Osage Bendy Crack/Splinter

[Bayou Ben]

I normally don't get too upset about bows breaking as it happens, but this one admittedly is disheartening.
This is the osage bendy bow that I originally had help from Half Eye (Rich) on.  I got it tillered out and shot it a few times then got it all finished up.  The finish was nice and dry and I went out to shoot it at lunch and this happened. 
Would a sinew wrap help this at all or is it toast? 
Lesson learned.  I should have shot this bow more before finishing it. 

[ohma2]

Ben thats a wicked looking crack in a bad place as im sure you know.all i would do is wrap it and hope for the best.i sure wouldnt trash it without a try.sorry for that i enjoyed the post with Rich helping along.

[bradsmith2010]

I would try to sinew wrap it, I agree give it a try,,

[osage outlaw]

When laying out that bow did you follow the grain lines around that knot?  It doesn't look like the limb is any wider there.  That might have been the cause or at least part of it. 

[Bayou Ben]

Thanks Steve and Brad.  I'll wrap it up and see what happens. 

Clint, the stave wasn't wide and it was sawed on one side and the knot was right in the middle.  So I didn't have much room to really follow the grain.  That knot was my biggest concern, but I'm not sure what else I could have done with it.    http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,64560.msg907497.html#msg907497

Looking at it again, I guess I could have left a little more width than I did. 

[bradsmith2010]

yes I agree,, u were not able to follow the grain wide enough around the know,,,, that looks like the cause,,
I think a wrap will work,,since the bow did not blow,,

[Hamish]

Like the other guys have mentioned,  you needed extra width around the knot to compensate. I see a lot of bowyers not compensate, and sometimes get away with it. Always take the time to compensate you won't ever have a problem.

[bentstick54]

I agree with trying a wrap, but I would try to force in some super glue into the crack first, then wrap.

[Danzn Bar]

I think it was wide enough, you rounded the edge corner too much and violated a ring.  Keep the edge a little sharper(more wood) at the knot and it would have been fine.  JMHO....
DBar

[upstatenybowyer]

I'm pretty sure The Outlaw hit the nail on the head. As said, if you follow the grain around a knot you can poke the punky wood right out and leave it with a hole in the middle.

If you don't have the width, I think the best thing you can do is leave it thicker.

That said, I think your bow has a chance if you can fill the crack w/ CA, clamp it back against the limb, then wrap the heck out of it w/ sinew.

Best of luck Ben, the tiller looks awesome.

[Danzn Bar]

Never liked a beautiful woman with Bandaids all over her. 
I'd start another,
I've got one with a bandaid and don't shoot her anymore
DBar.

[bradsmith2010]

this bow has a sinew wrap,, I got it sinewed and heard a pop,, well the bow was coming apart close to the handle under the sinew,, I was pretty disappointed,, but thought well Ill give it a try,, I sinew wrapped the area,, and put a thin rawhide over it,, to dress it up a bit,, put a copperhead on it,, and that year killed a nice spike, ,on that day it was the most beautiful bow I had ever made,,

[Bayou Ben]

Thanks for the responses guys.  Nice deer Brad.
I’m normally not one to bandage a bow but I had high hopes of hunting out the rest of the season with this primitive stick.  And it came out exactly how I wanted it.   I’ll sleep on it and see how I feel about it in the morning. 
It already has sinew on it.  I wrapped a wind check near the tip and I placed a few strands around the center of the bow for hand placement. 

[Morgan]

The bend on that stick is beautiful! I’d absolutely glue it and sinew wrap it and shoot the fool out of it to see if it’d break. It’s a NA style D bow and if it takes the repair and survives, it’ll be true to style I believe. Pretty sure the native bowyers wouldn’t chunk that stick in the fire without trying to save it.

[Bayou Ben]

I like that attitude Morgan.  I should wrap it up and TRY to break it.  If it survives then it was meant to go in the woods with me.