Tab

Faethe

New member
I'm currently doing my beginners course and borrowing kit from the club but thinking about what to buy in a few weeks.

The tab I've been using and like the most has a smooth brown plastic surface on it, not leather. Does anyone know what it might be?
It has a logo on it of a kind of stickman doing archery, but no other markings. There is a leather finger loop, plastic finger spacer and metal piece that holds it all together. There's 2 layers of something like felt between my fingers and the plastic stuff.

Even just knowing the name of the smooth plastic material would help my search.

I'm looking to buy something similar as I can't keep using the club kit once I buy my bow.
Thanks for any assistance
 

Corax67

Well-known member
I don't recognise the tab you are describing but a lot of our beginners go for the basic A&F tab during/after their course. They are cheap (?8 ish) have plenty of adjustment in them and work really well. Might be worth a look.



Karl
 

Faethe

New member
Thanks

Yes the logo is Spigarelli, that really helps with figuring out what it is so thank you for identifying it from my rather rubbish description.

I've had a look at the A&F tab and it looks very similar to what I've been using except the use of leather instead of the plastic stuff I've tried. It's definitely an option if I can't figure out what it is or find it's too expensive.

Thanks for the help, it's much appreciated.
 

RichParker

New member
I think the plastic stuff may be Vulcolan a material Spigarelli manufacture. I could only find it as a replacement face material rather than on a tab.
 

geoffretired

Supporter
Supporter
You may find that what you have been using is not the best material in the world to use for a tab. If it is so hard to track it down, it would seem to indicate that it isn't that widely used.
Many tabs have a leather face; a material that folds double without creasing and folds easily round the string yet keeps its shape. A tab that lasts quite well is also good. Tabs change as they wear in, and it isn't good to have to wear in a new one every week!!
 

Faethe

New member
Thanks guys,

I visited an archery shop at the weekend and bought the A&F platform tab with leather face. Will see how that goes. They had the vulcolan replacement faces too but I didn't get one of those yet. Will see how the leather is first before going to that additional expense.
That's a good point that it might not be a good face material if it's not commonly available. So far I vastly prefer it to the leather tab I tried previously, but there's a lot of other differences between the tabs besides the face material.

Thanks for your thoughts guys.
 

Vagabond

New member
"... has a smooth brown plastic surface on it, not leather...".

Just a thought: does it look leather-ish or plastic-ish?


The reason I ask is that vulcolan is very obviously a plastic. But it might be cordovan leather (horse hide). This looks like artificial leather because it's so smooth & shiny. Comes in usual leather colours and, as leather goes, it's very hard-wearing and rather expensive. Normally used for hand-made shoes that'll cost as much as a top-end recurve bow! It takes 1 horse makes 1 pair of shoes & 6 months of preparation. Off-cuts are then used for other purposes e.g. archery finger-tabs.


V
 

Faethe

New member
It's definitely vulcolan that I'm currently using, because it looks like plastic and also looks the same as the stuff labelled vulcolan in the archery shop I visited.
Cordovan sounds like expensive stuff though, maybe I'll get to try it one day.
 

Corax67

Well-known member
The tab I use, a Kaya tab, came with a Cordovan face and it is lush !

It wasn't massively expensive, ?30 I think, but I have large hands & as soon as I tried it I knew it was the one for me - it became a little scuffed by my brass nock points (now changed for dental floss) but a spot of TLC with a quality saddle leather treatment had it back good as new in no time.

Going to have to shoot a heck of a lot of arrows over a few years with it before it needs attention or replacement.



Karl
 
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