# Bearpaw strings



## SCS (Jun 27, 2005)

I ordered an 10 strand whisper string from Kustom King a few weeks ago. Put it on the bow and none of my nocks are tight. Has anyone used there strings before and run into this. Just looking for an idea on serving diameter to re-serve the string.

Thanks
Steve


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## LBR (Jan 1, 2004)

10 strands of what material?

Depending on the material and type nock, you'd probably need to double serve with a small diameter like .014, .017, .018, .019, or a combination of two.

Easy fix for now is wrap the nock point with dental floss to get the fit you want, then add super glue.


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## LBR (Jan 1, 2004)

Looked them up on the KK website. No way I'd use them--3 different materials in the same string.

The reason is different materials, even when they are all types of HMPE, will have different rates of stretch and creep. What it amounts to is the material with the least stretch will be carrying the load.


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## Sanford (Jan 26, 2009)

A chain is no stronger than its weakest link. Mixing strands is like that, mixed links of varying properties. I would select a string of one material and spec for your nocks you have.


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## SCS (Jun 27, 2005)

OK. Thanks for the advice.
Steve


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## northern boy (Aug 25, 2010)

I,ve heard the bearpaw whisper were a pretty good string but don,t know the string material there using. they come in 8 or 10 strands an loops are padded I did,t read anywere that there using three different string materials. dental floss works great to build serving size.


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## northern boy (Aug 25, 2010)

I found it on the site I was wrong they use three string materials in there strings a little different but should be save to use .


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## LBR (Jan 1, 2004)

I've broken strings (on my stretching jig) when the bundle tension wasn't even. That's basically what you get with different materials in the same string--the strands that stretch the least will carry the load. Imagine three rubber bands that are three different sizes. The one that bottoms out first will be the one that breaks first.

Don't take my word for it--consult with someone at BCY and see what they tell you.


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## Bender (Dec 6, 2006)

OK I just want to know what Junior Genius thought up using 3 different string materials in one string to begin with?


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## northern boy (Aug 25, 2010)

I<m wondering if there strings are 8 or 10 strands of the same material an loops padded with a different material an the serving being the third material. I ,ve been a fan of bearpaw products so far. But never tried there string.


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## Bender (Dec 6, 2006)

Just for the sake of argument lets say you're right and that that is all it is. There is absolutely nothing new about that. Read the description, They're calling it a "proprietary blend." What you propose is not a "blend." But still even if you're right, think about. There are only a couple of suppliers/manufacturers of bowstring material. So lets say you hit on the same combination that they use. For example 8190 for the body, 3D for the end loops, and Halo for the center. But NO! That's Bearpaw "proprietary" and they're going to sue the pants off you! 

Proprietary my big fat arse! 

Its just advertising hype aimed at newbies.


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## LBR (Jan 1, 2004)

The folks at KK seem like good people, as do the folks at Bearpaw...surprised me that they would market a string like that. Pretty obvious from the description it's three separate string materials.


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## Warbow (Apr 18, 2006)

> Especially for cheaper bows as well as for high end bows which can be shot with a Fast Flight string, we recommend the use of this incredibly high achieving string. It can prevent your bow from damage that might otherwise be inflicted by the much harder Fast Flight string.


http://www.bearpaw-blog.com/the-brandnew-bodnik-whisper-string/

Weird. It sounds like they are mixing B-50 with HMPE if you can use the string on older, non-FF compatible bows... :dontknow:

Blending materials _is_ done by major strand makers like BCY:



> Question: Are there any bowstring materials that do not creep?
> Answer: Yes - 450 Plus, 452X and Trophy. These are blends of Dyneema® and Vectran. Vectran has no creep at the tension created by normal bows; therefore these materials are normally 100% stable.


So, is it possible that Bear Paw has a winning, professional blend, made by a company like BCY or Brownell or some such? Seems possible.



> All |Bearpaw bows now have a modern high performance string made at Bearpaw. These "Whisper Strings” as they are called are a big improvement over the old strings that were previously used. There is no need to upgrade the strings on Bodnik Bows anymore.


peteward.com/2012pages/Test.BearpawRedman.html

Interesting acoustic tests (in German):

http://www.bearpaw-blog.de/whisper-string/
Google translate:


> With our technical analysis it has been found interesting: A conventional Fast Flight string works in the 1-3 kHz range, which the human ear perceives as very loud and pushy.
> 
> Our Whisper string, however, the main noise in the lower frequency range of 50-600 Hz, which classifies the human ear as a much quieter and more subdued.


http://translate.google.com/transla...&u=http://www.bearpaw-blog.de/whisper-string/


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## LBR (Jan 1, 2004)

> It sounds like they are mixing B-50 with HMPE if you can use on older bows... :don't know.


Could be. Don't see it making it any safer for an old bow, at least if lack of stretch is the culprit that damages old bows.



> However, blending materials is done by major strand makers like BCY:


Not the same process, not by a long shot. The type blending BCY does is like adding water and eggs to flour to make batter--the finished product is one product and insepearable. Putting 2 or 3 different string materials together in a string is like adding tomatoes and bell pepper to lettuce for a salad--still three separate ingredients.



> So, is it possible that Bear Paw has a winning, professional blend, made by a company like BCY or Brownell or some such?


Not likely. The implication is they are using 3 different string materials in a string.

