68" hickory pyramid bow 57@29

[simson]

Let me first say that is a nice bow with a sweet bend!
Two things were I would go different: 6 strands of BCY X is enough - you will gain 3-5 fps. The fade are very very steep, the ondulation is very hard, also longer fades are a lot easier to tiller.

[silent sniper]

Thank you everyone for the kind words! It is truly an honor to hear feedback from those who I consider idols in the bow making community. It is pretty special!

Simson, you are correct the fades are harsh and not overly attractive. I have not yet been able to come up with a better way to do it. I need a pretty thick riser to make the high wrist grip, but also want to keep my riser as short as possible to allow for more working limb length and less overall stress on the bow.

Maybe I will try to glue on a longer block of wood for the riser and cut longer tapered fades going into the full width handle. It will add a little more mass to the bow, but would probably help the ascetics and overall lines of the bow. I will see what I can come up with. Thank you for the critique.

6 strands of BCY-X will make for one thin string, but I am sure it would do just fine.Do you pad your loops with only 6 strands?  I have used 10 strand D10 strings with padded loops with great success in the past, but did not know exactly how to go about this new expensive BCY-X stuff.

Thanks again everyone, SS

[Stick Bender]

Very nice hickory stick congrats  I would be proud of that one !

[bentstick54]

Sweet looking stick you got there. You did good on that tiller for sure.

[dirthas]

Great looking bow! I've been thinking about a hickory board bow lately and this is inspiring.

[Bob W.]

Very nice Bow and tiller looks awesome!

[make-n-break]

Looks like a fine pyramid and an outstanding 3rd bow. I like a well executed, symmetrical "commercially decrowned stave"  as much as anything else!

[tattoo dave]

Yup. Darn nice bow for #3. Nice work?

Tattoo Dave

[silent sniper]

This would be my 3rd "working bow", that does not include the dozen failed attempts it took to get here.

If I have learned one thing so far it is to slow down and really think about what you are doing instead of blazing away trying to get it finished. Once i learned to slow down I finally started making bows that worked. I am hoping things will only continue to get better with more practice.

[loefflerchuck]

Great job! I live in Utah where it is pretty dry. I have found hickory to be one of the fastest woods I have used out here. This pyramid design is also the best for hickory IMHO. Your tiller is great

[loon]

... Wow.
Very nice
I love the color and everything.
When shooting with a longbow style grip, do you keep your wrist straight or collapse it?
http://www.dickwightman.com/howardhill/hillgrip/grip3/davethomas3.jpg

[silent sniper]

Loon, I collapse my wrist against the grip. I really wish i could shoot a longbow grip, as i find them more natural and in many ways more comfortable to shoot. Every year I end up buying a glass backed longbow because I think I am over the pain, just to have the elbow issues come back.Last year I finally gave up after 3 straight years of continuous elbow pain that lasted several days after each secession shooting my longbows.

 I shoot with more of a outstretched target style stance, and I think that low grip drives all that pressure thru the base of my wrist right into my elbow. I can start to feel the pain coming after just a few dozen shots from a low wrist grip. The more I continue to shoot them the more severe the pain gets. My last hill bow had my elbow so wrecked that I couldn't raise my arm for 3 days without a knife jabbing pain.

I may make a few "regular grip" wood bows just for the experience, but I have to accept the fact that I can not use them as a daily shooter compared to my high wrist bows which do not bother me.

[loon]

Sorry about that.
What if you did a medium or high wrist grip with a straight gripped bow? (putting the force on the web of the bow hand..) - puts more stress on the wrist, maybe less repeatable, but is done in many archery styles
you likely considered this already, but maybe you're locking your bow elbow by straightening the arm too much?... ...

[Del the cat]

...
If I have learned one thing so far it is to slow down and really think about what you are doing instead of blazing away trying to get it finished. Once i learned to slow down I finally started making bows that worked...

The force is now strong in this one 
Fine bow, I bet it packs a punch 
Del

[Hans H]

very nice bow with pretty good bends
Hans