Setting up new bow

[heat checker]

I just got a new bow and a question keeps bothering me as I'm setting it up. Wouldn't a bow be more efficient, powerful, and accurate if the nocking point was exactly half the distance to each axle? I never took physics, but it seems logical to me that the best performance would be a nocking point of equal distance to each axel. It's not possible with the height of the shelf. What am I missing here?

[Joe15]

Your best bet is to bring it to an archery shop and have the gut there set it up. He knows what to do.

[spentshell]

You can buy a bow square for a couple dollars. Use it to set the nock a little high and do not clamp the nock real tight. Shoot some arrows and you can turn the nock up and down as it will follow the threads on the string.

You may want to look into "paper tuning" which is shooting through a peice of paper and adjusting the bow according to how the arrow tears the paper.

Once tuned I like to put another nock just above the first one to ensure the point doesn't move.

There is an indoor range in Little Canada, Bawanas or something like that. Have fun!

[propster]

Both good suggestions, but not quite addressing your question. Moving the nocking point down to the centerpoint of the string (equidistant between the axles) would require lowering the grip even more below center, which on most bows is currently just below center by about an inch. But that would change the balance point of the bow itself even more and make the bow feel a little more top heavy. Usually they control the arrow starting out above center with the travel of the string on the cams, at least on a one cam bow.

[bbesser84]

Take the bow to a shop if you haven't worked on your equipment before. They will set it up for you at little cost most of the time. to answer your question the reason this does not work is because the grip of the bow is below the true center of the bow as propster stated. If you choose to set it up yourself tie on your loop or attach a nocking point loosely so that you can slide it up or down. next install your rest and nock an arrow. adjust the height of the rest so that the arrow passes through the center of the berger hole(the hole that your rest is bolted to). tighten the rest and remove the arrow. next get a bow square and attach it to the string. set it so that the bottom edge of the square is resting on your arrow rest where the bottom of the arrow would normally be. Set the nocking point or loop 1/16 of an inch high for a solo cam or level for a dual or hybrid cam(binary, cam and 1/2 etc...). this is only a starting point for setting the nock height and paper tuning will find the exact right place. the next thing to do is to set your center shot for the rest. to do this nock an arrow. if you have a drop away rest pull on the cord to bring it to the shooting position. hold the bow with the arrow pointing down range. eyeball the string so it is directly in line with the track in the cam that it rides in and while keeping the string centered in the track slide the rest left or right until the string is centered down the full length of the arrow shaft. tighten the rest down

Hope this helps!

Blake

[heat checker]

So the answer to my question is by dropping the shelf low enough to allow a true center to center nocking point, the bow would be too topheavy to shoot? I've set up several bows and always wondered why the nocking point ends up being "off center".

[bbesser84]

yes that is the answer. try this when you set up your new bow. measure the distance from each axle to the center of the berger hole in the riser. you should find equal or very near equal distances. this is why the berger hole is considered the true center of the bow. this is why bows shoot and tune even when nocking points are not equidistant from each axle.

Blake

[propster]

Blake, don't you find that the berger button hole is actually above true center? If it was true center, then the arrow (and nocking point) would be at just about true center on the string, which it is not.

[bbesser84]

that is why they are only very near equal length. as you stated earlier true center is only about an inch above the top of the grip on some bows this is very close if not right on the berger hole especially those with identical cams. but as you stated most bows now days the true center is slightly below the berger hole hence the difference in cams. i am actually going to do an experiment today and find out just how much difference in the two cams or having a solo cam set up makes in this because this has got me curious as well. we all no that having the nock at true center doesnt work because the true center of the bow is just above the grip which would mean the grip has to be lowered, yet the berger hole is very close to the true center of the bow. my guess is that the more identical the cams, the closer the berger hole and nocking point will be to true center. never actually worried about this issue as much as i have the last couple days. i just set bows up how its always been done and they shoot and tune fine.

Blake

[propster]

With ya there

[bbesser84]

ok so heres what i found when i put a tape measure to various bows. single cam bows the nock is way above center while the true center of the bow is actually about 3/4 of an inch below the berger button. the closer the cam and idler wheel are in size the closer these two measurements become. on hybrid cam bows the nock and true center are located much closer to center on the bow. on dual cams or binary cams where both cams are identical the nock is only about 1/16 above the center of the string and the true center of the bow lies in the center of or right at the bottom of the berger hole. ah the things i do when im bored cool stuff.

Blake