Why is brace height important

Therefore twisting the string will not increase or decrease the brace height. Compound technology keeps developing. One recent advancement is the orientation of the limbs. Older compound bows have limbs that were angled at about 45 degrees, similar to recurve bows. Most newer compound bows feature parallel limbs, which means that the limbs are horizontal. The benefit of parallel limbs is that they vibrate less than angled limbs. Since both limbs move in an opposite direction the vibration will cancel out.

I explain how this works in more detail here. On a recurve bow we increase the brace height by twisting the string which will pretense the limbs more. This will cause the limbs to bend backward which causes the brace height to increase. If we change the tension on parallel limbs, the string and cables will stay in the same position. Between different compound bow models, the brace height can vary wildly.

This is caused by the shape of the riser. Some compound bows have a straight riser, which causes the brace height to be rather long. Other compound bows have risers that are angled inwards, which will make a shorter brace height. In general, larger brace heights are more forgiving. Therefore, these are mostly found on target compound bows.

Most hunting compound bows feature an angled riser because this increases the arrow speed. I discuss how this works in more detail later in this article. Make sure to add or remove the same number of twists to both cables, if you have two cables. Otherwise, the cams might shoot out of alignment which can cause your arrow's flight pattern to change.

Just like a recurve bow, increasing the brace height will also increase the draw weight of the bow. Otherwise, the limbs might be under too much stretch which can decrease their lifespan. Brace height is an important metric because it greatly influences the forgivingness and speed of the arrow.

Therefore, you want a consistent brace height that matches your needs in archery. In this section, I will explain in more detail what exactly the benefits are of these different brace heights.

Bows with a short brace height have a higher arrow speed. This is beneficial for almost all archers. It decreases arrow drop, allows you to shoot heavier arrows, and makes the arrow more wind resistant. I discuss the benefits of increasing the arrow speed in more detail in this article. It might be counter-intuitive that decreasing the brace height increases arrow speed because you do this by decreasing the amount of pre-tension.

But if you consider the length of the power stroke it makes a lot of sense. The power stroke is the amount of draw length the string has to accelerate the arrow. A short power stroke will less efficiently transfer the draw weight to the arrow than a long power stroke. We can calculate the power stroke with the following formula:. Therefore, if we keep the draw weight the same but decrease the brace height, we increase the power stroke.

On recurve bows, the difference is minor, but on compound bows, this can make a huge difference. You can easily see the difference between the brace height of the two bows by looking at the risers. The target bow has a straight riser to maximize the brace height. The riser of the hunting bow bends more inwards to decrease the brace height.

Having a long brace height also has some important benefits. The longer brace height makes the bow more forgiving because the arrow leaves the string earlier. A longer power stroke gives the archer more time to flinch or twitch. Therefore, to make a bow as forgiving as possible, you want it to leave the string as early as possible. One of the ways to achieve this is by increasing the brace height.

A longer brace height might be more forgiving but also makes it more difficult to shoot the bow at longer ranges and in windy conditions. Another important benefit of a longer brace height is that you have more clearance with your sleeve. Especially if you frequently shoot during winter, the string might get caught in your sleeve while shooting your bow. Another common issue with a short brace height is string slap.

The string will shoot forward too much which causes it to hit your hand. This is extremely painful and is most likely to happen if you have a long draw length. For these reasons, beginners should start with a longer brace height. When the brace height changes, it will also change the arrow's flight pattern. Just use the recommended brace height and keep it consistent. Time spent working on your bow is better spent practicing!

If you have any questions, comments, or remarks; please leave them down below. I will respond to any comments as soon as possible and I will send you an email with my reply. You can decrease the axle to axle length by shortening the cables of your compound bow, this increases the amount of pre-tension on the limbs.

Therefore, you can decrease the axle to axle length by adding twists to your cables. Your email address will not be published. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Skip to content Brace height is one of the most important metrics of recurve archery.

What is brace height? Adjusting the brace height on recurve bow To adjust the brace height on a recurve or traditional bow you need to add or remove twists from the string. Adding twists will increase the brace height and removing twists will decrease the brace height To add or remove twists, you first need to unstring the bow. Making large brace height adjustments There is only so much you can do with adding and removing twists. You add twists to the string to increase the brace height, and untwist the string to shorten it.

If you aren't able to find the recommended brace height for your recurve, below is a chart of brace height measurements generally accepted within the industry for bows of the specified lengths. Generally speaking, a shorter brace height helps a bow generate more arrow speed. Let's say you took two bows set at 70 pounds, with a inch draw length, and one has a 6-inch brace height and the other 7 inches.

If you shot the same arrow from both bows, the bow with the 6-inch brace height should shoot the arrow faster than the other. Bows with shorter brace heights tend to be less forgiving than those with longer brace heights, because the string is in contact with the arrow for a longer period.

An archer therefore has to maintain perfect form for a longer stretch, until the arrow is in the air. Eight-inch and 9-inch brace heights are not uncommon. Conversely, compound bows made for hunting and 3-D target shooting, where arrow speed is more important, typically have brace heights of inches. Target bows are slower, but more forgiving, while hunting and 3-D bows are faster, but less forgiving.

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