Whisker Biskit - Tuning.

[jezzaol]

G'day All,

I have a question on tuneing my Whisker Bisket rest, Im not sure if it needs adjustment or somthing else does, Im shooting a Limbsaver Proton bow sitting on 65lb with a 30" draw and release aid, it seems to be shooting well, the grouping is a little inconsistant but all in all my scores are good and improving weekly (only had this bow for a couple of months and shooting it weekly), shooting Easton ST AXIS N-Fused 340 Shafts.
The thing i'm not sure about is my whisker bisket seems to get all hairly (all the strands getting out of place) and I almost need to brush them back into position? Im not sure if this is normal as I have not used one before? is this somthing not to worry about? what tuning would you guys recomend? I have seen people use paper tuning etc to help check arrow flight etc but what would be the lists of things that I should check and in what order?

I have been shooting for many years but I only ever shot a Martin Jaguar bare bow with fingers on 65lb and I had no problems tuning that.
Thanks in advance.

[Mark Burrows]

If you are predominantly shooting target I would tune the whisker biscuit by removing it altogether and replacing it with a drop away or one of the tongue rests or a prongy, anything but a containment rest. As the arrow is in contact with the rest during its entire time on the bow, and actually even after the arrow leaves the string, they are not an easy rest to tune.

[jezzaol]

G'day Mark,
Thankyou for your input but ultimatly I shoot targets to practice for hunting, I understand that other rests would possibly be better, and I will change it if it causes lots of greif but really dont want to do that if I dont have too, firstly just want to see if its normal for the hairy look im getting and if that is commonly caused by somthing in particular?
Does anyone one use whisker biscuits or have they gone by the wayside for most archers?

Cheers

[Mark Burrows]

No worries Jeremy. For hunting the whisker biscuit should be fine. I have a couple of mates who really like them. I just have an aversion to contaiment rests. The arrow is in contact with the bow for too long for my liking.
As I said I have a couple of mates who use them and do not seem to have the issues you are having. Without seeing you shoot or your set up I would say you are having a contact issue. If the hairy look is the bottom or top of the rest I would look at your nock locator height or the spine of your arrows. If it is to the side of your rest I would look at moving your rest in or out. Maybe do a walkback test. It should give you some idea.
As I said containment rests make this hard to pick because of the nature of the rest holding the arrow. It may take some trial and error.

[jezzaol]

Thanks mate, the hairy looking fibres are perfectly in line with the 3 vane alignment (in the 3 places where is passes through the rest) but it not just a few hairs out of place they get all tangled up etc, looks like messy knotted unbrushed hair. The arrrow passes through the rest with the **** or trace vain stright up and the other two on each side, and the hairy looking fibres look the same at each spot.

When you say do the walk back test are you suggesting that I look at how well the arrows group at say 6m and then walk back seeing the differance as I get further back? what am I looking for as a tell tail sign.

Cheers

[Mark Burrows]

What sort of vanes are you shooting?
If the "hairy bits" are in line with all 3 of your vanes then arrow flight is possibly OK.
Or it is wobbling that much that you are getting multiple contact but the capture of the arrow actually stablizes the arrow some what. Slowing it down heaps in the process.
The walk back test is for "windage adjustment" of your rest. You put a spot high up on the target butt and using your 20 meter pin aim at that dot. Walk back from 10 or 15 metres and shoot at the dot aiming with your 20 pin at the dot for every shot. Walk back 6 or 8 steps at a time until you get back to 50 meters. The distance between shots is not critical.
The end result is you should have a line of arrows running down from your aim dot.
If your line of arrows is straight under your dot, all is good. If the line drifts one way or the other move you rest opposite to the drift. Although with a containment rest you may have to try moving it the other way as you may get a false reading if the back of the arrow is slamming into the rest.

[jezzaol]

Hey Mark,

Im shooting Blazer Vanes, I'll give the walk back test a go.
As far as speed goes when I shoot with similar speed other bows they look to be comparable?
Im shooting Easton ST AXIS N-Fused 340 Shafts, could they cause wobble?
Bow specs are as follows: http://www.limbsaver.com/archery/proton.php
I was recomended those shafts with the bow but it may be wrong info?

Thanks for your input.

Cheers

[Mark Burrows]

340's spine are right at the start, or bottom end, of your draw length and bow poundage, depending on your point weight you could also shoot 400's OK but 340's should be absolutely fine. Arrow charts are a guide, there are no absolutes. Sometimes it takes some experimenting. My hunting out fit is IBO 325, 68 pound,29 inch draw and I shoot 340's with 125 grain heads. I find then a little stiff but I like the weight of the arrow so I run them at 31 inches to soften them up.
My target bow is IBO 350, 62 pound, 29 inch draw and I shoot 500's with 100 grain heads, arrows are 27.5 inches long. Not much between the poundages of these two bows but a heap of distance between arrow spine. So as I said nothing is absolute.

In your case I would try a different vane first up. I use Blazers myself but they are a fairly high profile vane. (They have to be to stablize broadheads with something so short.) A lower profile may alleviate your problems.

[jezzaol]

Thanks for your iput Mark, I'll give it a go.

Cheers