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Main Boards => The Bowyer's Bench => Topic started by: tim roberts on March 29, 2009, 09:35:00 PM
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Over the weekend I got my bow laid out. I am having trouble seeing the ring I was chasing, so I ordered a couple of staves from Mike McGuire that were already chased to a ring. I will try to get so pictures posted tomorrow, as I have a few questions to go with the pictures.
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Place the stave between you and bright sunlight and the rings will jump at you.
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Your right PAT also try wiping it with a damp rag.The ring your takeing off will come out darker.The early wood between the rings will suck up the water.I do this to see dips or valleys as some people call them.This works very well on white woods or hard woods.This will make it so clear anyone can saee the rings.
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Tim,
Let's see some pictures.
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(http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r76/Timroberts_bucket/P1020457.jpg)
(http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r76/Timroberts_bucket/P1020458.jpg)
Ok, here is a couple of pictures, The handle was roughed out when I got the stave so I did my lay out to fit that. The stave is 70" long and because of where the handle is cut out I will be able to get a 64" bow out of it with the lower limb being 1-1/2 shorter that the upper limb. The tips are layed out to 3/4 of an inch wide, I am thinking of narrowing them to a half an inch. It is scraped down to close to the lay out.
The questions I have now is, do I want to put the bow on the form now and bend the limbs, before taking any more wood off. I have been floor tillering the bow bending it 2-3 inches, and there haven't seemed to be any problems there. It has about 2-3" of reflex, would like a little more on the tips though.
Well as you can see I am confused as ever, if this confusion continues much longer, I may need to take a ride to Big Sky one weekend??? :confused: :)
Thanks for all the help and patience.......
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ttt
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I would wait until you get your bow strung before you narrow the tips. You will have some room to move the string over one way or another with them as wide as you have them now. Definitely go to 1/2" or less after you see how it looks strung.
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Looking good Tim.
Like Eric said, leave the tips wide until you get it strung. I leave mine wide until I reach about 18-20" on the tillering tree.
Let's see a couple of pictures of the profile, front and side, and one looking down its length on the back side.
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I will get some pictures posted tonight after work.
Thanks,
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(http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r76/Timroberts_bucket/P1020464.jpg)
(http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r76/Timroberts_bucket/P1020461.jpg)
(http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r76/Timroberts_bucket/P1020460-1.jpg)
(http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r76/Timroberts_bucket/P1020462.jpg)
Here are some more pictures.
It almost looks like there is a little bit of propeller twist in the lower limb, I haven't cut the ends off yet and looking at it most of it appears to be in the end that I will end up loosing.
I am not sure whether to start taking wood off, or to heat it and put some bend in the limbs first. The stave has some reflex to it already, and I have been floor tillering to 3-4 inches.
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I usually leave the nocks an inch wide and the handle full width until at least its first stringing. Jawge
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My site.
http://georgeandjoni.home.comcast.net/~georgeandjoni/
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Well, last night I was working on my bow, and just as I was to put it on the tillerin'tree I noticed a spot about 3-4 inches long that was to wide. So then I made a big mistake, real big mistake, I put the bow in the vise and grabbed my draw knife and proceeded to take a deep gash out of the full lenght of the top limb. So I spent the rest of the evening getting the top and bottom limbs the same width again.
Today, I started getting the edge of the limbs down to 3/8" thick. This is where I started...
(http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r76/Timroberts_bucket/P1020472.jpg)
And this is where I ended up at.....
(http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r76/Timroberts_bucket/P1020497.jpg)
The lower limb (left side of picture is 1 1/2" shorter. Considering that I think the limbs are bending pretty good? the upper limb may need some off closer towards the tip, and maybe the same on the lower????
Some of you guys that are experienced it there is something you see I would appericate any pointers, as I am somewhere I have never been!
Thanks,
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Nothing has to be the same. They just have to look the same. Your stave is only bending at mid limb. It needs to bend more close to the handle. The last 8 inches need to bend more also. This internet thing is good ha? Jawge
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Like George said, your bow is bending too much in the mid-limbs.
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I will have to disagree will George and Gordan somewhat, respectfully of course. You're using a tillering string that is a mile to long and that's putting extra stress on the inner limbs. Here, by beefing up the inner limbs and using that mile long tillering string, your are in effect, helping the situation. Now, if you were to us a proper length tillering string then maybe you could work the inner limbs a bit.
