Brace height question
 

In my quest to find my perfect bow, I have all but fallen in love with the Hoyt Supertec. My biggest concern is the 6" brace height, not so much for string/arm inteference but more for shootability reasons. If all of the hype about fall away rests is true, then low brace height bows should be just as easy to shoot as average brace height bows wouldn't they? I think the argument has always been that the arrow is on the rest and being pushed by the string for a longer duration therefore any torque or flinching induced by the shooter has a greater possibility of affecting the arrow flight correct? Could someone clear this up for me if I'm wrong?

Thanks

RE: Brace height question
 

I'm more concerned with string slap on my coat during cold weather. I chose the 8.25 brace height Protec. Those couple of inches can be huge when shooting with heavy clothing. The next bow I buy will have an even higher brace height.

RE: Brace height question
 

NO WAY

RE: Brace height question
 

Longer duration or longer distance?

RE: Brace height question
 

In my experience I think the wrist slap issue has alot to do with the form of the person shooting the bow combined with the brace height. Some people can get away with it and some cant. I personally can not go below 6.5

RE: Brace height question
 

ORIGINAL: ijimmy

Would/could you elaborate on this instead of just offering "no way" as an explanation? I'm really trying to understand ALL of the advantages of the fall away rests and what effects it has on the way the bow shoots.

Wouldn't it be the same? If the powerstroke of the bow is longer then in my mind the string would be in contact with the arrow for a longer duration which would be longer time as well.

RE: Brace height question
 

Mike.

In theory the rest has dropped when most torquing happens.

On most fallaway rests the arrow is only in contact with the rest for about 2" then it should be out of the way.

The main problem people come up against with short brace bows is wrist slap but what a lot tend to over look is the fact that along with the low brace they are also shooting a draw lenght that is too long and are forced to lock their elbow.

The trick is to get the proper draw lenght so you are shooting with a slight bend in the elbow thus taking the string away from your fore arm.

Keep a loose grip all the way through the follow through and let the bow roll forward that should stop a lot of the death grip induced torque.


I have found with proper draw lenght and form there is no real big difference from shooting a 5 5/8" and a 7 7/8" brace bow.

RE: Brace height question
 

I think that the idea that "proper form" can be adequately maintained in all hunting situations is where I have a problem with a low brace height bow for hunting. Unless you have a real short draw even with a drop away, the power stroke is longer on the shorter brace height bows and will attenuate form flaws. Hunting doesn't require accuracy so much as it requires forgiveness. Today with the powerful offerings that have a forgiving brace height i don't really see the need for the additional power that a lower brace height offers. Maybe for 3-d for someone who really has their form down and wants the extra speed to help with range estimation, there is an arguement. I don't see it for hunting. I think you need to think about what your needs are as a hunter and have the bow match those needs.

RE: Brace height question
 

Something else to consider is that normally when you are dealing with a low brace height bow then you are also dealing with a riser that has alot of reflex in it. A reflexed riser is also more sensitive to torque induced by the shooter before or during the shot.

Yes and No. If the powerstroke is longer then the arrow should, theoretically, be traveling faster. If the arrow is traveling faster then it should cover that distance in a quicker time. I don't have the mathematical figures to show you this but Vic, 500 fps, actually posted it some time ago on another forum. The two factors sort of cancel each other out for the most part....which leaves only the issue of the actual physical distance.

RE: Brace height question
 

My take = fallaway rests when setup properly eliminate fletching contact issues , they may allso make your bow MORE critical of spine and not LESS as they offer less suport to the arrow . This issue allso makes them More critical of nock travel . As far as brace height goes , a short brace bow is a short brace bow and , a long brace bow is a long brace bow . I belive you will be more accurate with a long brace bow [especialy if you have a longer draw length] with a prong type rest [without serious fletch contact] than you will be with a short brace bow with a fallaway . I believe it has more to do with the geometry of where the arrow is in relation to the pivot point of bowhand and grip at the time the arrow leaves the string, than the duration of time the arrow is on the string .

RE: Brace height question
 

ORIGINAL: ijimmy



Thanks ijimmy. I hadn't really thought about the situations you can get into while in a tree stand. You are correct though, very rarely have I been able to stand up and have perfect form while in the tree stand. All I had were grand visions of having a bow that would get me 300 fps with my hunting arrows and brace height not really playing into the picture. So what is your opinion on say a 7" brace height bow and a fall away rest? Also in relation to your comment on nock travel, do you know much about the nock travel on Bowtech single cam bows?

RE: Brace height question
 

I guess it's different strokes for different folks......but the only problem I have had with low brace heights is arm slap !

Accuracy in or out of a tree stand was fine for me ! But getting that occasional "smack" is a pain in the a$$ !! ;)

And ......coming from a guy that has shot over 300 fps for the last 3 years and only shooting a measily 280 right now........there is not that big of a difference !! These guys told me that......but I didn't believe it until the last 3 weeks of shooting off the ground ! I can imagine in a tree stand .....the difference will be negligable !

RE: Brace height question
 

I own 4 bows , their brace height is between 6 5/8" and 7 1/2 " , all have fallaway rests on them . That should tell you how I feel about that type of rest . I curantly have a bow on order that has an 8" brace height . As to single cams and nock travel , Im not jumping into the fire here , I will tell you I dont curantly own a single cam bow and never intend to purchace another . I did own a patriot single cam a couple years ago and it was a fine bow .

RE: Brace height question
 

I don't think that the longer power stroke is the reason for short brace height bows being less forgiving. As Frank mentioned I had actual #'s to back this up a while back, but am unable to locate them now. The shorter brace height bow does have a longer power stroke, but because they are usually on bows with faster cams, the amount of time that the arrow spends on the string is actaully less. I think the reason that shorter brace height bows are trickier to shoot is that with highly reflexed riser designs (i.e. limb pockets way in front of the grip) they are very torquey and magnify small form errors.

Personally another reason I have trouble shooting some short brace height bows is because they usually utilize radical cams which come with a significant exposion on release. I would anticipate this and flinch upon release after a few rounds of shooting and my groups would open up. So it's not an inherent fault of the bow having a short brace height, but my inability as an archer to have perfect form and release.

RE: Brace height question
 

This is very interesting to me. I think that the release of the arrow can be regarded as instantaneous whether the brace height is short or long. I view the form flaws as being caught in that instant. So for me the time on the string is irrelevant. The length on the string is the issue. So it is an interesting perspective that is being presented here.

So I guess I would say that taking two bows of the same speed the one with the shorter brace height would be more critical.

RE: Brace height question
 

All of this is VERY interesting, but now I am confused as to what "Brace Height" is. I thought brace height was the distance between the bow string and the riser, but from statements regarding "wrist slap" it must be measured some where else???? I would really like to know.

Thanks

RE: Brace height question
 

You are correct. Brace height is the measurement from the sting to the deepest part od the grip (usually the top). A lower brace height bow has a shorter distance from the grip to the string when at rest which places it farther down your forearm toward your wrist. What usually happens as has been mentioned here, is that someone tries to shoot a draw length that is too long for them which forces their elbow to "lock" or they torque the bow at release and their forearm gets hit by the string as it comes forward.

RE: Brace height question
 

Thanks, Mike!

I better understand now, good explanation:)