String materials
Different bowstring materials vary in stretch, strand size, maintenance, and feel. This guide will help you choose a material for your bow, compare the options, and determine an appropriate strand count.
Which material should I choose?
Here's our quick guide to get you started.
SHOOTING STYLE | RECOMMENDATION | WHY |
|---|---|---|
Olympic Recurve or Barebow | 8125 | Proven, widely used, good arrow speed |
Glory Pro | Great if you never wax your string | |
652 | If you like a softer feel | |
Modern longbow (with reinforced limb tips) | 8125, 652, or Glory Pro | Modern HMPE options with good performance |
Vintage bow or longbow (without reinforced limb tips) | B55 | More stretch is gentler on more fragile bows |
Olympic Recurve or Barebow
8125
Proven, widely used, good arrow speed
Glory Pro
Great if you never wax your string
652
If you like a softer feel
Modern Longbow (with reinforced limb tips)
8125, 652, or Glory Pro
Modern HMPE options with good performance
Material
Value
Material
Value
Vintage Bow or Longbow (without reinforced limb tips)
B55
More stretch is gentler on more fragile bows
Material
Value
Material
Value
Not sure where to start? Try 8125. For most modern recurve bows 8125 is a great starting point. But as long as a material is safe for your bow, then it really just comes down to personal preference.
Materials we work with
Here's more detail on our available materials and how they compare to each other.
MATERIAL | STRETCH | STRAND SIZE | FIBER | MAKER | CARE | NOTES |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
8125 | low | medium | SK75 Dyneema | BCY | wax | Most popular overall |
Glory Pro | low | small | SK75 Dyneema | Bloodline | no wax | Great if you don't want to wax your string |
652 Spectra | low | medium | Spectra 1000 | BCY | wax | Popular with the Korean national team |
Fast Flight Plus | low | medium | SK76 Dyneema | Brownell | wax | The original "Modern" material |
B55 | high | extra large | Dacron | BCY | wax | Best for vintage bows |
Mercury | super low | small | SK99 Dyneema | BCY | wax | Best for bows that can take a lot of vibration |
Mercury 2 | super low | large | SK99 Dyneema | BCY | wax | Best for bows that can take a lot of vibration |
D97 | low | large | SK75 Dyneema | BCY | wax | Same as 8125 but thicker |
ASB Majesty Pro | low | medium | SK71 Izanas | Angel | no wax | May no longer be able to get this |
ASB Majesty | low | medium | SK60 Izanas | Angel | no wax | May no longer be able to get this |
8125
STRETCH
low
STRAND SIZE
medium
FIBER
SK75 Dyneema
MAKER
BCY
CARE
wax
NOTES
Most popular overall
Glory Pro
STRETCH
low
STRAND SIZE
small
FIBER
SK75 Dyneema
MAKER
Bloodline
CARE
no wax
NOTES
Great if you don't want to wax your string
652 Spectra
STRETCH
low
STRAND SIZE
medium
FIBER
Spectra 1000
MAKER
BCY
CARE
wax
NOTES
Popular with the Korean national team
Fast Flight Plus
STRETCH
low
STRAND SIZE
medium
FIBER
SK76 Dyneema
MAKER
Brownell
CARE
wax
NOTES
The original "Modern" material
B55
STRETCH
high
STRAND SIZE
extra large
FIBER
Dacron
MAKER
BCY
CARE
wax
NOTES
Best for vintage bows
Mercury
STRETCH
super low
STRAND SIZE
small
FIBER
SK99 Dyneema
MAKER
BCY
CARE
wax
NOTES
Best for bows that can take a lot of vibration
Mercury 2
STRETCH
super low
STRAND SIZE
large
FIBER
SK99 Dyneema
MAKER
BCY
CARE
wax
NOTES
Best for bows that can take a lot of vibration
D97
STRETCH
low
STRAND SIZE
large
FIBER
SK75 Dyneema
MAKER
BCY
CARE
wax
NOTES
Same as 8125 but thicker
ASB Majesty Pro
STRETCH
low
STRAND SIZE
medium
FIBER
SK71 Izanas
MAKER
Angel
CARE
no wax
NOTES
May no longer be able to get this
ASB Majesty
STRETCH
low
STRAND SIZE
medium
FIBER
SK60 Izanas
MAKER
Angel
CARE
no wax
NOTES
May no longer be able to get this
Why do string materials behave differently?
