As people here played a big role in getting me thinking about Hexes, I thought I'd say thanks and give a bit of perspective on what I've done and how I've found them. If you think I'm doing anything wrong, please let me know.
Reason for buying:
Wanted to shoot recurve out to 90m with low poundage due to limited practice time and past finger pain. I was aiming for about 36lbs as that was where my old Premier Carbons came out and they were comfortable. I was looking for something a bit quicker though.
Buying experience:
Having read everything I could find on the Hexes I visited Border to talk through what I wanted to do and how the Hex work. From the Internet I was sceptical of the super-recurve profile and was entirely willing to buy a set of CV-H if I wasn't quite convinced. Sid and the team were great, over the course of the day I got answers to every question I had and a bunch I hadn't even thought of. Seeing the workshop and the process of building bows was incredible, and the heritage of Border really came through. I was very tempted to walk out with a little Ghillie Dhu as well as placing a target limb order... next time...
After the tour and questions I felt completely at ease with ordering the latest and most radical Hex7.5-H. I was determined to make the limbs work one way or another but the refund programme was reassuring, if nothing else it really drives home the commitment Border have to their customers.
I ordered my Hex7.5s with the Hyperflex core; I was recommended to go with Mediums for my 29.25" draw and was delighted to learn that they could be custom made for 35lbs (+/-1lb) at 29". Sid advised going with the 35 instead of 36 because of the extra stored energy and that was very good advice. I requested the Amethyst colour with the classic logo in silver, to match my old Premier Carbons.
The wait:
Was interminable. But once ready shipping was fast and easy; they arrived in a sturdy box and were well protected in their really nice limb covers.
Setup:
They're not hard to string; I use the stringer that came with them and follow the method Sid demonstrated. Easy to string and the string has always located perfectly first time. I had to set them with quite a high tiller (about 7mm) and put a high profile Jaeger grip; otherwise it seemed like the top of the riser was pulling back toward me at full draw. Quite a large distance between the throat of the grip and the button hole on this riser though. Brace height seems happy at about 7".
Shooting:
I'd heard that the bare shaft test wasn't a great fit for the Hexes due to the torsional stability, and that required spine can vary. I figured group testing might be the way to go, so I got four arrows of each of five spines, from 800 to 550, fletched three and kept one as a bare shaft.
Bare shaft tuning does not work: the 800s each knocked a vane off against the riser on the first shot, and the 550s didn't group at all, but at 30m each spine had the bare shaft in the middle of the group. The same test with my Premier Carbons showed two spines where bareshafts were decent. Fortunately the group test was clearer: the 800s had clear riser contact; the 730s grouped but not great; the 660 and 600 grouped well and were selected for further testing; and the 550 did not group well at all. Further shooting suggested the 660s were grouping a little more consistently than the 600s but both seemed decent. I selected 650 X10s with 100gn points and they seem great.
The reduced centreshot on these limbs makes my normal trusty tuning method difficult, as it requires setting the centreshot to "normal" and then tuning with the button pressure. I tried using the method of setting button pressure and then adjusting centreshot but as usual got nowhere with this. In the end I set the arrow straight down the middle and stuck a match in the button. It works well enough for now but in my next session I might try setting centreshot a mm or two outside and trying a very stiff button pressure (softer certainly didn't work).
It's worth pointing out here that I had an unusually long adjustment period to these limbs. Most people seem to be off within a session; it took me a month to start feeling comfortable. But then I do tend to struggle adapting to new stuff, and I started getting into them after being advised to try shooting more simply rather than trying to do it "right". I found the way the limbs load up early was causing me to pull out of line a little because I wasn't used to this extra tension.
The limbs are very accurate when I shoot well. My recurve technique isn't really up to scratch yet (to the point that I'm going to competitions with the stated aim of "just shooting groups and feeling the shot") but I'm shooting groups as good as any I've had. Yesterday afternoon in the wind I found there are two ways I can shoot these that are easy and simple, and both work. The less orthodox one is a lot like how I shot the notorious FXs well last autumn, so I might try that some more.
Reactions:
I get a lot of people commenting on how curly they are. The poundage surprises people and I'm able to shoot all day and feel fine, so I'm delighted. Now I've got used to this profile other bows look broken. Like someone ironed them out. I've had conversations with people who clearly like the idea of being able to drop poundage and keep the same energy. Certainly when I mention that even with X10s I have a better sight mark than I ever had with lighter arrows and higher poundages. People (with smaller draw lengths than me) who have pulled them always get that definite "what is this?" face when they get them to the flat bit of the DFC.
Sadly I have only seen one other pair of super-recurves so far (or Borders) in the area, hopefully they will have a renaissance soon. I've been sure to talk about how the Hex6.7 and CV series keep all the benefits with just slightly lower stored energy, as I believe Border's approach of building top quality limbs at a reasonable price is unique. Happily no judges have passed comment on them (apart from the aforementioned "they're curly aren't they") and competitors have so far seen them as an interesting novelty. We'll see how that goes at National Series this weekend...
