow should be close to the knocking point. I hope this helps


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## CLAYBORN (Nov 8, 2005)

*Tuning a single cam bow*

Guys,
All I can say is thanks alot your great. I sort of thought the same thing, but didn't have much backing. The guy knew most everything and it is not worth the hassle. I'll just go on killing my animals with my solo cam. Pinsight I understand the two hole measurement, but the arrow to the idler wheel to the knocking point did not register. Where on the idler wheel and does this determine the length of the arrow. Anyway if you have the time to respond to ignorance well I would attempt to digest some info.
Thanks again,
Clay


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## bassman409 (Jul 19, 2006)

The arrow to the idler is only to use it as a straight edge to make sure that the idler is leaned toward the nock point on the string. Lay it on the side and see where the wheel is pointed. Nothing to do with arrow length.


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## marforme (May 30, 2006)

I don't know, I have a Q2 also and I have it perfectly tuned. It takes a good set of strings to keep it there though. Cam is timed and ATA and brace are set to specs and cam lean is now non existent. Takes a little time and patience, but easily doable.


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## heilman181 (Mar 24, 2006)

Here is an example of the cam rotation holes on the Mathews cam. They should be PARALLEL to the string with the limbs maxed all the way out. Keep in mind that bow specs are a good starting point, but some archers prefer "out of tune" to some extent!


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## CLAYBORN (Nov 8, 2005)

*bow tuning*

Heilman181,
Thanks for the pic and explanation really was nice of you. A pic of the idler end with a straight edge on the side of the idler wheel to the nocking point. That is hard for me to grasp. What ever you do will be appreciated.
Later,
Clay


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## Bellows1 (Oct 19, 2003)

CLAYBORN said:


> Heilman181,
> Thanks for the pic and explanation really was nice of you. A pic of the idler end with a straight edge on the side of the idler wheel to the nocking point. That is hard for me to grasp. What ever you do will be appreciated.
> Later,
> Clay



Clay, it is just a way to check for idler wheel lean. Not really a tuning issue, mainly a string tracking issue. Your sting should come off the idler straight, if the wheel leans to one side you _could_ have a problem with the string jumping off track.


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## heilman181 (Mar 24, 2006)

CLAYBORN said:


> Heilman181,
> Thanks for the pic and explanation really was nice of you. A pic of the idler end with a straight edge on the side of the idler wheel to the nocking point. That is hard for me to grasp. What ever you do will be appreciated.
> Later,
> Clay


Thanks Bellows!

Clay, if you notice the idler cam is not parallel to the string, it is somewhat tilted because of the roller guard (or cable slide depending on model) that is mounted to the riser. That is putting additional pressure on that side of the limb. When you come to full draw and look up at the idler cam, your string SHOULD be coming off straight. As Bellows noted, the string could come out of the cam groove if not set up properly. 

If you measure the ATA length (axle to axle) there should be around 1/16" difference between them. The arrow side of the bow should be the shorter of the two. The idler lean can be adjusted by twisting and/or untwisting the ("Y") yoke on the cable where it splits and goes to both sides of the idler cam. 

Hopefully this helps!


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## heilman181 (Mar 24, 2006)

In this picture you might be able to see that the string is not tracking off of the idler cam exactly straight..


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## heilman181 (Mar 24, 2006)

Take an arrow or other straight edge and place along side your cam like this.


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## heilman181 (Mar 24, 2006)

You may have to play with sliding your arrow (or straight edge), but the point of the arrow tip SHOULD point to your string where your arrow nocking point is.

This is not the best picture, but this shows that the arrow and string are not parallel.


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## ice2ice (Aug 23, 2004)

This is taken from the Mathews forum.
About Idler lean:
http://forums.mathewsinc.com/viewtopic.php?t=43031&highlight=idler

Vince71969 talks about a gap of 1/8" between arrow and nocking point.

Please correct me if I'm wrong... Starting to get a bit confused about it.

Same with the tiller.. Everybody I know is shooting with an even tiller..
I just max out both limbs and don't look at the tiller. But on Mathews forum Bob Jenkins says this:

http://forums.mathewsinc.com/viewtopic.php?t=49315&highlight=tiller

Hope this helps.
:darkbeer:


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## wkywtkiller (Aug 10, 2006)

ice2ice said:


> http://forums.mathewsinc.com/viewtopic.php?t=49315&highlight=tiller
> 
> Hope this helps.
> :darkbeer:


This is a very interesting thread. It helped me alot. I hope it applies the same to bows other than Matthews. . .


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## Deezlin (Feb 5, 2004)

All single cam bows need to be tuned, however they can not be timed. The reason is quite simple there is only one cam. You have to have two cams to make an out of timing condition possible.


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## ice2ice (Aug 23, 2004)

Deezlin said:


> All single cam bows need to be tuned, however they can not be timed. The reason is quite simple there is only one cam. You have to have two cams to make an out of timing condition possible.


It isn't exactly timing, but the cam rotation needs to be in place... 
There are always 2 marks on a one cam. If you put a arrow over the 2 marks (holes) it needs to be parallel to the string. 

Shown in the follow thread:

http://forums.mathewsinc.com/viewtopic.php?t=40837

:darkbeer:


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