Bow Tech is located in Eugene, Oregon. The factory, boasting some 80,000 square feet, houses arguably some of the most technologically advanced manufacturing equipment and processes in the bow industry.At the Eugene, Oregon location, Bow Tech operates their Bow Tech Factory Pro Shop. Worth a visit for those traveling through the area.The CNC machining facility is equipped with state-of-the-art Mori Seiki NH6300 DCG machines. Each capable of turning out precision quality components while maintaining exacting tolerances. The result is tight fitting, accurate bows.Raw aluminum riser blanks, or plugs, start as either an extrusion or a solid one-piece casting. Here castings await their turn in the CNC machining center.The Bow Tech manufacturing manager holds a solid aluminum casting.Some risers are machined from extruded aluminum. A FLOW brand water jet cutting machine prepares to cut riser blanks from a solid aluminum extrusion.The water jet operator programs the machine for an exacting cut.Garnet is used as an abrasive in the water jet. Grains of garnet pass through the water jet and are concentrated into a 60,000 psi stream of water that cuts solid aluminum like butter.The water jet begins cutting the extrusion. Once cut, they are sent to the CNC machining center.After spending time in the CNC machine, the carousel comes out of the CNC machine with machined risers.The CNC operator removes each riser one at a time.The manufacturing manager holds in his right hand, a raw, cast blank. In his right hand, he holds a machined riser cut from the solid aluminum blank.Risers are then placed in tumblers with abrasives to remove all the sharp edges left by the CNC machining operation.Tumbled risers are then stacked and await the next step in their journey from raw material to new Bow Tech compound bow.Thousands and thousands of pounds of recyclable aluminum chips are produced during the manufacturing process. These will be sent to the recycler and processed back into aluminum billet and raw stock. Keeping the process “green” is one of Bow Tech’s paramount objectives.Limbs pockets are critical to any bow set-up. Bow Tech machines theirs from solid blocks of aluminum. The raw stock is in the manufacturing managers left hand. He holds a finished limb pocket in his right hand.A CNC machine cuts limb pockets from the stock material.An amazing array of CNC machine tools are required for the many intricate machining processes. Here a few await their turn.Limbs are custom cut and laminated in-house. Here the manufacturing manager holds a raw limb billet in his right- hand, and one that has been cut via CNC machine in his left-hand. Limbs are high on the criticality list, as such, they must be built to exacting tolerances.Limbs are hand laminated, one-by-one. Here, limbs await the pressure and “cooking-out” process.Limbs are placed under 16,000 psi and “cooked” for an extended period of time to ensure proper bonding of the internal laminates.Bow Tech film dips all their components in-house at their Water Dog facility. Here, risers that have been dipped await the next step in the build-up process.Riser go into the dipping tank where various camo patterns are applied. The result is bows that are “decorated” to match every consumers personal camouflage pattern preference.Riser “rise” from the dipping tank, magically transformed into works of camo art.Following their dip in the dipping tank, components are then sent through an exhaustive wash process that removes all impurities and readies them for the coating process. Hand applied coatings protect their finishes against the toughest of elements.Dipped components are clear-coated with a secret formula, called “In-Velvet.” This finish keeps the bow looking new for years and feels great to the touch.It’s now time to assemble the components. Here cams are assembled and readied for installation on a new Destroyer 340 custom built for me. Every part is torqued to specific tolerances, inspected, and then re-inspected.Cam components await the build-up.A technician installed the cams on the limbs using a jig built specifically for my Destroyer 340.With the limbs assembled and installed, another technician shows me the tricks-of-the-trade for installing a fresh bowstring. All bowstrings are built in the Bow Tech plant from the best materials available.The result is strings that won’t stretch and are very rugged.A set-up technician checks the bow for cam lean. If found, they adjust the harness and retest. This exhaustive attention to detail ensures customers receive a properly tuned bow right from the box.After the bow has been tuned, arrow clearance is checked to ensure all components are working sysnergisitcally. If not, it’s back to a build-up technician for corrections and adjustments.Draw length and draw weight are checked prior to shooting the new Destroyer 340.Hot off the assembly line. I shoot my new Destroyer through the chronograph to make sure its performance is up to snuff. It chronos at 346 fps at 31-inches of draw length and 61.6 pounds of draw weight. Impressive numbers for sure.After the shot, and a final once-over, my new Destroyer receives its “Birth Certificate.”After the Bow Tech factory tour, what would you expect? I’m turned loose on the Oregon turkeys. Sadly, the turkeys would rule the day.
