What to do with maple Flatbow

[Zion]

I began making this bow yesterday and it's at floortiller right now, the bend is pretty even. It's 64" in length and 2" at the fades. The top limb is more reflexed than the other and has a cluster of knots in the inner third of the limb. My question is if the top limb will be overstressed with all the reflex if i just continue. Would it be better to heat the reflex out and make it look like the bottom limb, or tiller the reflex out? I'm aiming for 65-70#.

[SLIMBOB]

I figure you'll get a few different answers on this one.. I personally like for my limbs to start out with the same profile, or at least close.  Easier for me to tiller from there forward, it is not necessary though.  I have a bow I made some time back with a profile somewhat like your picture, a little less.  Odd looking at brace, but the tiller is right, or close.  My vote, add reflex to one or deflex the other to match in that order.

Edit.  Looking at the picture, if you reflex to match, it'll be a bunch.....I'd consider it anyway.

[Jodocus]

I'd steam bend it a little to resemble the other limb. If it weren't maple. And witth maple, too, but with some doubt.

[H Rhodes]

I have never worked with maple.  I did just finish helping a buddy out with real similar stave in osage though.  I think that, performance wise, it only matters what the limbs look like when drawn.  If it shoots sweet and they are bending evenly - it's a good bow.  He opted not to induce any heat corrections and, although it doesn't look classy when braced it looks fine at full draw and shoots good.  I am inclined to do like slimbob suggested.  I think it would make the tillering process easier as well as making a better looking bow.   Depends on what you want.  Shooting for such a heavy draw weight out of a 64" whitewood bow, you might want to leave off weakening the wood with any type of heat.  There's my two cents.  I have admired your work and have no doubt you will wow us with this one.

[Zion]

Thanks for the help guys. The thing is, i'm confident in my tillering, i've just had crappy luck with reflexed maple. it seems like it comes in underweight or breaks, for no real reason. hrhodes, do you think the upper limb will lose alot of the reflex as i tiller? this has happened to me before. I guess i'm worried that since i have to make the upper limb a lot thinner, the reflex will eventually pull out and i'll end up underweight. Since most of the reflex in the upper limb is in the outer 3rd, do you think it would strengthen the limb in the long run if i steamed it straighter? or should i just go ahead and tiller it out? Thanks for replies.

[Dances with squirrels]

I would just tiller it out, keeping in mind that the limb profiles will look different at brace and at any point during the draw. If you tiller so that the limbs are synchronized,  the reflexed limb will always look different than, and be behind the other limb... as well it should be.

[H Rhodes]

That looks like a half split from a smaller diameter tree?  I have made a few out of hickory/white oak staves  that had similar looking reflex, and yeah, I think that a lot of that reflex will come out while tillering.  To make weight, I think you should just tiller it out.  Maybe one of these real experts will chime in who know more than me.  That's my gut feeling though.  I think that if you get 70lbs of draw out of that stave, you will need every bit of strength the wood can give you.  Any kind of heat, steam or dry, weakens wood a little bit (even though I heat dang near every bow I build!).
    Seems like I read somewhere that two inch wide limbs that stay full width 2/3 of the limb,  on a 66" bow with eight inches of non-bending handle makes a bow that equals the specific gravity of the bow.  (Pure plagerism from TBB!!)  If that quote holds true, you are asking a lot of that stave.  Tiller that sucker out and see what she does.     

[Zion]

I read that too the other day, i'm actually expecting to get weight around 60, maybe 65. i'll go tiller it some more!