Early wood cracks

[Kidder]

Wondering what the consensus is towards the risk on this bow. I’ve finished tillering it and am ready to shoot it in before finishing. I’ve shot a dozen or two arrows through it. Throughout the build it seemed like very fine cracks on the side kept popping up and I could never get by them and if I did another would be there. They don’t seem to be very deep but hard to tell - the ones I’ve taken out weren’t terribly deep. They appear to follow the early wood rings. Neither appears to run out. The one at the fade is really non bending due to the specific tillering because of the large knot there. They both appeared after tillering was complete and the bow was at rest. Fill them with CA and forget them? Fill them and do a wrap? Panic and say the sky is falling? Thanks!

[Hamish]

They don't look like they will be a problem. Fill with CA glue. I wouldn't bother wrapping them, though you could if you want.

[Allyn T]

Didnt you just post about a bow blowing up? Is this from that same tree?

[Eric Krewson]

Bad wood, proceed with caution.

[bentstick54]

I posted the Osage blow up. That is what I ran into on mine. I got past any visible signs so proceeded on. I got about  200 shots through it when it blew up just as I reached full  draw with no warning signs. Luckily it was the lower limb that blew.

[scp]

I'm not familiar with wind-shake, but it is defined as:
A crack or separation between growth rings in timber, attributed to the straining of tree trunks in high winds.
From: https://www.thefreedictionary.com/wind+shake

If wind can break a tree, it probably can damage the weaker grow rings and cause de-laminations deep inside the tree. We are talking about a tremendous amount of power abusing the wood here, much more than any damage we can cause in the process of tillering. Even though it might not be a problem in non-working parts of bow, other than cosmetics, it makes the whole stave questionable in its integrity.

[Kidder]

Didnt you just post about a bow blowing up? Is this from that same tree?

Yeah that was a bad BL. This is Osage I got in a trade from a member in Texas.

[Selfbowman]

Run a single edge razor blade in the crack as deep as you can . Then fill with thin super glue and clamp as best you can. Done probably 20-30 bows that way with great success. Arvin

[George Tsoukalas]

I stared at that photo for quite awhile.

That crack follows a grain line.

We've all seen those roller coaster looking bows in books where the back goes up and down.
That's because the bowyer correctly followed that side grain along the length of the bow. That has to be done too. What the back does the belly should do also.

Looks like you did a good job following the lateral tip to tip grain, kidder. I've found that cracks down the length of the stave are rarely fatal unless they run off the edge. I glue them up with a CA glue and lightly clamp them.

Who knows if a bow will survive? I shot a bow for  3 years that had those cracks down its length. I still have it.

If you don't feel comfortable with it don't use it.

Jawge

[Kidder]

I stared at that photo for quite awhile.

That crack follows a grain line.

We've all seen those roller coaster looking bows in books where the back goes up and down.
That's because the bowyer correctly followed that side grain along the length of the bow. That has to be done too. What the back does the belly should do also.

Looks like you did a good job following the lateral tip to tip grain, bentstick. I've found that cracks down the length of the stave are rarely fatal unless they run off the edge. I glue them up with a CA glue and lightly clamp them.

Who knows if a bow will survive? I shot a bow for  3 years that had those cracks down its length. I still have it.

If you don't feel comfortable with it don't use it.

Jawge

Thanks Jawge that’s my thought. The cracks follow the early wood grain but don’t ever run into the late wood. Same with all of the cracks that were removed during rough out. It was a super narrow stave to begin with and I felt like I couldn’t go any narrower - maybe I didn’t get all the way through them. Either way I’m not going to abandon it. Got it filled with thin CA as best I can. Gonna put a rest on it, shoot 100-200 arrows through it and then finish it. If it blows up fine. If not, great!

[Pat B]

Kidder, I would at least put a good, tight wrap on the bow where the shakes are, just for your own safety. If you feel uncomfortable with it you could cut it in half lengthwise and make 2 atlatls out of it.    That way it won't be a total loss.
 If it were my bow I would not shoot it. Even with all the work put into a bow to get it to that point it's just not worth a possible injury.

[Kidder]

It’s really interesting (although I’m not surprised) to see the range of responses. I’m not concerned about it blowing up and causing injury as it’s a lower limb. I also feel like the pictures may actually amplify what the problem looks like in real life as well. I’ve applied a coat of super thin CA to them and will do a sinew wrap for good measure and get to shooting it in. It’s going to be a cool bow assuming it survives. I’ve probably drawn it 500 times over the course of tillering and exercising and it’s a little long (66 inches) and I’ve got a short draw length (25-26 inches) so I’m hoping I should be fine. Only time will tell...
As a follow up am I correct to gather that what we are seeing is what is called a “wind shake”?

[Pat B]

I would say yes from what I can see.

[Kidder]

So here’s the fix. Spread thin CA over the crack, let it dry and then hit it with a scraper gently. Then added another CA application. Finally did a sinew wrap with titebond hide glue on either side of the limb crack and the base of the crack at the fade. Welcome opinions on the sinew job. Thanks for the input from everyone.

[Pat B]

Looks pretty good. Did you let the super glue sink down in the shakes?