One of archery’s all-time-best bow accessories started with a home run. Well, maybe not literally—but a Louisville Slugger was certainly involved. “Our first product was really the production of over 8 million Sims Sting Stops for the baseball industry from about 1992 to 2007,” commented Steve Sims, president & CEO of Sims Vibration Laboratory—and inventor of the now-legendary Sims LimbSaver.
“Although we started with other sports, I’ve always been an archer. I harvested my first bull elk at the age of 14 in Oregon. Jumping around a bit, I’d say my brother, Jerry, and I had already made products for Louisville Slugger, Wilson Sporting Goods, and Powerbilt Golf. Then one day around 1998, we got to talking and thought ‘Wouldn’t it be great to make something for our bows? I mean a sport we still participate in?’ So, we took the lessons we had learned from other sports and modified and applied our technology to archery and that was the beginning of the archery story. It worked great and we have been pushing it ever since,” recalled Sims.
By 1999, the first LimbSavers were ready for market and debuted at the AMO Show in Columbus, Ohio. “Since we launched in 1999, our growth has been somewhat linear and follows what most manufacturers would do. You first launch a product—and if it is successful you start building products around it; that’s pretty much what we have done over the last decade or so and is how LimbSaver came about,” Sims explained.
Broadhead Pod & FletchPod
Two of the new products for 2012 that Sims is most excited about are the Broadhead Pod and FletchPod, unique protective cases for some of our most-important accessories. The Broadhead Pod was designed to snap over any three-blade-type broadhead while mounted on an arrow (an expandable pod for mechanical broadheads is coming soon).
“With the Broadhead Pod you can tighten it on to your arrow, pull it off, throw it into your case and never have to worry about your strings being cut or anything like that—it’s just a great product,” said Sims.
The same could be said of the protective FletchPod. “How many times have you gone somewhere with your bow and opened your case and the fletchings are all bent to the side? Maybe those were your best arrows and the ones you wanted hunt with. At any rate, with the FletchPod, you’ll never have those worries again. Let’s face it, arrows, broadheads, strings and even hunts are major investments these days. With the Broadhead Pod and FletchPod a dealer can really make the difference between a customer’s success or failure in the field,” Sims stated.
See page 2 for more.
Improved Proton Bow
Sims sees the Proton’s technology as something that will revolutionize the bow market. “The Proton is an amazing bow with some really cool, stand-alone technologies. We have a seven-point poundage-adjustment system. Each adjustment is around two pounds, so you’ll get between 12 and 14 pounds of range,” explained Sims.
The advantage of the Proton’s adjustment system is that you can use a socket—or the wrench that comes with it—to change bow weight without changing or affecting your tiller, brace height, or draw length. “It’s a passive system that doesn’t change anything on your bow except what it is supposed to—your poundage. And that’s really awesome,” Sims explained.
Fans of the Dead Zone bow will really love the Proton due to the similarities, but the advancements certainly set the Proton in a class of its own. “The Proton is just an advancement on our Dead Zone bow. Except, the Proton is a split limb model and does not use any limb pockets. It is super-lightweight and simply shoots like no other bow on the market. Everyone who shoots it says, ‘Man, I’ve never shot anything like this!’ and that is the truth. There isn’t anything else like the Proton,” Sims proclaimed.
“The Proton uses totally innovative technology—especially the limb-poundage adjustment,” Sims continued. “On a traditional compound bow, you have a screw that you basically turn to wind or unwind to adjust the poundage. Of course, while doing so, you change the brace height and the tune of the bow. With the Sims system it’s just under the limb. Essentially, it’s just a cam, and when you turn the cam it has different lobes that are different sections. Each one of those sections adds a different resistance to the limbs, so by clicking it, you add or subtract about two pounds.”
When you adjust the weight of a Proton, you’ll see a set of numbers. The numbers are associated with a particular poundage and you adjust them to match, both top and bottom. The result is exact poundage adjustments without any other change to the bow—your tune remains exactly the same.
Kodiak-Lite Bow Sling
Sims’ new Kodiak-Lite Bow Sling is an innovative design with a host of potentially different uses. “Our new archery sling is very lightweight, comfortable and just plain cool. It’s actually a hunting sling that attaches to itself instead of the bow so you can use it for more than just carrying your bow. It’s perfect for your blind, chair or really just about anything because of the attachment system. Of course, if you have to, you can shoot with it on your bow as well,” Sims said.
Contact: Sims/LimbSaver, (360) 427-6031; www.limbsaver.com