Mike Treadaway has been mixing FF and polyester in the same string for years--still does as far as I know. He says it's a quieter string. Mike is a great guy, makes a heck of a bow, but I won't put two materials in the same string--other than padding the loops. The stronger material carries the load--the material with more stretch is just adding weight. It could act as a dampener, but IMO there are easier and better ways to get a quiet string.

Going with just 8 or 10 strands means there's no more than 6-8 strands of any one material. Not for me.


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## Rick Barbee (Jan 16, 2013)

A number of years ago, I tried mixing 2 & 3 different materials into strings, but was never able to make it work well.
On lower draw weight bows it worked pretty good, but on the higher draw weights I shoot there was an instability I could feel compared to other strings,
and I quickly discovered it was due to how the different strand of material were baring the load differently.
An old buddy of mine still has one of those test strings, and it works great for him at his lower draw weight, but I never could make it work for me.

I'm not saying it can't be done, I'm just saying in the times I tried it I couldn't make it work.

Kudos to Bearpaw if they have it figured out. Makes me want to try out/test one of their strings.

Rick


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## Warbow (Apr 18, 2006)

LBR said:


> Not the same process, not by a long shot. The type blending BCY does is like adding water and eggs to flour to make batter--the finished product is one product and insepearable. Putting 2 or 3 different string materials together in a string is like adding tomatoes and bell pepper to lettuce for a salad--still three separate ingredients.


Well, that is the question, isn't it? Is this string made of strand manufacturer's blended strand, or is it just a string cobbled together out of three separate strand materials when each string is built? I haven't seen any links or specific claims by anyone to have actually seen one of these strings and determined that it is, in fact, three strand materials. Is that what it is? Have you pulled one of these apart and confirmed it? I can't tell by the description on the Bear Paw website. :dontknow:


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## Bender (Dec 6, 2006)

Yes but that blending you're speaking of is done by taking the raw fibers, say a Dyneema and Vectran and spinning them into a single strand. "Blending" by mixing different material strands would wind up leading back to the "weakest link" thing. 

The idea of custom blending raw fibers into a strand is interesting. But What would the fibers be? What do we have, 4 basic choices? Polyester, Dyneema, Vectran, and Spectra, and I think that's about it.


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## Bender (Dec 6, 2006)

Oh. OK Just saw the other posts came up while I was typing.


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## LBR (Jan 1, 2004)

> The secret is the proprietary blend of *three high performance string materials *that, *when used in combination*, deliver unbelievable performance.


Pretty clear to me, and I have done my research, before and after giving my opinion. An opinion based on almost two decades of building and experimenting with strings and string materials; along with consulting with the top bowstring material manufacturer in the world, top archers, and the best bowstring makers I know. Still, it's just an opinion. Take it for what it's worth.


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## LBR (Jan 1, 2004)

> What do we have, 4 basic choices? Polyester, Dyneema, Vectran, and Spectra, and I think that's about it.


Currently that's pretty much the crop, along with their knock-offs and the are varying grades of Dyneema, and GORE fiber that is added to some materials for durability but it doesn't do much one way or the other for strength. These are fiberous yarns before being woven into string material.


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## Warbow (Apr 18, 2006)

LBR said:


> Pretty clear to me, and I have done my research, before and after giving my opinion. An opinion based on almost two decades of building and experimenting with strings and string materials; along with consulting with the top bowstring material manufacturer in the world, top archers, and the best bowstring makers I know. Still, it's just an opinion. Take it for what it's worth.


I take your expert opinion on bow strings seriously, I was just asking if the actual construction of the strings has been confirmed by someone, anyone, such as those people you consulted, or if this is speculation based on the German to English wording on the Bear Paw website, which wouldn't seem to be the most reliable guide. Just trying to establish what is known fact and what is conjecture, even if expert conjecture.


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## LBR (Jan 1, 2004)

Third post, my second on this thread.



> Looked them up on the KK website.


KK = Kustom King. They were set up together (BP and KK) at the ATA show last year. If they are there again, I'll try to take a look at the strings in person--only a little over 2 weeks away.

Other than seeing one in person, I have done my homework, and that's what I based my opinion on.


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## Warbow (Apr 18, 2006)

LBR said:


> KK = Kustom King. They were set up together (BP and KK) at the ATA show last year. If they are there again, I'll try to take a look at the strings in person--only a little over 2 weeks away.


Cool.


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## Sanford (Jan 26, 2009)

Warbow said:


> I take your expert opinion on bow strings seriously, I was just asking if the actual construction of the strings has been confirmed by someone, anyone, such as those people you consulted, or if this is speculation based on the German to English wording on the Bear Paw website, which wouldn't seem to be the most reliable guide. Just trying to establish what is known fact and what is conjecture, even if expert conjecture.


Not that I fully agree that a trustworthy and homogenous string material can be make from simply mixing spools of different bowstring material, but on the micro level, isn't that basically what BCY and other do? I mean, they don't mix and blend, reconstitute, and then re-formulate a new fiber. Strands of the basic basic fibers, as supplied by the large fiber manufacturers, are mixed and woven to form a new single fiber - individual but mixed properties "woven" together. The problem with the likes of the Bear Paw string is that each individual type of string (now strand) has already been blended for certain properties.


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## JimPic (Apr 8, 2003)

I've padded loops on D 97 strings with B 50 but never mixed different materials for the main string before...not too sure I'd want to try that


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## LongStick64 (Aug 29, 2009)

Bought one and it works as advertised, my bow is quieter and softer feel on the shot. I'll continue to use it until it breaks but I don't think it will happen because it is doing what they claim it will do.


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