glue for risers

[sadiejane]

well, a few weeks ago i asked ya'll about gluing a riser to an osage bow.  a pal had cut several pieces rather thin and they need risers to make a proper handle area.
let me preface by saying this fella is a lifelong woodworker/carpenter. and has been making bows for about 15yrs. but this was the first experience gluing a riser to a bow for either of us. we prepped area with acetone and used the two ton epoxy someone suggested. clamped and pinned with wooden dowels for insurance. let cure for three weeks. nevertheless the riser popped off. btw the riser was also osage orange.  sure would like to figure it out as we have  3 or 4 other osage staves that will need this treatment. the stave and wood bits for the riser were all at least three yrs cut.
any ideas what we did wrong? any suggestions?
thanks!

[jturkey]

i had the same problem on my dads bow found out i was clamping it way too tight and pressing most of the glue out that could be the problem not sure but a common mistake and me and my dad have been making furniture for years and we still do it from time to time on other things as well.
john

[PEARL DRUMS]

TBIII is thee best Sadie. I have never had titebond let me down. Plus it works great for sinew wraps and such. I assume you had a nice fade going as well so the handle wasnt trying to bend?

[BowJunkie]

Yep What PearlDrums said. I have used TB on 3 bows I have shot for a year now.
Basically I rough up both sides with a rasp, clean with alcohol or acetone, and "lightly" clamp into place, set aside to dry for 3 day.
Also keep in mind these three bows also flex in the handles, and I have not had an issue with them  yet.

[PEARL DRUMS]

My surfaces are kept glass smooth and clamped with medium presure, enough to see glue ooze out and all outside edges.

[Del the cat]

My surfaces are kept glass smooth and clamped with medium presure, enough to see glue ooze out and all outside edges.

Glass smooth, hmm I'd go for lightly roughened myself. If all else fails a cord binding (hemp or linen) on the grip with epoxy on it warmed with a hot air gut to make it run and soak in... it won't shift then.
del

[DarkSoul]

A riser can only "pop off" if the bow itself (the wood in the center of the bow) bends without the additional handle. You need to design a bow in such a way that the handle of the bow does not bend to start with. In practice, that means the center of the bow needs to be a bit thicker than the fades where the bow just starts bending. Only then you can add a glued-on riser.
Any glue will fail if the handle tends to bend for prolonged time.

[George Tsoukalas]

I am surprised that you pinned it and it still popped off. I would use a wood glue too.  I follow the directions on the label. If it says smooth then smooth it is. Sadiejones, now you said "bow" and not "stave". Does that mean this was a preexisting bow. If yes, then gluing on a riser can be problematic if the wood is trained to bend before gluing. Also, the handle needs to sit on top of the taper. That is the taper needs to extend into the main piece. Having said this... I like bend in the handle bows. Jawge

[sadiejane]

it was a "stave" so to speak. whittled down to bow dimensions and designed for the riser to be added. it is designed to have a static handle, no bend. standard fades and all....
ok guys, back to the drawing board. clean that puppy up, rough it up a bit and try the tb
thanks

[PEARL DRUMS]

TB will work dandy Sadie. Post some pics

[bubby]

I usually hit mine with the 36 grit belt on my sander, no pop off's yet

[Pappy]

I use TB3 and smooth it,that's what it says on the bottle and I figure they know better than me.I agree with DarkSoul ,if it don't bend in the handle it won't pop off. If it does it will, if it does I build up the grip with leather and super glue and work it down like I want it,the leather will flex with the handle.
   Pappy

[sadiejane]

just for reference, this was my original post.
why wayne ended up using two-ton epoxy...

http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,24422.msg328443.html#msg328443

as mentioned previously. gonna have him remove old glue, clean well, rough up the surface a tad and try again with titebond III
its all an experiment everytime.
just gotta keep on trying till it works.

thank again for all yr help