Bow Performance Project - KTB Kingdom Chrono data
Silent Thunder Ordnance
KTB Kingdom shown here with our Byzantine ring in bronze
The last complete project analysis prior to this post, force-draw curves et al., can be found HERE. It contains the complete breakdown of bow poundage, how much energy is being stored, and how efficiently the bows store energy. This though, this is where the rubber meets the road: how effectively can these bows convert that stored energy into kinetic energy?
We've already given the KTB Kingdom a brief overview/review highlighting it's strong points (short length, modest price, durability), and weak points (severe stacking, too small a grip). How does it perform though? Well, about average. This is, by .35 grains per pound, the lowest GPP bow we've collected data on so far. And it managed a reasonable 70% efficiency. The Kaya, with a 1.5gpp advantage, squeezed out an extra almost 6% efficiency. Look at what that translates to in terms of velocity though, the Kaya is 11 pounds lighter draw and is, on average, 1.6fps slower. Look at the deviation though on the KTB Kingdom. Shooting through a chrono with a fickle Korean bow on a small grip is hard, don't let anyone tell you otherwise. I think the quality of shooting suffered with this bow, because of that difficulty, suffered. The result is a larger deviation and what may be an under-representation of performance. And, remember, that poundage really starts to spike up around full draw so plus or minus half an inch will make a big difference. My takeaway? This data shows this bow under-performing slightly, especially watching the two send arrows down range side by side, however I don't feel it is particularly unfair. I would strongly encourage the manufacturer of these bows to use thinner covers over the arrow-pass, and a beefy robust grip more typical of the Korean style.
Up next week, the absolutely stunning AF Turkish is up on the chrono. Will it live up to it's looks and the brand's reputation thus far for fearsome speed and efficiency?