length question, I'm confused.

[txjourneyman]

OK, I just ordered a string for my bow. I was told to put my old string on a nail, stretch it out and measure it. I did and it is 51". I got to thinking about that and wondered why. I thought the bow was 56"AMO. That is what the seller on E-bay said and the writing on the bow says 49#56". That is what got me wondering. I restrung the bow and measured from tip to tip. 52" is what I got with the bow strung. I took the string off again and measured tip to tip 54". Where does the 56" come into play? Or is it possible there is a factory typo on my bow? Or should I measure with a cloth or metal tape like I would measure an antler and follow the contour of the limbs?
Generally I am easily confused but this really has me scratching my head. Thanks for your help. Greg

[TGF]

Follow the contour of the limbs.This should be 56" this is the AMO length.
When orderingor making one your self always measure the string and never trust the amo length.

[Arthur P]

Recurve bow's length is measured by following the profile of the bow's back from one end to the other, not in a straight line between the tips when the bow is strung. Lay a cloth tape along the back of the limbs and across the riser to measure your recurve.

The bow string will always be shorter than the AMO length marked on the bow.

I've included a link to a page with some of the AMO specifications, including Bow Length Standard, but I don't know how helpful it'll be to you because I don't understand it either. I think they were smoking some whacky tobaccy when they came up with the whole bow length standard thing. [8D] There are some other specs on the page that are good for shooters to know though, so it's far from a waste of time to read through it.

Rule of thumb, a bowstring for a recurve will be about 4" shorter than the bow's AMO length (which is what you've got). String length for a longbow will be about 3" shorter than the bow's AMO length.

http://peteward.com/AMOStandards.pdf