Bow Maintenance: Keeping Your Equipment in Top Condition

Your bow is a precision instrument. Even small changes in setup — a slightly fraying string, a loose stabilizer connection, a shifted nocking point — directly affect your scores. A consistent maintenance schedule eliminates these variables and keeps your equipment in the same condition in competition as it is in practice.

Weekly Maintenance

• Brace height: Measure it and confirm it's in your target range. Strings stretch over time with shooting; adjust by twisting as needed.
• Nocking point: Check that your nocking point is secure and in position. Crimp-on nocking points can shift; tied serving nocking points should be inspected for looseness.
• Serving condition: Look at the serving thread wrapping the bowstring center (where you nock the arrow and where your fingers contact the string). Replace if worn through, fraying, or separating from the string.
• Limb bolts and fittings: Verify that limb pocket bolts (on takedown recurves) and sight/stabilizer mounting bolts are snug. They loosen through vibration over thousands of shots.

Monthly Maintenance

• Full string inspection: Examine the entire string for fraying, abrasion where it contacts limb tips, and separation of individual strands. A string showing significant wear should be replaced — never shoot a compromised string.
• Limb inspection: Look for delamination (layer separation), cracks, splinters, or warping. Run your fingers along both limb faces and edges. Any delamination is a safety issue requiring immediate limb replacement.
• Arrow inspection: Flex every arrow. Listen for cracking sounds. Check all nocks for cracks. Verify that points are fully seated and not loose in the shaft.

String Waxing

Wax your bowstring every 2–4 weeks or whenever it feels dry or begins to "fuzz." Use dedicated bowstring wax (not petroleum-based products), work it into the string strands with your fingers, then buff with a cloth. A well-waxed string lasts significantly longer and maintains consistent brace height. Never wax the served sections of the string.

Pre-Competition Check

The week before any major competition: perform a full maintenance check, verify brace height, paper tune, and shoot a complete competition-distance dry run. Do not make any changes in the final 48 hours. You want to compete with the exact same equipment condition you practiced with — not fresh changes whose effects you haven't yet measured.