Newbie with a knot question and some others.

[Marks]

Hey everyone, my name is Mark Smith, I'm 27 and I've bow hunted for quite a while but not seriously until the past few years. I would like to learn to make a bow by hand. Now that I have my own house and most importantly a garage/shop, I'm looking to learn a few life skills and broaden my horizons.  Since I was a kid I've made "weapons". I used to make cane spears and hunt rabbits in the back yard and around the farm. Of course I was never successful. Anywho, I've always wanted to make a bow but it has never been convenient. It gets dark at 5 now and I'm wearing a hole in our couch in front of the TV so now is as good a time as any.

Now that I've given my biography ill ask my question(s). I've cut an osage tree on the farm, split some staves and worked one down to where it is starting to look similar to a bow. The whole time this knot has been bothering me and its way past time to ask someone about it. I have several other knots but not like this one.  This one is big. My limb goes around the outside but it raises one side of the limb then comes back straight. Is this something that must be corrected or ignore it.
 
 

[ionicmuffin]

so long as the physical knot that was a branch isnt part of the wood your working then your lay out should be fine if your following the grain, if you arnt following the grain you could end up with a splinter lifting and have to do a wrap to make sure your bow stays alive, but for the most part your stave looks good, would say that you will be fine with your current lay out, you seem to have followed the wiggle in the grain so i doubt you will have an issue with it.


Although it wouldn't hurt to make that section a little wider, to be sure that it will hold. Plus your dealing with osage, King 

[Dean Marlow]

That little wave on your limb won't hurt a thing. As long as you can line up your limbs to where the string will go over the handle you will be in good shape. Dean

[Marks]

I like the idea of character and snakeyness in the bow but I don't have any woodworking experience. I'm in no hurry because I didn't season the wood before starting.

Also while I've got a thread going I want to go over my layout to make sure it makes sense. I originally misread the double your draw and add 10% rule. I just added 10. So 30+30+10=70. So I laid out a 70 in bow. I'm gonna drop it down to 66" soon so the layout in the pics will be shortened by 2". 
My new layout is basically 66", 4" handle centered and 1"wide, 1.5" fades, 1.5" wide at the fades, parallel for 12" then pyramid to the tips, 1/2 tips.
I would like an arrow shelf but havent found anything on how to lay one out so I may be just shooting off the hand.

Everything I just posted is convervative and subject to change at any time.

[Marks]

That little wave on your limb won't hurt a thing. As long as you can line up your limbs to where the string will go over the handle you will be in good shape. Dean

I was just worried since the limb on raised on one side it might cause the bow to bend crooked.

[Pappy]

Sounds like a reasonable lay out to me,looks like the curve in the stave is about in the center,you can make you arrow pass there and will help to center shot the bow naturally.
   Pappy

[Marks]

Want to thank yall for your answers. I asked a question or 2 on another archery forum where they 'talk'  'archery'    ::)and it just sank into the abiss with only one answer from another guy who was also a beginner. I ask on here and got an answer in under 6 minutes. This forum seems a lot friendlier than that one.

[JW_Halverson]

Oh quit whining about how friendly we are and get back to work on your bow!

Looks like you laid out the limb nicely, followed the grain to the best of your ability.  Kinda like you wre listening to the wood.  Good.  Now when you are tillering the limb out, be very careful in that "squiggly" area to keep even thickness from side to side.  Keep the belly and the back of the bow parallel and you won't have to worry about the limb flexing unevenly or twisting worse in that spot.