What's your draw length for selfbows Tim?
ART B
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The draw length for this bow will be 26". The length the bow is 64". My tillering string is made out of 600# paracord, should I be using something else? Also while tillerin' the bow I lost some of the reflex making the string look longer, how does one know what lenght of string to use?
Thanks again for all the help,
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Make your string just long enough to fit on the bow with little or no slack Tim. What happens with an overly long tillering sting is that it places greater strain on the inner portion of the limbs created by the steeper downward angle of the string. With the shorter permanant bow string the stresses are from tip to tip placing more strain on the outer portion of the limbs.
Here's a good demostration of what I'm talking about. Take one of those cheap plastic rulers and hold it out in front of you. Now pull down on one end (mimicking a long tillering string) and watch where the greater bend is. Now press inward (mimicking a shorter/permanant bow string) and check for the greater bend.
Tillering string profile and permanant bow string profile will show somewhat different. But the shorter the tillering string the less the differences. You can get quite a surprise sometimes while showing a perfect long string tillering job and then suddenly going to a shorter string. Good luck.
ART B
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Good point, Art, but the way I use a tillering stick the length of the tillering string doesn't matter. Info is on my site under Bow Making Directions, tim. Jawge
http://georgeandjoni.home.comcast.net/~georgeandjoni/
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But still George, that "extra" stress on the inner limb is there with the steeper string angle. That fact can't be dismissed.
ART B
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Art, oh no! Did I tillering stick? No, I don't use it. LOL. I use a rope and pulley. I long string tiller out to 10 inches of string movement which brings me to just about brace height or may be a little beyond which is virtually the same as floor tillering. I seek 5# over target weight and good limb bending. This puts final target weight at 10-15# over the weight I want. Then I string with the short string. Gives me an indication when the stave is ready to be strung. My bows are not whip tillered. I see no need for going beyond the 10 inches of string movement. I've made all my bows with this method. It works. Tillering string size is a non factor for me. That's my story and I am sticking to it. :) Jawge
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Well tonight I worked on the inner limbs, and I think I got them working a little bit better? I still need to do some work on the ends, but I think it is looking better.............the limb to the left side of the picture is the lower limb, and it is an 1 1/2" shorter than the upper limb.............
(http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r76/Timroberts_bucket/P1020500.jpg)
Comments.............please :)
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Looking good Tim. As I mentioned earlier, you're going to have a slightly different profile look with the long tillering string vs a shorter or permanent string. With the long string you want to see slightly more bend at fades with stiffer than normal tips. When you go to the short string the stress shifts from the inner limbs outwards placing more stress on the tips.
If you run a straight edge (from bow tip to bow tip) across you computer screen it looks like your lower limb needs a little work to even out tiller (pics are often deceiving though). If your back and sides are sanded then perhaps it time for you to short string your bow.
ART B
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Tim, get some more bending- both limbs just past the fades. Jawge
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(http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r76/Timroberts_bucket/P1020502.jpg)
Well tonight I worked a bit around the fade outs, and the limb tips. I think I am ready to file in some knocks and start on the short string, am I getting ahead of myself???? :confused:
Thanks for the help,
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Looks good bud. Wish I was there to observe :bigsmyl:
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Thanks Kenny!
This last weekend I got an opportunity to go up to Montana and spent some time with Walt. First he helped me get the bow I had been working on to an almost finshed state, got some final sanding to do and will post some pictures when done. Then he taught me how to chase a ring and by the time we finished that evening we had a stave rough shaped and on the caul being heated treated. That one needs to stay in the bathroom for a few days and then I will start bringing that one to final shape and tiller.
Thanks again Walt for all the help! :thumbsup:
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(http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r76/Timroberts_bucket/P1020504.jpg)
Yesterday I got the knocks cleaned up, the file marks out of the handle, sanded the scratchs out, and then touched it up with some 320 sand paper. Still got the finish to do and the handle to wrap, but other than that it is done! It finished out 43# at 26", which is more than I expected.
We put ebony on the tips, and am going to wrap the handle with black leather. Should be a beauty when done.
Thanks for all the help :thumbsup: !!!!!
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nice job
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Nice!!!!
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Very nice job Tim!!
:clapper: :clapper: :clapper:
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Excellent job!!
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Great work Tim. :thumbsup:
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very nice job, the other two are on the way, mike
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Well done!