Reason for buying:
Wanted to shoot recurve out to 90m with low poundage due to limited practice time and past finger pain. I was aiming for about 36lbs as that was where my old Premier Carbons came out and they were comfortable. I was looking for something a bit quicker though.
Buying experience:
Having read everything I could find on the Hexes I visited Border to talk through what I wanted to do and how the Hex work. From the Internet I was sceptical of the super-recurve profile and was entirely willing to buy a set of CV-H if I wasn't quite convinced. Sid and the team were great, over the course of the day I got answers to every question I had and a bunch I hadn't even thought of. Seeing the workshop and the process of building bows was incredible, and the heritage of Border really came through. I was very tempted to walk out with a little Ghillie Dhu as well as placing a target limb order... next time...
After the tour and questions I felt completely at ease with ordering the latest and most radical Hex7.5-H. I was determined to make the limbs work one way or another but the refund programme was reassuring, if nothing else it really drives home the commitment Border have to their customers.
I ordered my Hex7.5s with the Hyperflex core; I was recommended to go with Mediums for my 29.25" draw and was delighted to learn that they could be custom made for 35lbs (+/-1lb) at 29". Sid advised going with the 35 instead of 36 because of the extra stored energy and that was very good advice. I requested the Amethyst colour with the classic logo in silver, to match my old Premier Carbons.
The wait:
Was interminable. But once ready shipping was fast and easy; they arrived in a sturdy box and were well protected in their really nice limb covers.
Setup:
They're not hard to string; I use the stringer that came with them and follow the method Sid demonstrated. Easy to string and the string has always located perfectly first time. I had to set them with quite a high tiller (about 7mm) and put a high profile Jaeger grip; otherwise it seemed like the top of the riser was pulling back toward me at full draw. Quite a large distance between the throat of the grip and the button hole on this riser though. Brace height seems happy at about 7".
Shooting:
I'd heard that the bare shaft test wasn't a great fit for the Hexes due to the torsional stability, and that required spine can vary. I figured group testing might be the way to go, so I got four arrows of each of five spines, from 800 to 550, fletched three and kept one as a bare shaft.
Bare shaft tuning does not work: the 800s each knocked a vane off against the riser on the first shot, and the 550s didn't group at all, but at 30m each spine had the bare shaft in the middle of the group. The same test with my Premier Carbons showed two spines where bareshafts were decent. Fortunately the group test was clearer: the 800s had clear riser contact; the 730s grouped but not great; the 660 and 600 grouped well and were selected for further testing; and the 550 did not group well at all. Further shooting suggested the 660s were grouping a little more consistently than the 600s but both seemed decent. I selected 650 X10s with 100gn points and they seem great.
The reduced centreshot on these limbs makes my normal trusty tuning method difficult, as it requires setting the centreshot to "normal" and then tuning with the button pressure. I tried using the method of setting button pressure and then adjusting centreshot but as usual got nowhere with this. In the end I set the arrow straight down the middle and stuck a match in the button. It works well enough for now but in my next session I might try setting centreshot a mm or two outside and trying a very stiff button pressure (softer certainly didn't work).
It's worth pointing out here that I had an unusually long adjustment period to these limbs. Most people seem to be off within a session; it took me a month to start feeling comfortable. But then I do tend to struggle adapting to new stuff, and I started getting into them after being advised to try shooting more simply rather than trying to do it "right". I found the way the limbs load up early was causing me to pull out of line a little because I wasn't used to this extra tension.
The limbs are very accurate when I shoot well. My recurve technique isn't really up to scratch yet (to the point that I'm going to competitions with the stated aim of "just shooting groups and feeling the shot") but I'm shooting groups as good as any I've had. Yesterday afternoon in the wind I found there are two ways I can shoot these that are easy and simple, and both work. The less orthodox one is a lot like how I shot the notorious FXs well last autumn, so I might try that some more.
Reactions:
I get a lot of people commenting on how curly they are. The poundage surprises people and I'm able to shoot all day and feel fine, so I'm delighted. Now I've got used to this profile other bows look broken. Like someone ironed them out. I've had conversations with people who clearly like the idea of being able to drop poundage and keep the same energy. Certainly when I mention that even with X10s I have a better sight mark than I ever had with lighter arrows and higher poundages. People (with smaller draw lengths than me) who have pulled them always get that definite "what is this?" face when they get them to the flat bit of the DFC.
Sadly I have only seen one other pair of super-recurves so far (or Borders) in the area, hopefully they will have a renaissance soon. I've been sure to talk about how the Hex6.7 and CV series keep all the benefits with just slightly lower stored energy, as I believe Border's approach of building top quality limbs at a reasonable price is unique. Happily no judges have passed comment on them (apart from the aforementioned "they're curly aren't they") and competitors have so far seen them as an interesting novelty. We'll see how that goes at National Series this weekend...