Rogue’s new bowstrings are an excellent addition to the archery market

Rogue’s bowstrings are single color only to avoid inconsistencies that often appear in the dyes in multi-colored strings.

Bowstring manufacturer enters market with quality product you’ll have to try

As summer sets in, many hunters’ thoughts turn to the upcoming early archery seasons.

While a lot of them daydream of cooler fall days in the woods, very few begin to practice this early. Whether you start practicing or not, it’s time to check your bow and bring it to your local pro shop for any needed maintenance, especially if you need to replace your string and cables.

Your bow’s string set is the engine that propels your arrows toward the target. It is also often the weakest link; it fails first, and this causes untold numbers of hunting trips to be missed or cut short.

Most manufacturers recommend replacing your string set a minimum of every two years with average use, while people who shoot way more than average should replace theirs once a year.  Obviously, if a string or cable shows extreme wear or nicks and frays, it should be replaced immediately regardless of its age.

Modern compound bows contain a massive amount of stored energy, even when at rest. Not only can a string or cable breaking cause damage to parts of your bow, but it can also cause severe injury to the archer. Don’t push your luck riding a damaged string; replace it at once to avoid even costlier repairs or worse.

Your string and cable(s) serve a vital role in the performance and accuracy of your bow setup; this is no place to cut corners. A little extra money spent up front will lead to fewer tuning issues and maintenance down the road. Higher-quality strings and cables have tighter servings that don’t space, “creep” less and have fewer peep-rotation issues than bargain strings do. This better quality is due to better construction processes, as well as better materials. It’s a lot like cooking, where you need both technique and quality ingredients to prepare an outstanding meal.

Rogue strings: A Rising Star

For the past several years, we have been installing primarily string sets by Rogue Bowstrings in our pro shop. I have found their quality to be outstanding, as well as their customer service. Their exacting attention to detail and how quickly they fill orders sets them apart from other manufacturers. Rogue offers string sets in a rainbow of color options, and at different price levels to accommodate any archer’s budget. They are big enough to produce top-quality and innovative strings, yet small enough that they always treat you like family.

Joey Hershberger Rogue’s chief operating officer, said Rogue got started in December 2016. Although it is a newer manufacturer, all of its employees came from within the string industry, forming an all-star lineup. String and cables are built to order and to exacting specifications, then quickly shipped to the customer. Rogue offers string sets from its R-15 — a great entry level string set — to its new R-21, its flagship.

Strings and cables are the first components on your bow you should examine when preseason practice approaches.

R-21: the next level of strings

Earlier this year, Rogue introduced its R-21 string, a proprietary blend of materials resulting from collaboration between Rogue and BCY.

“We always wanted our own blend of materials, and through an extensive, multi-level testing process partnered with BCY, we feel we have found the perfect blend in R-21,” Hershberger said, “compared to 452X, for example, which tends to fuzz more, increases hand shock and often slows the bow down 5 to 8 feet per second from factory specs.

“R-21 is resistant to fuzzing, cushions the shot and maintains factory speeds. Not only that, it has a much-higher tensile strength in a thinner material, allowing the use of more strands for added strength. Whereas 452X has a single strand tensile strength of 100 pounds, R-21 boasts a tensile strength of 120 pounds. This is further compounded by the fact the strings often have as many as 28 strands. When this is factored in, the R-21 string has a tensile strength that is 560 pounds stronger. That’s a huge advantage whether hunting or target shooting.”

R-21 is available in nine solid colors — black, red, blue, pink, white, fluorescent green, fluorescent orange, silver, and tan —and is offered as a single-color string only, to avoid inconsistencies caused by varying thicknesses of dyes that would lead to unbalanced strings, according to Hershberger.

If you are due to change your string set, I encourage you to give R-21 some serious consideration. String sets can be ordered from any pro shop that is a Rogue dealer, or by contacting Rogue Bowstrings at 866-9-STRINGS or www.roguebowstrings.com.

About Sammy Romano 53 Articles
Sammy Romano is a lifelong hunter who has worked in the archery industry for more than 24 years. His expertise includes compounds and crossbows. He can be reached at samboka31@aol.com.