Opinions on pyramid bow handle

[PeteF]

This is my first pyramid style bow build. I started off with Bubbys walk through in mind.


As I do the sanding and filling I think the shape will change slightly to smooth it out a little. Each line going up and down is 2" apart, making the handle and fades together a total of 8". The width of the handle lines is 1.25" with the fades tapering out to 2" at the widest part of the limbs. For the shelf part I went 1.25" up from center and .25" into the handle leaving 1" of handle thickness. I see people putting chunks of wood and other things tied into the handle, so I thought this would save me from doing that. The bow is 66" from ttt. Ive ripped it down to just under a 1/2" on the limbs. I will be aiming for 40-45#@28. Thanks for lookin!

[okie64]

Looks good to me. As long as your handle is thick enough and non bending then the cut in shelf will work fine. Some guys just dont like the way cut in shelves look on a selfbow, its more just a matter of preference though.

[Joec123able]

Looks good id cut a shelf in too never understood why guys don't like them on self bows but ehh ..

[Josh B]

Your shelf plan should be fine if like Okie says you have enough rigidity to keep it from bending there.  My concern would be the grain of your stave.  It looks like it has some curl to it.  It could just be saw marks that will clean up with sanding.  However if its curl, you might want to think about gluing on a backing strip.  Josh

[Blaflair2]

That's what I thought too josh, looks like it is figured. The grain swirls are bad ju ju

[Jim Davis]

You asked for opinions. I haven't cut a shelf on a bow since my fifth or sixth bow 15 years or so ago and who knows how many bows since. Fred Bear didn't like a shelf either. Some of us like to feel  the arrow on the bow hand. If you gap shoot, that's not so important. But since I don't use the arrow as a siting reference, the contact with arrow is a tactile input that gets analyzed with other things to direct the shot.

Hack away if you want. Make your bow look like a factory job.

[PeteF]

Yea definitely going to back this. The board is wavy from the saw marks when it was cut out it looks like. In the pic it looks intensified with the light glaring off of it. every bow tht I have bought or made has had a shelf on it, but maybe I will take some advice and try without and see how it feels. Only one way to find out! Thinking about bringing the handle down to 1" thickness and shooting off the hand.

[Hrothgar]

It looks like you're on the right track. Its a lot easier to make 'em and tiller 'em when they don't have a shelf.

[Marc St Louis]

It looks like you're on the right track. Its a lot easier to make 'em and tiller 'em when they don't have a shelf.

Make perhaps but tiller?  Really there should be no difference in tillering one or the other.

[Wooden Spring]

Take a large ball of playdough and squeeze it in your hand until it feels comfortable. Measure the "tube" of playdough that you just made, and make your handle that size. My handles come out to be 1" wide by 1.25" thick by 4" long. Sometimes I make a bulbous handle where it is 1" wide at the fades, then expands to 1.25" in the middle of the handle, then back down to 1" at the other fade.

[Hrothgar]

Marc, I was considering whether it was to bend through the handle or not, or whether it made any difference one way or the other.

[Pat B]

If you prefer a shelf add one later. You can use wood, bone, antler, a half of a golf tee, lots of things.

[bushboy]

I've made a couple with this design and added a wedge later.

[Bogaman]

On stiff handled bows, I usually tell people to make it how it suits them as long as they don't take to much wood out of a critical area. Unless your trying to replicate a bow from the past, make it so it is comfortable in your hand. It's where you can add your personal touch. Cut in shelf or not.
Bendy handled bows are different. You pretty much have to stick to basics on them.

[Jim Davis]

Now that you are in danger of following my advice and using your hand for a rest, be sure to treat the front  of the feathers properly--especially the lower hen feather.

Trim the quill on a taper down to the shaft, then put a drop of glue on the extreme forward and of the taper where it meets the shaft.

Otherwise,  you'll be back on here in a month telling us how the feathers are cutting your hand, and we don't want to hear that.