Shannon,
I've used FF for 8 or so years, on everythng from hackberry to osage, yew even. Very rarely do I use an overlay, unless on a backed bow and only for aesthetics. If you shape the nock properly, a little more curve perhaps but yours are fine, you create enough bearing surface, without any sharp points to concentrate the forces, you'll be fine. I've had exactly one nock failure, with a piece of burl mesquite that split out the top. I generally use 12 to 14 strands, depending upon what serving I'm using, and unless it's really soft wood like yew I don't build up the loops. On the yew bow I used 18 strands in the loops, the one you looked at w/ the really really tiny heartwood rings. It was Fetrow yew billets and while you may not remember Jim, trust me when I say those billets were a treasure and I would not risk the bow for any reason.
Can anyone else here testify similarly?
