Comfort vs Speed

ColinL

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I'm currently shooting W&W Graphene limbs 38lbs/66"Bow/27" draw length.

The limbs are terifically fast but feel a bit 'dead'. I moved to these to reach 90m whilst not having to shoot too high a poundage. They've done the job admirably but they're not much fun to shoot. From the Border range what might you recommend to meet these distance against poundage requirements? I tried, briefly, a pair of Hex 6's the other day and loved the feel of them - especially the 'let-off' at the end of the draw. Cheers.
 

Timid Toad

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Any of the Border range will get you to 90m. They all have a smooth feel, lots of energy under the draw force curve and put a smile on your face to shoot. You don't say what riser you are using; they are ok with most production riser geometries but don't like a riser with a pronounced twist - no amount of limb adjustment is going to fix that!

I'd recommend a chat with Border - their FB page has their phone number. They do have a website but as they are flat out filling orders these days some of it is out of date. If you call them you'll probably be talking to the designer! That way they can take you through what you want to do and match you to what they offer. They'll also make sure you are measuring your dl correctly (sooo many people are told to measure to the button and end up with wrong length limbs or spine of arrows) and have lots of advice on set up.
 

JohnK

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As TT said, basically any of them.

If you like the feel of the HEX6s, they're discontinued, but might have some on the rack waiting to be sold. Same goes for the CVW and CVH limbs, which while not as smooth as the HEXes, are still putting on less than 2lbs an inch. My old CVWs outperformed - pound for pound - a set of Uukha's top limbs from 2016.

The new CVX limbs are quite similar to the HEX6s in some ways, so maybe you could check them out too. Have fun!
 

ColinL

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Cheers Timid Toad. My riser is a W&W TF Apecs. I'll bite the bullet and give Borders as call. BTW - do you shoot their risers too?
 

ColinL

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As TT said, basically any of them.

If you like the feel of the HEX6s, they're discontinued, but might have some on the rack waiting to be sold. Same goes for the CVW and CVH limbs, which while not as smooth as the HEXes, are still putting on less than 2lbs an inch. My old CVWs outperformed - pound for pound - a set of Uukha's top limbs from 2016.

The new CVX limbs are quite similar to the HEX6s in some ways, so maybe you could check them out too. Have fun!
Cheers JohnK. Looking forward to exploring the whole Border phenomenom. How do you find tuning a border set-up? I've heard they can be tricky to get right.
 

JohnK

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Only if you don't follow the set up advice, and try to tune them like a conventional limb :)

The other thing to note is that they seem to tolerate a wider range of spines, which can make it a little tricky to find the right one. Usually the heavier arrow/stiffer spine is the best option.
 

Timid Toad

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Cheers Timid Toad. My riser is a W&W TF Apecs. I'll bite the bullet and give Borders as call. BTW - do you shoot their risers too?
Yes, I'm luck enough to own a Tempest - I love it. Rock solid, stable and just sits there. Very nice post shot reaction in the hand, no unwanted vibration.
 
Hi John, which "set up advice" are you referring to?
I seem to remember that you were compiling a set up guide a year or so ago, and you were waiting for Sid to "sign it off".
Did he ever do that, and is the manual available at all?
The Border website is sadly short on set up guidance, except for the basic Tempest riser guide.
I know that Sid hasn't substantially updated the website for a few years, and that Facebook and Instagram are his methods for dialogue with users of Border products.
But, some of us use neither, so the only set up guidance that I've ever seen has been from fellow archers on this site.

I've got Hex 6's, 7's and now 8's, and haven't seen any official Border set up guidance at all.
Even bowstrings, with string lengths and serving lengths to suit the 7's and 8's curves would be really useful.

Thanks, Andrew.
 

JohnK

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Yes, I was going to produce some guides for them. I've been in tech comms/content editing for over 20 years now, and in archery for even longer, so it's about time I combined my experience :)

However, in order to do that, I need Sid's time as well as my own. He simply hasn't had that time to give, so the Tempest guide remains as it is for now, and the other guidance has yet to be written.

