# Flemish String (2-bundle or 3-bundle)



## wabi (Feb 9, 2003)

I started making 3 bundle strings, but now use strictly 2 bundle. I can't see any differance in longevity or performance, and they're easier to make. One other thing I now do is I do not taper the ends of the strands into the end of the loop finish (not sure how to describe it - where the extra material from forming the loops end in the string). I just leave about 3/4" of loose strands stick out & fray when shooting. Looks good & is somewhat of a silencer.


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## Arthur P (May 28, 2002)

I agree with wabi. I've seen no difference in how either of them shoot. A 3-bundle, 3-color looks string looks a little nicer to me, but they are more of a pain to make. You've really got to stay on your toes and keep thinking... "Black, white, bronze, black, white, bronze" (or whatever colors you're using) with each twist... just to keep the progression going in the right order.

But, since you don't make your own strings that's not a consideration for you.

If you draw less than 30", I think a 14 strand string should work fine for you. I'd stick with 16 if you're 30" or over.


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## AKRuss (Jan 10, 2003)

I enjoy making both Flemish and endless strings. Someone told me that "they" developed a machine that could make two ply Flemsih strings and I've been making 3-ply strings ever since. If a Flemish string is made properly, the individual bundles are not twisted prior to twisting the entire string body (all the bundles together) and there would be no difference in the roundness of the final string body. If the plys are twisted individually and then combined and twisted again, the 3-ply string will appear somewhat rounder than a 2-ply. Applying the serving minimizes this "non-roundness" and it usually isn't much of an issue unless the individual plys were severely twisted. In order to keep the individual plys from twisting, I twist them the opposite direction prior to braiding the second loop. This sounds more complicated than it really is. Anyway, 2-ply is easier to make. Three-ply is a bit more of a project but I think it makes a nicer looking string, at least to my eye but then I'm prejudiced because of that mystical machine out there, LOL. If you're ordering a string, it's construction is in the hands of the maker and you don't have to worry about it at all. 

The number of strands in a string is generally a matter of reference. With Brownell's Dacron B-50, 16 strands is good for bows of normal hunting weight. For a 50# bow you could go with less. 12 strands would be at the low end and I'd probably opt for 14 unless I was looking for absolute maximum speed for some odd reason. Fast Flight and other newer fibers are much stronger than B-50 and one can make strings with fewer strands and still have excellent strength. FF is also much thinner than B-50. You can over do this and make super skinny strings that become somewhat unstable. Most string makers increase the number of strands of say FF to make a string body of the same thicknes as a B-50 string so that nock fit is similar. This really isn't necessary as new serving materials are available in different thicknesses for good nock fit and over building a FF string body negates some of the reason to use FF to begin with. BCY's Dyanflite-97 is a well waxed fiber with thickness similar to B-50. If you haven't tried some of the new string materials, I believe you'll find you like them. There has been a lot of conjecture about FF and others being too harsh on bows and what not but I can remember when B-50 first came out and there was similar discussions about it, we just didn't have the internet at that time to disperse the arguments. Hope I'm not dating myself too much, LOL. As above, the maker will use what he thinks to be the corerct number of strands for your bow weight and you can likely rely on his judgement. 

If you're ordering a true custom string, make sure you specifiy what nock you're using so the maker can make sure you a get good fit. There are currently some nocks available that have larger and smaller throats then others, which is neither good nor bad but can make nock fit an issue. I know several archers who don't make strings but have an assortment of serving material to modify their strings to fit whatever nock they're using. It's much easier to modify one's serving than all one's nocks, IMHO. Hope this helps and sorry for the long post.


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## PineLander (Oct 28, 2003)

Thanks guys... good point also about serving relative to strands and nock.

Another one for ya... haha, hijacking this thread.

Most of my arrows are 60-65#ers @ 520 grains. Was shooting them at 55# @ 26". Well, I shot those same arrows out of my old 50# Bear recurve (twisted limb and all), but draw was at 28". Didn't run 'em through a chronograph, but they seemed to get downrange just as fast. With what I've been told, I lost 10# in weight (20 fps) but gained 2" in draw (30 fps), so the difference in speed to target was negligible, if anything a bit faster. Sound about right?


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## Kitsap (Dec 24, 2002)

*Minimum Bend Radius !*

To all concerned:
Aside from any cosmetic concerns, the structural reason for using 3 bundles versus 2 bundles is to keep the size of the bundle down to about 6 or 7 strands maximum. Reason is because if the bundle gets too large then the individual strands in the bundle will each effect a radically different bend radius as it goes over the notch at the end of the bow. By keeping the bundle size down and by twisting the bundles (with respect to the other bundles) the bend radius for each individual strand is easied and kept more nearly the same as the others. In other words, the stress on the individual strands is more evenly spread out. 

Put too tight a bend radius (or kink it) on a strand and you disproportionately overstress it at that point (by as much as a factor of 3 or 4 times). 

One other concern regarding the total number of strands in a string: If you are using tapered shafts, then you might want to be careful not to use too many strands as the nock may be too narrow. Case in point is my favorite set of arrows - shafts tapered to take a 5/16" nock - which cannot tollerate a 14 strand string but are unmatched in accuracy with a 12 strand string.


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## AKRuss (Jan 10, 2003)

Kitsap, I use to make a lot of two-ply 16 to 18 strand B-50 strings and never noticed bend radius problems, but who knows. I assume this problem would manifest itself with wear at the loops? This could be an apparent problem at brace but not at draw, when the string loops are at a greater angle to the bow. I guess bow nock shape could be a factor as would be the tightness of the twist in the loops. Anyway, it's the first I've heard of such a problem. 

As for nock throat size. If you're looking for a nock with lots of throat diameter, try the Bohning Classics. They come with and without index and the 11/32 and 5/16 nocks have very similar throats. There should be lots of room for larger string bodies.


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## wabi (Feb 9, 2003)

> Reason is because if the bundle gets too large then the individual strands in the bundle will each effect a radically different bend radius as it goes over the notch at the end of the bow. By keeping the bundle size down and by twisting the bundles (with respect to the other bundles) the bend radius for each individual strand is easied and kept more nearly the same as the others. In other words, the stress on the individual strands is more evenly spread out.


Not sure I follow the reasoning 
If it's a 16 strand string it's a fixed outside diameter regardless of the number of bundles. If you use 5+5+6, or 8+8 it's still 16, and the strand on the inside of one twist will be the strand on the outside of the next, so I don't see where stress would be different from one to the next. Maybe I'm just dense, or missing the point


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## Arthur P (May 28, 2002)

Pinelander, if you ever think you'd like to try your hand at making your own flemish strings, here's a good reference:

http://www2.pcom.net/jthutten/jth/doc/flemish.htm#B50

Unfortunately, it doesn't cover putting reverse twists in the bundles that make up the main body of the string before forming the second loop. That is very important to making a good round string.

It's no big deal, really. Just put about 20-25 twists in the body of each bundle in the opposite direction of your loop twists. As you do the twisting to form the loop, the reverse twists come out and make nice, straight bundles. If you don't put in the reverse twists, the bundles will twist up themselves and actually become two different strings that wind up twisted around each other.

It's not as difficult to make a flemish string as it might seem.


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