A compound bow is something like a work of art, as it takes more than a small amount of skill and knowledge to set-up, repair or maintain it properly. While many hunters prefer to rely on expert experience and simply take their bows into an archery shop as needed, most compound bow maintenance can be done at home as long as you have the correct tools.
Similarly, keeping your archery tool kit with you while out hunting or at the range can also allow you to make more minor adjustments or repairs on the fly. Whether you're looking to try bare shaft tuning a compound bow or simply want to ensure that your string stays in excellent condition, the following compound bow tuning tools are a must-have.
Compound Bow Tuning Tools Every Hunter Needs to Own:
1. Bow Press
Far and away one of the most important compound bow tuning tools is a bow press, which is essential for setting up and stringing your bow. A bow press is vital for home bow maintenance, as it helps to hold the bow in the correct position, thus making it much easier to work on.
As well, it can also assist you in setting the right amount of bow compression and also comes in handy for setting the proper string position.
These are 2 types of bow presses. Full sized usually for home use and portable. For home use we recommend the EZ Green Press, which is considered fairly priced. Those wanting a portable option go with the Bowmaster Bow Press.
For more information on presses check out our guide to choosing the "Best Bow Presses".
2. Bow Vise
Like a bow press, a bow vise is another must-have product for any compound bow hunter. While the vise is not absolutely essential, those who don't have one are forced to attempt to hold their bow in one hand while performing the work on their bow with the other. A bow vise makes virtually any repair or maintenance job that much easier, as the vise holds the bow in place, thus ensuring that you have both hands free to work with. Most bow vises are designed to easily mount onto any work surface, ensuring your bow stays securely in place as you work.
3. Laser Alignment Tool
Setting up a compound bow properly is no easy task, as even a slight misalignment can result in poor accuracy. For this reason, many hunters rely on a laser alignment tool, which can be used to help identify and correct cam or wheel tilt.
With a laser alignment tool, you can quickly and precisely align the limbs and sights to ensure that your bow shoots straight and true. Many laser alignment tools are designed to nock straight on the bowstring, where it then projects a laser along the inside perimeter of the bow to allow you to adjust cam lean, sight center, etc. to ensure your bow and accessories are in perfect working order.
4. String Serving Kit
As most bow hunters know, the string serving area tends to wear out after repeated use. A string serving kit can make the process of serving the string a whole lot easier, The most important part of the kit is the string serving tool (or jig), but a good string serving kit should also include a string separator, cable spreader and wax.
5. String Care Kit
Caring for the string on your compound bow is essential if you want to keep it in proper working condition. Long before you'll ever have to replace the bow's string serving, you'll be required to perform some general maintenance on the string, which is where a string care kit comes in.
A good string care kit should include string wax, as well as a cleaner and a revitalizer. The cleaner and revitalizer are important for restoring the string to optimal condition are repeated use, while the wax helps to increase the life of your string by ensuring it stays dry and properly conditioned.
6. Arrow Spin Tester
Even a slight flaw in your arrow can cause wreak havoc on your accuracy, so it's important to make sure that your arrows are in perfect condition before heading out into the field for a hunt.
With an arrow spin tester, you can easily monitor the flight performance of your arrows—checking to make sure that they are free from wobbles or other issues that could affect the flight performance and thus decrease the accuracy of your shots. An arrow spin tester is also useful for identifying whether these problems are related to the arrow itself or to the broadhead.
7. Knocking Pliers
A good pair of knocking pliers is another essential compound bow tuning tool. As the D-loops on your bow will tend to wear out over time, you'll eventually need to have them replaced. A pair of D-loop knocking pliers makes the task much quicker and easier. Alternatively, you could choose to go with a pair of universal knocking pliers to provide even more benefits.
8. Cam and Serving Lube
Lubrication is important for keeping your serving, cams and wheels functioning properly. Simply apply a few drops of the lube to eliminate noise and ensure your bow's moving parts are properly lubricated. As well, a good cam and serving lube can also help to increase arrow speed.
9. Allen Wrenches
Modern compound bows rely almost solely on allen screws to hold the various parts together. This makes a set of allen wrenches one of the most important tools you can own when it comes to maintaining, repairing or setting up your bow. As most bows use at least a few different sizes of screws, it's a good idea to invest in a full set of allen wrenches to ensure you always have the correct size on hand.
10. Arrow Saw
Even if you're not planning on making your own arrows, a high-quality arrow saw can still come in handy, as it's also useful when repairing arrows. Alternatively, if you plan on making and fletching your own arrows, an arrow saw is absolutely essential.
11. Fletching Jig
Whether you're looking to make your own arrows or simply to repair any damaged ones, a fletching jig is a must-have. These jigs come in a variety of different sizes, with the best fletching jigs offering several different set-up options to allow you to customize your arrows.
12. Bow Scale
A bow scale makes it easy to accurately measure the draw weight of your compound bow instantly. As well, it also tells you the peak poundage of the bow at full draw.
The Final Word on Compound Bow Tuning Tools
For the truly serious bow hunter, the above list definitely doesn't include all of the items you might need. However, for the rest of us who aren't quite as experienced as bow tuning, the above list of compound bow tuning tools should provide you with virtually everything you could need to ensure your bow is working properly and your arrows are firing accurately.
