How long should an archery stabiliser be on a recurve bow?
Brierly asked:
Is there a way of working out the correct length for a stabiliser on a bow or is it all down to personal preference? I’m 6′ tall and shoot a 68″ 35lb recurve bow, but I’m only a beginner on a budget and am looking to buy a second hand stabiliser but don’t really know what to go for. Can anyone help?
Is there a way of working out the correct length for a stabiliser on a bow or is it all down to personal preference? I’m 6′ tall and shoot a 68″ 35lb recurve bow, but I’m only a beginner on a budget and am looking to buy a second hand stabiliser but don’t really know what to go for. Can anyone help?
targetbutt posted: 18 Nov at 10:20 am
It’s all personal preference and which type of stab. For single rod, you can get something in the 26″-30″. Multirod stab setup is a bit different. Most people using multirod stabs like a longer stabilizer with no weights at the end. i’ve seen people go out to 36″ with those.
The longer the stabilizer the quicker the bow will swing down. So it depends on how fast you want the bow to swing. I’ve been told that my bow has a very violent swing, but I like it. When I shoot the tip of the bottom limb comes to about half an inch from my right eye. My setup is a single rod 30″ doinker with a 4″ extender for V bars. 2 9″ side rods and a small stubby weight for the top slot.
The downside of long stabilizer is of course the weight. Some people don’t like the bow to be so heavy, I like mine on the heavy side. I have a few friends shooting the Cartel stabilizers, and they do just fine with those.
archerdude posted: 19 Nov at 8:05 pm
I don’t use stabilizers, but I do understand there can be a need for them in certain styles of archery…
The length of the stabilizer is mostly personal preference. Like “targetbutt” said, the longer they are, the heavier they are…generally. I’ve seen some short (10 inch) stabilizers that weigh at least two pounds — and less than 5 ounces; and some long stabilizers (30 inch) that weigh less than 5 ounces — and at least 2 pounds. What sort of shooting will you be doing, and how far out do you want your stabilizer(s) to stick out?
A bow used for hunting needs a short stabilizer (if one is used at all) to keep it from getting tangled in brush/trees/etc, while a bow used for target shooting normally benefits from a long stabilizer (better balance). The amount of weight, as well as the type of stabilizer, is also generally up to personal preference, since it is the person using the bow who has to put up with how the bow acts.
Hope this answers your question satisfactorily.