I'm at my wit's end trying to understand the system used for leveling up and crafting weapons/skills, and I need some help from those who are experienced in this.

I've tried reading at UESP, but most of the info seems dedicated to making mods, something I can not do on the 360.

Last night, I tried to level up some armor I crafted. My level is 30 and my smithing is as 31 (or thereabout).

I put on two enchanted items which granted me 30% each improvement in smithing upgrades. Then, I drank a potion for another 30%. By my count, that's 90%.

I hit the table, pressed "A" to upgrade my leather armor, and the best I could get was "Superior", which I've been crafting for well over 10 levels now.

I'm lost. How does this not make my leather "Flawless" (the highest for this armor group, to my disappointment)?

I've also noticed, after the 1.6 upgrade, my bow bonuses seem to be off. I know there was a reset to make them apply as they should, but the math doesn't seem to be working when I "chain" bonuses. I'm wearing three items, each at 20% boost, and I'm not seeing the added bonus of the additional items.

So, I tested this theory. I found a bear, and using a non-enchanted elvish bow with dwarven arrows, it took 5 arrows to take it down.
I reloaded, put on one 20% archery bonus, and it took 4 arrows.
I reloaded, put on all three, and it still took 4 arrows.

Does the game not chain bonuses?

Honestly, I never paid attention up to this point, but it was clearly evident the bow's power was reduced after the upgrade. My one-hit shots on bears is long gone, which is how I know it was applied. Not that I miss it (the returned challenge is nice), but I can't figure out how bonuses are applied in this game now.

Thanks for reading and I'm looking forward to the experienced understanding.