Spliced billets for a bendy handled bow.

[willie]

I would welcome the comments from anyone who can report on their experience with, or point to a thread with a bendy handled bow ........with a splice in the handle.

[DC]

I've never been brave enough to try it . I think Del has though. I reserve the right to be wrong.

[mmattockx]

I would welcome the comments from anyone who can report on their experience with, or point to a thread with a bendy handled bow ........with a splice in the handle.

What part of the splice are you worried about, the glue at the back surface or something else? Do you have time to try a test bow from a cheap board or birch stave? Could it be a semi-bendy handle with an overlay covering the back of the splice? Or maybe put a sinew/linen/something else patch over the splice?


Mark

[DC]

The only thing like it I've tried was a "V" joint in the working portion of a limb. The point of the "V" popped out. It wasn't an honest test just a couple of scraps of yew but it fuelled my doubt.

[bradsmith2010]

I love that,, "fuel my doubt",, I have had alot of things in bow making do that,,

[Pat B]

Seems like someone tried this a few years ago but I don't remember the outcome. I think they made the splice horizontal instead of vertical.

[PatM]

Go to the  English Warbow page.  Will S does this all the time and it will have some connection to Joe Gibbs.

[bownarra]

If you get the splice perfect it will work. you can of course wrap it once the bow is tillered.

[willie]

I found this..http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php?topic=61159.0

and am still looking for a thread about wills warbow or a horizontal splice. At first, the horizontal splice seemed iffy, but really, when considering the questions Mark posed, I realized the back surface is under the most strain and where problems begin, so not really sure why horizontal or vertical should matter, so long as the glueline at the surface has integrity.

[bownarra]

The splice must be vertical and then wrapped for security.
Imagine a spliced handle with no riser lams failing when being drawn by hand....ummm not for me thanks!
If done horizontally you would have a glueline running right across your back....just asking to be separated....if using a ring porous wood imagine the lines of cut through earlywood and trying to work stepped through (almost) end grain into a perfect splice oo er…

[Del the cat]

I've never been brave enough to try it . I think Del has though. I reserve the right to be wrong.

LOL!
Not sure if I have... I wouldn't risk it unless it has a continuous back over the billets.
E.G Yew billets with boo back, no problem at all.... I'm working one at the moment
Del

[willie]

E.G Yew billets with boo back, no problem at all.... I'm working one at the moment
Del

A horizontal splice? the thread I linked to above, was mostly about your Z vertical? splice.

The splice must be vertical and then wrapped for security.
Imagine a spliced handle with no riser lams failing when being drawn by hand....ummm not for me thanks!
If done horizontally you would have a glueline running right across your back....just asking to be separated....if using a ring porous wood imagine the lines of cut through earlywood and trying to work stepped through (almost) end grain into a perfect splice oo er…

a cap on the back over the "glueline running right across your back" could take care of the back surface strain. But I am not sure why the orientation would matter otherwise. Maybe I'm missing something, though

[DC]

Maybe think of the glue line as a crack. With a horizontal splice the glue line is across the back, with a vertical slice the glue line is more lengthwise.

[willie]

Maybe think of the glue line as a crack. With a horizontal splice the glue line is across the back, with a vertical slice the glue line is more lengthwise.

For sure, I follow what Mike is saying about a  "crack across the back".  And it is sort of natural to "feel" better about a vertical finger joint than a horizontal joint. Is this inclination based on experience or suspicion?

But going back to what was mentioned earlier.

The point of the "V" popped out.

So if the break starts on the surface, why would a point of a "V" act much different from a feathered edge cross ways?, as long as the taper and glue area was sufficient. We have seen vertical finger joints work and some that have failed, but I have yet to see a reported failure of a horizontal joint, although the orientation works in applications like sailboat masts etc. A patch or short cover lam used to cover a "W" splice has a cross ways glue line at the ends, and it's at the surface where stress is highest.

[Ricardovanleeuwen]

In our hardware store they sell two component epoxy with the feature :flexible
You could try some sort of glue