Fibers
While it may appear there are dozens of options, most bow string materials fall into three main fiber families.
-
HMPE
This stands for high-modulus polyethylene. The name brands of this fiber are Spectra®, Dyneema®, or Izanas®. These are best used for modern recurve strings. -
PET/Polyester/Dacron
PET stands for polyethylene terephthalate. It's also known as polyester, but commercially referred to as Dacron. This is very stretchy and is commonly used for vintage bows without reinforced limb tips and beginner bows (mostly due to the material's low cost). -
LCP
Stands for liquid crystal polymer but commercially known as Vectran™. It has extremely low stretch and is commonly blended with other fibers.
Stretch
Recurve and longbows generally benefit from some elasticity in the string system. Materials that are extremely stiff can transfer more vibration back into the bow after the shot. HMPE and Dacron are commonly used for recurve and longbow strings, while very low-stretch Vectran blends are generally intended for compound bows.
Manufacturer
BCY and Bloodline materials are readily available in the U.S. Angel materials can be difficult to source because they are not currently shipped outside Japan. Brownell availability has also been very inconsistent.
Coatings
Different manufacturers treat the string material differently.
-
Waxed materials come waxed from the manufacturer and finished strings should be re-waxed periodically to help protect the fibers from damage and wear. BCY and Brownell both make waxed materials exclusively.
-
Waxless materials have some other type of coating to protect them. They should not be waxed. According to the manufacturer, applying wax to these materials can add a somewhat sticky layer that tends to attract dirt and debris that can cause abrasion to the fibers. Bloodline and Angel both produce waxless materials exclusively.
Why strand count depends on material
16 strands of one material is not necessarily the same size as 16 strands of another, so make sure you are not choosing strand count independent of material. Bow string materials aren't round, so conventional diameter isn't a particularly useful way to compare them. Denier measures the mass of a given length of fiber, which gives us a useful way to compare the relative size of different bowstring materials. Higher-denier materials generally have larger strands, so fewer strands are needed to produce a finished string of similar overall size.
How thick is each strand?
Higher denier means a larger (thicker) individual strand.
What strand count should I use?*
Select your draw weight on the fingers (OTF) to compare recommended strand counts across materials.
8125 / 652 Spectra
STRANDS
16
Glory Pro
STRANDS
24
Fast Flight Plus
STRANDS
14
B55
STRANDS
12
Mercury
STRANDS
26
Mercury 2 / D97 / Angel
STRANDS
14
*These are recommended starting points, not absolute limits. Final strand count may vary based on your setup, color, tune, nock fit, and shooting preferences. This is just meant to be a starting point.
Materials Deep Dive
Want the technical details? Here's a more comprehensive comparison of current and historical bowstring materials.
These materials are arranged from stretchiest (and weakest) to least stretch (and strongest).
- At the top of the diagram we have Dacron. That is essentially polyester and is good for vintage bows, longbows that don't have reinforced limb tips, or student bows.
-
The center section of the diagram, also organized by stretch (based on fiber manufacturer specs), are the materials ideal for most recurve bows. The stretchiest being ASB Majesty, followed by 652 Spectra, Fast Flight X, Majesty 777, ASB Majesty Pro, 8125, D97, Glory Pro, Loyal, and finally Fast Flight Plus. The stiffer the material, the more arrow speed can be achieved.
-
The bottom section shows materials most appropriate for compound bows. Most of these are blended with Vectran™ fiber.
-
On the right you'll see brackets indicating what various recurve bow manufacturers recommend for use with their bows.
