Turkish flight bow 43.5 inches

[mikekeswick]

Del - do it! I'll help you if needed. These bows are nuts....
Wizard - Thanks man, just make sure your core is flawless, no pins, no grain swirls etc....I wish I could find good enough yew here but flawless yew is a rare beast round here.
Beadman - Thanks, she sure does load up early! It is unlike any other bow I have made. The tube is get the balance between limbs at this point the left limb was just a bit stronger so instead of removing material i'm just letting it 'sweat' a bit. It depends on how bad the imbalance is but normally just a few minutes is enough.
Dictionary - Haha! What is this 'darkside' of which you speak!?

I managed to get out yesterday for a bit of flight shooting with this bow.
 Conditions weren't ideal and the bow started to show a little twist on the lower limb for some reason when I took it to full draw. I had no heat source so couldn't fix it where I was....therefore most shots were at about 23/24 inch draw. It has a heavy tillering string on it at the moment as well.
 The best shots were around 320yds.
 This gives me hope for a properly drawn arrow to go a good way further. Next weekend I will have all the small issues sorted out and will let some fly!
 The bow starts to stack at about 25 ish so there will be a good weigh gain in the last few inches. It shows little string follow even after being strung all afternoon.
 I want to plot the force/draw curve as this bow feels unlike any other I have made with very high initial tension then a definite 'let off' through the mid draw then a fairly stiff ramp up for the last few inches.
 I have high hopes for this bow.

[Del the cat]

It's the sinew that puts me off, I've got some red deer leg sinew (from Highland horn), but the prep' seemed such a pain and the fibres weren't very long. When I see the Oriental guys on youtube they have lovely long sinew.
Any pointers for decent sinew in the UK would be appreciated.
Del

[BowEd]

Sweeet Mike.Sounds like a real ripper!!!!!.That is unreal the overdraw your gonna get from that bow.That's putting the composites to work I'd say....lol.Gotta perform like a champ for sure.Nice bow and with not any major problems too.All natural materials too!!!!.
My composite hickory although 60" long has the same type of progession in poundage.A lot early/level off midway/then begin to ramp up to full draw.Pretty sweeet.Lately the bow has been stored in about 45% humidity a few weeks and I can tell it is performing even better than when first made.A pound or two more poundage too then of course.For hunting here it's what I want.A 52# bow performing like a higher poundage bow.I don't really know how what poundage bow it performs at really though.Somewhere in the 60#s range I'm sure.Maybe close to 70#'s.Not sure.A 600 grain arrow @ 175 fps @ 51#'s.I don't have a formula for that....lol.
Del....I've got these 12" to 16" strands I get from elk legs.Could send you a few tendons.A normal tendon will yield around 400 grains.Would a person run into a problem there?

[Del the cat]

PM sent.
Del

[loon]

Aw, good luck with the twist. Can you make a video of yourself correcting it please?

Backstrap sinew is longer... can buy cattle sinew from some places. It's expensive..

Mistakes I made when processing - rough surfaces, being impatient and pounding too hard?, pounding or ripping the sinew apart when wet

[mikekeswick]

If I remember I will but i'm off to the Isle of Skye for some well needed rest and relaxation. Sunshine, climbing and fishing
When I get back i'll be shooting this bow properly at full draw and will post the results
I've also got a few more hornbows ready to be shot.....

[mikekeswick]

So I got this bow straight and had a perfect weather day yesterday. My best shots were around 400yds and the best of the best at about 420yds. I still have the heavy tillering string on which will make a difference. I am still only getting to about 24/25 inches with this as it is quite a bear near full draw....think I need to do some training to shoot this bow properly

[mikekeswick]

I made a new 10 strand B50 string and shot some 5gpp arrows through the chrono, bow drawn to about 26/27 inches. Average of around 250fps with two of low 270's fps.

[sleek]

That is absolutely setting those fletching on fire!  Crap! Of course, you know, i got to try to build one in wood that will do that.... hopefully that light an arrow wont be too much like dry firing a bow.

[DC]

I remember your dance when you broke 200, what are you going to do for 270??

[sleek]

Its a spontaneous thing. Hopefully i wont have been listening to Jimmy Hendrix that day.

[BowEd]

That's a zippin for sure Mike and just think you hav'nt even come to 29" yet.300 is out there.

[BowEd]

What are pulling for poundage then?Around 75#'s maybe?

[sleek]

Im am really looking forward to numbers at 30 inches.

[mikekeswick]

This bows max draw is going to be 28. It isn't showing much strain after unstringing so maybe it could be drawn further...but not by me! I need to hit the push ups to be able to handle it easily. Shooting light flight arrows requires a perfect release (thumbring helps here) and the ability to shoot more weight....