Boo backed hickery, Newbie getting nervous

[corbeau75]

This is were I have gotten into trouble before, so I thought I would go really slow and ask for help!

The Bow I am trying to make is 66" overall. The grip is 8 inches and is static. The upper limb is 29.5" long and the lower is 28", so the bow is 1.5" asymmetrical. The limbs are 1.5" in width for about 8" then taper to .5" at the tips. The bow is made of hickory with a bamboo backing.

I am trying to end up with about 60# at 28" of draw. I will shoot off the hand so there is no window cut.

This is how much bend I get with 50# of draw.

Any advice or help would be much appreciated!

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[Pat B]

The left limb seems to be bending a bit more. Watch out for that fade area and a bit out from it. Seems to be bending more than anywhere else.  Pat

[Badbill]

What is that thing hanging in the back?? I've never seen a bow like that before!

[The Burnt Hill Archer]

that thing looks like its got training wheels on it 

yup id have to agree with pat, watch getting too weak in the fades. thats where you dont want to get set.

Phil

[JW_Halverson]

Hey Badbill, I think it might be some kinda foreign bike...or maybe it's a pulley system for hanging the deer that cool boo-hick bow is gonna shoot!

Good luck with the tillering, corbeau!  Keep us posted.

[TRACY]

Looks like you're on track to your target weight. Take it slow and check the tiller often. Good luck.

Tracy

[corbeau75]

Sorry about the ol wheelie in the back ground, it's been doing just that for about 8-9 years now! I've forgotten about it! LOL
I will work the tip just a tinny bit a concentrate mid limb.

How much scrapping each time would you say and how much should I Flex/exercise it before checking the tiller?

[madcrow]

I usually go with 5 scrapes and 50 pulls on the rope.  Nice and slow works really good.  Don't want it to look like it is trying to take off. 

[Pat B]

Once it starts bending you should be checking tiller! The sooner you get things bending together and evenly the better off you are. The whole process should flow along until the bow is completed.   Pat

[wally]

I used to be so impatient to get a bow shooting that I hurried it along. WRONG.
Take it slow and absorb the knowlege you again. I now scape it then check tiller each time. I test for draw wt and if it's gonna take too long to get down to what I want, I rasp it with an old farriers rasp evenly to remove more wood then start with the finer scraping again, check it, level out the limbs so they bend evenly. Check it, take kinks, hinge out, check it. and so on 'til it's right. No rush - softly softly catchee monkey, and sometimes the good tiller on a selfbow is as elusive as a monkey.
Enjoy yourself, It's just another bit of wood and you can always get more of that.

[corbeau75]

I did some scrapping tonight! This is how it looks now, the string on the left side is were I think there is the most bend and the black tape shows were the bow is the bending the least. Am I right?

The other pic is the bow unstrung, for comparion. The bow is pulling 60# at 17.5" of draw. I seem to still be on track. I see the right/upper limb being the stiffer of the two.

I have only braced the bow at about 1", how long until I start to raise it, and to what?

Thanks for your tips!! I don't quite trust my eye alone yet!! LOL

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[Susquehannock]

If you are at 17.5" of draw, you should be bracing it with a regular string. I believe you will get inaccurate results at this point from a long tillering string. I think you are right that midlimb needs to bend more. I don't think the bow is perfectly on the tillering stick, but here is a drawing of where I would scrape (yellow area). I think the fades are bending the most and you should get midlimb doing this bending. What is your target weight? Remember to excercise the bow between wood removal and don't pull the bow past your intended final draw weight.

Jason




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[corbeau75]

I am trying to end up at about 60# at 28"

Thanks for the illustration, that's pretty clear

[cracker]

I agree with jason your bow is a little off on your t stick I put a center mark on my t stick and one on my bow and on my string so everything is centered up. I think you can tell more about what you are looking at that way. Ronnie

[corbeau75]

Here are some new pictures. I see the lower limb bending more still, I only scraped it on time after I scraped at the right/upper limb three times and thought they looked about equal. I have scraped at the upper limb another 2 or 3 times and it still looks stiff. I am still good for target weight with #60 at 19" of draw now.

Is it normal for one limb to bend easy with small amounts of wood removed and the other just wants to stay stiff even though you keep removing wood?

I have been going very slow, just a couple scrapes then flexing, then checking

Any advice would be great!!
Thanks!

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