Bohning Serving Kit
The All-In-One Bow-String Serving Kit Has It All
Everything You Need For the Perfect String Serving
More game is lost to the bowhunter and more trophies are lost to the target archer because of string failure brought about by improper or nonexistent string maintenance than by any other cause except chronic target panic. We can't help you with the target panic but if your string isn't in top condition, you have no one to blame but yourself. Here is a cracker of a kit from the folks at Bohning Archery that will insure that you will never again have to use a failed string as an excuse for not delivering the goods be it on the hoof or on the winner's podium.
Contents of Bohning Serving Kit
- Learn to Serve DVD by Marv Long
- Bohning Self-Serve Cable Spreader for Compound Bows
- Bohning String Separator for Compound or Traditional Bows
- Bohning Serve-Tite Serving Tool
- Bohning .020 Poly Grip String Serving Serving Material
The All-In-One Bow-String Serving Kit from Bohning Archery contains one of everything you will ever need to maintain your bowstring in like-new condition. In the kit you will find an instructional DVD, "Learning To Serve" compiled for Bohning by one of the greatest string makers ever, Marv Long from Tailormaid Bowstrings.. This is an in-depth and detailed explanation and demonstration of the proper way to apply the perfect centre serving to your bowstring. There is also Self-Serve Cable Spreader to give you some room between the string and cables, a String Separator to split your string when installing the peep sight, a Serve-Tite serving tool with Poly Grip .020 serving material, and a tube of Xccelerator string wax.
Naturally, if you don't need the entire kit you can purchase all the components separately. Just click on the navigation photos above or visit our Index for String Stuff.
Price:$69.95 (AU$55.95)
QUICK TIP
Replace Your Centre Serving: A few Tips
The best way to replace the centre serving of your bowstring is to take it to a pro shop and let them do it for you. It doesn't cost much (NZAP charges $10), it only takes a few minutes, and it is usually done right. Unfortunately, this isn't always practical, especially in the rural sections of New Zealand and Australia where most bowhunting takes place and archery shops are few and far between.
This is the most important reason that most top bowhunters replace their own servings. Another reason is that the top hunters usually get in a lot of practice (that's why they are tops of course) which means that they wear out the servings more quickly than the average hunter. The centre serving on an average bowhunter's bow, one who practices at least once a week, usually lasts about a year before it requires renewal. However, we have customers who replace their serving every month or so. These are the ones who practice several times a week and know enough to replace their serving well before it is worn out or before a strand breaks.
Replacing a centre serving is fairly straightforward once you learn a few tricks. The best way to learn is to watch one of the several videos on YouTube then practice a few times on a spare string. If you have purchased the Bohning All-In-One Serving Kit you already have one of the best instructional videos available. With so many videos around, it is pointless to go into detailed instructions here, but we will cover the finishing knot as it is the trickiest bit to learn and there is a bit of misinformation on the web about it. Several sources on the internet suggest finishing the serving by trapping a sperate loop of serving under the final few inches of the serving and using it to draw the tail end of the material under the serving. This works OK and is easy to learn, but it isn't the best way to go about it as it is difficult to get the serving final absolutely tight. This is because when you remove the loop, you are replacing two strands of material with one.
The best way to finish your serving is the reverse-double-back method. Start with a standard serving, as in the first illustration. When you are about two centimeters from where you want your serving to end, make a loop of about 10 centimeters in the serving material then do a reverse serving of two centimeters inside the loop as shown in the second illustration. Now wind the loop onto the string so that you continue the original serving while trapping the tail end of the material under the final two centimeters of wrapping. If the serving inside the loop doesn't unwind when you continue your permanent serving, you have wound it the wrong way. When finished your serving should look like the one in the third illustration. If it doesn't, take it off and start over. When you get it right you can clip off the excess material. Burning the end isn't necessary but it will tidy things up and make the serving that much more secure. Just be careful because if you get it wrong, burning a serving is a great way to increase the NZAP new-string sales.
There is one more tip that doesn't seem to appear anywhere on the web: when possible, always start your serving with your string slightly untwisted then wind your centre serving on in the same direction as the twist. That way when you retwist your string or add twists to shorten it, you will be tightening the serving rather than loosening it.