Help with Handshock - tillering

[crooketarrow]

  There's only 3 things that cause hand shock in wooden bows.

  One limb is finshing first. This slight but it dose happen and it dose produce some hand shock.

  You need to tiller on down to the handle. I tiller as close to the handle as I can.

  But most handle shock comes from your tips being to heavy. You don't need to narrow them any.
  But I made all my tips 3/8's and make the last 4 inchs (from the knock) stiff. I take as much wood off as I can with out the tips beening.

  I do'nt think I've ever built a bow with handle shock. Do thses 3 things you'll never have hand shock.

 

[Cameroo]

I agree with everything Mike said.

My point was that tillering from the sides is more effective in cases where you want to reduce mass because it doesn't have as much effect on the tiller as reducing the thickness does. But he's right - you would only do this after the tiller is bang-on.

[k-hat]

Hmmm, I'd say the tiller is pretty elliptical:



Even a perfectly-tillered bow can offer plenty of handshock if the tips are too heavy.  I mean some designs are notorious for having more handshock than others, so is it a tiller issue?

I'd lean toward Del's/Ifrit's advice here, given the above pic, but that's just me.  None of my bows have had any handshock to speak of either, at least not when they were finished. 

[George Tsoukalas]

The experience of shock is pretty subjective, bubbles. If you compare to glass bows selfies can feel shocky. I've been shooting selfbows for so long I don't notice shock unless it is excessive. I built an ash bow  from a board. The bow bent in the handle.  The limbs were long and heavy and I think that is why the bow shocked badly. I don't think you have that problem. Tiller looks good. Limb timing could be an issue but you need a rope and pulely to see if the limbs return at the same time as you let down (don't dry fire). Look to the arrow for help. Do you have any idea how heavy your arrows are? Too light and they don't absorb energy. Jawge

[George Tsoukalas]

Bubbles, what you should do is when you shoot the bow be cognizant of handle pressure. It should be even on the draw and release. Jawge

[George Tsoukalas]

Sorry. One more thought. On the rope and pulley assessing tiller and timing can be tough.Nothing can really approximate how you hold the bow.  Check in front of a mirror or window at night. I think I am done. Jawge

[bubbles]

So much stuff to think about.    I'm leaning towards getting a bit more bend in the outer portion of the limbs, by taking wood off the sides, both lowering weight and getting more bendy at the same time. The bow is around 1 1/4" of set so I think slimming it down it bit won't overstress it.    I have noticed that sometimes, the bow will shoot pretty nice and sometimes it kicks, so my hand position/grip pressure is probably inconsistent.  Could have something to do with the fact that I'm just flinging arrows through it, not at full draw, not really thinking about form at all.  Just trying to work it in and see and changes in the tiller that might come from shooting it.   Do you guys start to put arrows through your bow before you've reached your target draw length/weight?  Obviously just pulling it to the length that you're at on the tillering stick.

Oh, arrows are 500-550 grains. 

Mike.

[bubbles]

I just realized that my tillering string has a foot and a half tail that hangs out of the timber hitch on the bottom limb.    Think that extra weight would slow the limb down causing a bit o' shock?