What exactly is "set?"

[Pappy]

  There are some many different views, all boils down to what every you want to call it set/string follow/giving in / giving up, crushing cells or stretching the back it is preferable to keep it to a minimum. A little ant bad [always going to have a little with wood ] a lot not so good. Now what about that pop corn and as Roy reminded me, a cold beer would be nice also.
Pappy

[half eye]

Pappy, Roy  pop-corn and beer.....maybe push them chairs back away from the fire just a little,eh
rich

[PEARL DRUMS]

What pappy and Rich said, with cheese on it.

[Roy]

Just looked up the meaning of set. It means to place something down someplace, or a pair of something makes a set. Like set the pop corn and beer down here, or look at the set on that chick:)

[SLIMBOB]

Ok. Hard to argue with the wisdom in THAT!  I'm in on both.

[George Tsoukalas]

Dances with Squirrels spiked it!

"Set - The result, mostly due to belly compression/compaction, of a bow’s inability to return to its original shape after use. For instance, if a bow was constructed from a bow stave with 3” of reflex and after tillering, shooting in, and unstringing, the bow then shows 1” of reflex, the bow is said to have taken 2” of set."

String follow is how much the bow looks like it's strung when it isn't as caused by tillering.

Deflex (bend towards the string" is heated in or natural.

All I can say is "Set happens!"

Jawge

[alcot]

I had an ironwood bow that ended up with a good 4" of set and when I heat treated it clamped it came out straight as an arrow. What happened there? From what I've read if the fibers are crushed they're crushed.

[CrazyHorse1969]

I did not know how much of a can of worms I was opening up by asking about "set." Very informative...and entertaining too.

[PEARL DRUMS]

Its always gets debated Scott, but its not debatable. Similar to black is black and white is white.

[CrazyHorse1969]

Its always gets debated Scott, but its not debatable. Similar to black is black and white is white.

Understood.

[PEARL DRUMS]

We cant possibly discuss low set tillering and monitored set while tillering if we cant differentiate set and string follow.

[CrazyHorse1969]

We cant possibly discuss low set tillering and monitored set while tillering if we cant differentiate set and string follow.

By the way, the whole reason I asked is because I backed the Black Locust bow I have been working on with rawhide, which turned out better than expected, considering it was my first time, rechecked the bow's tiller, etc., then proceeded to shoot the bow 50 times or so. All went well. After I unstrung the bow, I noticed a bit of "set" (at least what I thought was "set") in the upper limb, a limb that--many steps back--I had to heat treat because it was both badly twisted and bent. I am beginning to think that perhaps I heated it either too much or too many times. In any case, the bow shoots straight and snappy, and the tiller is the best tiller job for me to date. Plus, it has not blown up in my face...yet. I will shoot it another 50 times or so today, and if all goes well finish it off and call it good and on to the next bow.

[PatM]

It's all just degrees of change from original profile on an integer scale.
 But if you are studying your finished and shot in bow and determining  exactly how much it creeps back after unstringing you need to find something more productive to do.
 

[PEARL DRUMS]

We cant possibly discuss low set tillering and monitored set while tillering if we cant differentiate set and string follow.

By the way, the whole reason I asked is because I backed the Black Locust bow I have been working on with rawhide, which turned out better than expected, considering it was my first time, rechecked the bow's tiller, etc., then proceeded to shoot the bow 50 times or so. All went well. After I unstrung the bow, I noticed a bit of "set" (at least what I thought was "set") in the upper limb, a limb that--many steps back--I had to heat treat because it was both badly twisted and bent. I am beginning to think that perhaps I heated it either too much or too many times. In any case, the bow shoots straight and snappy, and the tiller is the best tiller job for me to date. Plus, it has not blown up in my face...yet. I will shoot it another 50 times or so today, and if all goes well finish it off and call it good and on to the next bow.

Soooooo your saying I may not owe you another stave? Im glad its worked so far, had a good feeling it would.

[CrazyHorse1969]

It's all just degrees of change from original profile on an integer scale.
 But if you are studying your finished and shot in bow and determining  exactly how much it creeps back after unstringing you need to find something more productive to do.

Perhaps I should have been more clear, I am not brooding over and unnecessarily monitoring a slightly bent limb. I am just trying to deduce where I may have gone wrong, so I do not make the same misstep again down the road.