Stabilizers, what's the difference?
A more expensive stabilizer is more stable.
Thanks for watching guys! and I'll see you..there's still this much of the video left...
In that case, let's talk stabilizers. Stabilizers are funny things.
A modern recurve bow looks like a vamped up bow, but then you get these
things sticking out, and the new guys at the range are like "hey, what are those?"
"Do they help you aim?" and I told them no,
they are melee weapons for an archer!
As the name implies, stabilizers make the bow more stable.
A typical stabilizer system consists of a rod, a weight, and a damper. Rods come in different lengths.
The weights can be changed, and the damper is often sold separately.
If you're buying a bow package it normally comes with just one long rod stabilizer,
but most archers will use a full set which includes an extension rod, a V bar,
and two side rods.
Stabilizers fulfill a couple of roles.
One of them is vibration and noise dampening. Regardless of whether you are
using a compound or a recurve bow, the shot will rattle the bow, and that can have an
effect on the accuracy of the shot.
The rod absorbs this vibration. Most stabilizers use rigid, light materials such as carbon.
Stabilizers also help by adding weight to the bow.
Modern bows are usually lightweight, although the current trend
seems to be heading back toward heavier risers.
The disadvantage of a light riser is that
it is very susceptible to slight movement.
This is why most bare bow shooters prefer heavier risers.
Balance is important as well,
and this is where the length of the stabilizer and the positioning of the
weight matters. Most of the weight is at the end of the stabilizer.
This has the effect of bringing the bow down, counteracting the archers draw.
The front weight makes the bow steadier in the hand which makes it easy to keep the
sight ring floating over the target.
It also makes it more difficult to accidentally torque the bow.
The addition of the side rods adds further horizontal stability. Many risers also have
additional points were you can screw in smaller stabilizers.
Stabilizers come in many lengths, types, brands, and prices.
So what's the difference?
First let's go over the parts in a stabilizer system.
Typically, a full set will include a long rod, two side rods, and a v-bar.
Exactly what you get
will greatly vary from what someone else will get. This is based on things like
your shooting style, how balanced your bow is, your draw length, and other things.
For example, you may need to get an extender to bring the weight further
forward, but you don't have to.
Some archers prefer using only one side rod, but you might use two. Some archers use
straight standard v-bars, others use angled or adjustable v-bars.
Some will have heavier rods or more weight.
There aren't any real rules of thumb. Coaches and staff shooters will often go by experience
and a bit of technical expertise, but the average archer can get a simple set, and it will
be mostly fine, and getting it fine tuned is a matter of trial and error.
The length of the stabilizer strongly depends on whether you are a target
archer or a bow hunter. Target shooters prefer long stabilizers. The extra length
adds extra stability and precision over a long distance.
However, you can imagine that having a 30-inch stabilizer sticking out of your
hide is kind of awkward if you are hunting.
So, a bow hunter generally uses shorter, more compact stabilizers. These offer
some degree of vibration control and stabilization. For a target archer,
I can't really say much about what you should or shouldn't get. I've heard
people recommend that your long rod should be longer than your draw length,
which makes quite a bit of sense, though most long rods are anyway, so that's not
really a problem. You have different lengths of side rods which will bring
your weight slightly forward, but, again, it's not much of a of a huge issue, and you get
different angles of V-bars.
Honestly, exactly how long your rods are or what angle your V-bars are doesn't really
matter that much. As long as you have a set of stabilizers, you will notice a huge
difference in the way you shoot. I would only really pick specific lengths or
adjustments if your coach recommends it.
Finally: cost.
The price range is dramatic.
The entry-level stabilizers that come with bow packages are usually in the AU$50 range.
For the top-of-the-range Doinkers, it could cost up to AU$300, and
that's just the long rod.
The side rods are an additional cost, and, all up, you could spend over AU$600
on your stabilizer system. That costs more than a lot of risers!
With that much money going to stabilizers,
the cost makes a huge difference. How much you spend depends on how much you are
comfortable with, but the rule of thumb here is
you get what you pay for.
In the low to mid-range stabilizers you get brand names
like Cartel, Win&Win, and Easton. Those stabilizers tend to be very similar in
design. They're a simple long tube.
I should note that the cheap stabilizers can come in some different color options.
Say, if you want a red stabilizer or a blue stabilizer,
that's usually reserved for the low-end, whereas the high-end stabilizers tend to
come in black or... black. One key factor in a cheap stabilizer is what they come with.
The Cartel I'm using right now came with my original bow package, and this is
exactly what I got: this one stabilizer.
It's just a rod made from carbon, and that's it. The weight at the end is really light,
you don't get any extra weights, you can buy extras, but these are really hard
to adjust because you only have one knob.
Whereas, compared to this Doinker,
I've got multiple layers of weight, and I can adjust, so I can have 4 weights or
5 or 8 weights, depending on how heavy I want my stabilizer to be. That is one key
difference between the high cost Doinkers or Beiters or Carbon Fuses
versus the cheap Cartels. Another thing is the cheap rods don't come with dampeners.
So, for example, I just removed this. This is a Cartel Midas Damper, and you can
buy this separately, and you can buy...
I mean, they all do the same thing basically -- they're a bit of rubber which
attaches to the end of the rod.
I've got one here. Like this. And it adds extra dampening. So a full stabilizer
system will have the long rod, the dampener, as well as the weight at the end,
and the cheaper level stabilizers don't come with these. They'll come with a
a rod and a weight, but not a dampener. This must be bought separately.
Whereas, the high-end ones will have both
the rod, the weight, and the dampener.
It's worth noting that Doinker is probably the most well known, and the best
manufacturer of stabilizers. In fact their dampening system is used in other
high-end stabilizers like Beiter and Fuse.
On the top-end you have Doinker, Beiter, and Fuse
with more advanced design features.
Beiter's Centralizer, for example, uses a system of exchangeable rods,
while the Fuse Carbon Blade is s blade-shaped design to minimize wind profile.
Apart from these advanced features, more expensive stabilizers
offer more customization options, such as
controlling weight and balance. Now, because of the sheer cost of a top-end
stabilizer, and we're looking at possibly a thousand dollars if you buy only the
top-end Doinkers, I recommend that if you're starting out,
just go with the cheap ones first. They get the job done.
The moment you set up your stabilizer system, it's working, and you will notice the difference.
Many world-class archers still use mid-range stabilizers.
So, they get the job done. Full stop. However, if you know what you want to get, and you
want to spend big, you won't be disappointed by high-end gear.
So, in short, a more expensive stabilizer is more stable.
Thanks for watching. I'll see you next time.