So the advice I'm referring to is - currently - the advice that can be obtained directly via email, from other shooters here, and from the official FB and Instagram accounts.
 

ColinL

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Well I bit the bullet and went for Uukha. Tried the VX+ but a bit out of my league. I decided to get their new riser and a pair of EVO2's. Even shooting the Graphene limbs on the Uukha riser felt like a great improvement. Perhaps further down the line I may go for a higher spec limb - or poss Borders but there's no rush. TBH the challenge of setting up Borders - combined with the fact that they don't answer their phone - put me off. That said; I can see myself going down that road one day. Thanks for your advice guys.
 

Timid Toad

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Border, I think might be on their annual 2 week holiday shutdown. So they won't be answering their phone. But most of their product is made to order, so if you needed off the peg you were probably not going to get what you wanted in two weeks anyway. Setting up will be a doddle once you've tackled the uukhas, so don't worry on that account.
 

Kerf

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Only if you don't follow the set up advice, and try to tune them like a conventional limb :).
JohnK can you explain that please? Like other people on this forum I haven?t been able to find any set up advice on any Border limbs anywhere. So exactly HOW do you set them up?
I thought there was only one way to set up a bow. Allowing for correct spine: find a sweet spot with brace height, bare shaft then fine tune with plunger/pressure button.
What other way is there?
If there is a secret Border way I wish someone would share it!
 

Timid Toad

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You are pretty much right there. But don't expect the BH sweet spot to be between 8.5 and 9.5" - more like 7 and 8", keep the arrow very close to centre shot as a starting point and expect a bare shaft test to want show a need for a low NP. Don't tune with bare shafts at under 30m - a fast bow will give you spurious results. If it's noisy you have contact, so you'll have spurious results. Eliminate that first. It could be too stiff or too weak a shaft if you are using a button so be prepared to play. I use the second button hole on my bow. I use quite long shafts - it seems to be a node thing with the short BH.
 

ColinL

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You are pretty much right there. But don't expect the BH sweet spot to be between 8.5 and 9.5" - more like 7 and 8", keep the arrow very close to centre shot as a starting point and expect a bare shaft test to want show a need for a low NP. Don't tune with bare shafts at under 30m - a fast bow will give you spurious results. If it's noisy you have contact, so you'll have spurious results. Eliminate that first. It could be too stiff or too weak a shaft if you are using a button so be prepared to play. I use the second button hole on my bow. I use quite long shafts - it seems to be a node thing with the short BH.
Thanks again TT. I've gone ahead and ordered some Hex 7.2's. I have a few weeks playing with the Uukhas before they get sold on (the quest for the perfect set-up!). Looking forward to getting the Borders but I reckon you'll be hearing from me with lots of tuning questions if you don't mind.
 

ColinL

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Can you guys recommend a good string maker?
I've got a a 25" Uukha riser and will be shooting Hex 7.2 H's (short) at 36lbs with a 26.75" draw length.
I guess 16 strands is the right ball park but with the exagerated curve of the Borders will I need a particular length of string.
Thanks
 

mbaker74

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Yes you will, the Uukha X Curves come with a recommended string length, I would assume Border would tell you the required length too?
 

Kerf

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Can you guys recommend a good string maker?
I've got a a 25" Uukha riser and will be shooting Hex 7.2 H's (short) at 36lbs with a 26.75" draw length.
I guess 16 strands is the right ball park but with the exagerated curve of the Borders will I need a particular length of string.
Thanks
Chris Evans runs evansperformancebowstrings.co.uk. He’s made strings for me for four years. He'll make them any length you specify and in pretty much any material. And he knows to make extra long end servings for Border limbs - just tell him which ones you have. He’s also very approachable and generally responds quickly to emails and questions.
 

ColinL

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After talking to Sid I went for 65" Flemish twist string for my 66" bow (Hex 7.2s). The 8125g string at 64.5" just didn't have enough twists to get down to a low enough brace height.
 

Rik

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I make my laid in strings at a 67" length for medium Hex 7s (nominal 68" limb length)... So that sounds about right.
 
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