i never had any problem with leaving a bow strung, but im not talking about a year at a time. i shoot everyday with a 70 lb recurve. its a pain stringing these things. but ive seen some really good bowmen leave their bows strung for weeks, during hunts ect. so just use your own judgement. perhaps someone else could comment on this subjuect, im sure someone will. all i can tell is that ive never seen a major defference is the poundage for leaving it strung for a while. but you can count on reasons to unstring your bow if you shoot much, such as string strecth ect. takecare billy