I just ordered and received my Vortex to make the October 1st opener. After sighting it in I started to do some research on string upgrades. I checked out all of them and just decided to go with the Excalibur Flemish. This turned out to be a really good move.
First the bow seemed much easier to cock. That may or may not be true but that is how it felt to me. Second, and most important, my groups shrunk and my speed increased. Third, it does seem a little "less loud" than it was. All in all it was a nice upgrade and I recommend it to anyone that has not already made the switch.
The deer are tough to catch up with this year. Sooner or later I will notch this baby with a first a kill.
Glad to hear that on the flemish string sounding quieter, I ordered one last week. I finally got mVortex shooting how I like it, anyway good luck ! Oh yeah mine shot 307 fps on the chronagraph with an arrow that ways right at 400 grs.
Hank,
It isn't the string construction method (flemish twist or endless loop) in this case, it's the string material used.
The excel string is dacron. Dacron stretches.
The flemish twist string mentioned is "fastflight" (there are several similar materials - brand names - that have similar properties) and doesn't stretch.
There are also dacron flemish strings made, and fastflight endless loop strings made, but they can be hard to find.
The most important thing to remember is that fastflight CAN NOT be used on a bow that is not designed for fastflight. The old "carved tip" limbs would soon be ruined by a fastflight string! It will actually cut into the limbs and split them!
It just seems odd that the speed ratings for these bows is done with a non-original equipment string. Seems like if the bow performs better (speed wise) with a certain string, then that one should be standard equipment.
Its not even an option choice when you buy the bow. The bow only comes with the standard string and then you turn around around and purchase a non-Excalibur string to get the speed rating that the company uses in their advertising.
But getting past that, is there a downside to using the Flemish string other than added cost?
But getting past that, is there a downside to using the Flemish string other than added cost?
Yes, that's why Excalibur ships all new bows with the dacron excel string.
In the event of a dry-fire the fastflight string is more likely to result in limb damage. The odds of a dry-fire decrease as you gain more experience in the cock - load - shoot sequence, therefore a fastflight string should be avoided until you gain quite a bit of experience in shooting the bow.
The higher fps results are used in advertising literature simply because speed sells bows.
It's about the money. The dacron strings are cheaper than the FFF (flemish fast flight) strings. The dacron is good and will get the job done, but if you want the added f.p.s., you have to buy the FFF string.
The Excalibur strings are good, but I would get a custom string from someone on here if I were you guys that don't have one yet. Several people on here make custom strings. You can do a search for strings on here and find some older posts to find out who the people are. I've got 2 FFF strings made by Boo and am very pleased with them. They're thicker than the Excalibur strings and give a more consistent speed and a little less noise. The ones I've got I had the catwhiskers served on there. Between the thickness and the catwhiskers, it slows the string down some, but it makes it a whole lot quieter. Me personally, I'd rather give up a few f.p.s. and have my bow quieter than to have the speed and have it sound like a .22 rifle going off.
The Only Purpose Of Bread Is To Hold Meat!
Common Sense Isn't Common Any More..........
"Salad isn't food. Salad is what food eats." --- Ellwoodjake
I'm a second-hand vegetarian. Deer eat vegetables, I eat deer.
But getting past that, is there a downside to using the Flemish string other than added cost?[/quote]
Not really. They're way stronger on the loops compared to endless loop strings. If you use excals dacron "super flemish string" it will stretch more meaning you'll have to adjust brace height more often. But they're very forgiving if dryfired compared to faster materials.
The dacron strings are cheaper than the FFF (flemish fast flight) strings. The dacron is good and will get the job done, but if you want the added f.p.s., you have to buy the FFF string.
