I purchased an Apple Archery Pro Hercules Bow press about 5 months ago and all I can say is that it is the best money I've spent! You can learn so much from working on your own bows. I don't attempt anything that will put me or others at harm though. If I need something done that I'm not sure about I take it to my pro shop.

I have a Bowmaster Cable Press.....it isn't the greatest press, but I can still rip down and rebuild my bow with it. Take a while to use, but it's handy.

Yep I have on of WWAG's presses it is behind the seat of my truck and ready to use at a moments notice

I don't undertand why parallel limbed bows are hard to press. How can you damage them and why do you have to be so careful?

I have 4 or 5 of them. They just all happen to be a Macrotech(Len in Mds shop)

Thenuge15, the reason my Patriot is hard to press (for me) is that the limbs are so parallel that they DON'T compress when using my red econo apple press.
When using a press with a traditional limb design the rollers press the limbs towards each other as you crank the riser downward. With my patriot the lack of limb angle makes compressing the limbs in my press impossible. The limbs will hit the arms of the press before the limbs compress.

THEREFORE, I'm stuck currently trying to use my apple press in conjunction with a portable ratchet press when wrenching on my PAT.

With a VFT bow drawing the limbs towards each other is the means of pressing the limbs.

I need a $80.00 WWAG press badly. But then again I need a new broadhead target, climber, binoculars, etc............

But how can it be damaging to a bow shaped like this?

I have my own bow press , high speed arrow saw , paper tuning rack ,bow vise, and string building jig.

Damaging? well I have heard of people bending the risers since they are extra long and the traditional pull points for a press are more towards the center.

My press doesn't look like it would "damage" my bow, I just can't get anywhere using it on my VFT bow. My other 3 non-vft bows do just fine with it!

I have a homemade press that I made a few years ago. It works great
Al