Chuck,

Thanks for your inquiry and I apologize for my delay in responding to you. Sounds like you have a tough question here. I am going to cut and paste some of my usual comments into this e-mail since there is some useful information in that, but I will go beyond that, so bear with the next few paragraphs!

Actually, tuning with the Trophy Taker is a
relatively simple equation once the rest is set up correctly. Assuming that
the rest is set up in accordance with our guidelines that are found in the
packaged instructions and on our websites installation page (with photos of
installation procedure), there are really only a couple of variable to look
at. First, the rest should be fully up just long enough to stabilize your
arrow in flight...no more, and no less. Finding that balance is a matter of
several variables.

First of all, how you release is important. Clipping your release to the
string rather than to a D-Loop will cause downward pressure on your rest and
thus usually requires the rest to be up longer to offset this.

Also, some single cams tend to " throw" the nock downward at the shot, again
putting pressure on the rest resulting in the need for it to be " up" longer
too.

Third, extremely speedy bows need more help stabilizing the arrow, so they sometimes need a little more help on the launch.

These are the top three timing issues. Aside from extending the length of
time that the rest is " up," you can also raise your nocking point on the
string some, though I do not recommend running more than 1/4 inch nock high.

The second major variable in tuning with a fall-away is arrow spine. This
is one of the most overlooked aspects in archery today, and yet it is one of
the most critical. Spine charts are often inadequate when it comes to
taking into consideration all the variables that go into the dynamic spine
of an arrow. Even more confusing is the fact that you can take two
identical setups; same bow, cam, poundage, draw length, rest, release, etc.-
and need two different arrow spines in order to achieve the very best tune.
Particularly arrows that are too weak for a setup, will sometimes leave a
little bit of contact on the fall away launcher.

Now for some solutions. First of all, play with the timing of your rest.
If you are using our solid cord and attaching to the buss cable of the bow,
then I recommend that your rest should be fully up for the last 1 to 2 and
1/2 inches of your draw (no less and not much more if any). If you are
using the bungee, then you can make the rest stand up longer if you desire.
If you are attaching to the cable slide, then you can make the rest stand up
longer too. However, it is important to note that if you cannot tune your
arrow by using a combination of a slightly raised nocking point and making
the rest stand up for the last 2 and 1/2 inches of your draw, there is
probably another variable at work in your bow that needs attention.

As for the spine issue, the cheapest and easiest solution is to play with
your poundage and point weights if you don' t have other arrows to try.
Backing your poundage off will increase the stiffness of your spine, as will
lowering the point weight. Reversing these obviously has the opposite
affect. Usually, you need to get a little radical here...people usually
don' t try to go far enough to tell a difference because they are convinced
that their arrows are spined right in the beginning. It is also important
to note here that any time you change a variable on your bow, it can affect
spine. For example, if you had a fixed launcher on your bow and it was
tuning well with your arrows, then you put a different rest on your bow and
it is not tuning well, then you should consider arrow spine.

Since you already noted that your rest was set up according to instructions, perhaps the most viable information for you in the preceding paragraphs relates to release method, timing and arrow spine. I have spent a lot of time talking with a very knowledgeable man over at BowTech named Jamie. While I myself prefer to tie the Trophy Taker into the buss cable of my bows, I have not set up any on the Patriot single cam, and Jamie has set up dozens. He asserts that he gets his best results from tying the rest to his cable slide and making it stand up longer. In order to do so, he runs the cord in from the archer' s side of the tab, and then back over the tab to the cable slide so that it is pulling on the tab from the far side...this results in a better pulling angle on our launcher.

If this method is still unclear, I would be very happy to talk with you about it if there is a good time I can call you or I am happy to continue to e-mail you. Like I said in the form part of my e-mail, the rest part of the equation is relatively simple...from there, issues like nock travel and other factors have to be looked into and allowed for