Decisions decisions . . . Curvy hackberry--GIFTED, a Conversion Story:)

[k-hat]

SKIP TO HERE   http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,31175.msg462530.html#msg462530  FOR THE "CONVERSION" 

Got my TG tradebow in the works, and i'm tryna think ahead as to what profile i want to go with.  I have a little of the last ring to chase, then hopefully i'll be moving pretty quickly on profiling and straightening. 

Here are two pics of where she is now, one  slightly offset from the other, tryna decide where i wanna center it:





the grid markings are 2"x2".  At first i was thinking maybe a 5 curve like Gun Doc and some others have done recently, but then i'm thinking maybe just take out that deflex on the right and make the right match the left. Is 5-6" of straightlimbed backset too much?   Haven't done any with backset out of the handle like that, I usually induce a more gentle curve to reflex the limbs. 

If you have any example of one that had a lot of backset from the handle, I'd love to see it!

Thanks for any input

[k-hat]

Oh yeah, and she lines up very nicely from tip to tip, almost board straight in that regard, thankfully

[Youngboyer2(billyf)]

That I a scary peice of wood, you are one brave dude to undertake a project like that

[Josh B]

Man! Your just gettin cocky now!  Taming that last beast so well must a made an impact on ya'!  Can't wait to see how this one turns out.  Josh

[k-hat]

LOL Doc , i guess so, cause i didn't think it looked that bad compared to the last one!!

This is a sister stave to that last one i did.  Gonna definitely do some straightening this time though to make it a little easier on the tiller, get rid of some of the character.  . . i think. . .

[Josh B]

NO NO NO!  We mustn't rid the character!  Embrace the character!   Ok, you might have to tame it a  little. Just clowning.  Josh

[gstoneberg]

The problem with backset is getting good string tension at brace.   I ran into this back in my glass laminated bow days playing with handle shapes in take-downs.  I'm assuming the back is up in the pictures.  I would heat bend the left limb to roughly the same profile as the right limb.  Then it'd be a toss-up to go that way or add a little recurve/reflex to the tips to get them  nearer the plane of the handle.  I'd probably start with them straight, leaving the tips a little thick so I could flip them later if I thought the bow needed it.

Looking forward to what you come up with.  That's a very cool stave.  Good luck.

George

[k-hat]

Whoops!!!  Forgot to mention that the belly is up, the back is down.  So now what George   (sounded like really good advice though!

[blackhawk]

what kind of wood is it?

heres what what i would do if it were me(if its osage.or a strong compression wood)...id get it down to floor tiller,then correct that kink in that right limb to match the other limb,then id flip the tips,then id put one or two layers of sinew on it as is and dont reverse brace it,or pull it down on a form to induce anymore setback cus youll have enough already and the sinew will pull in another inch plus....so yup,id make a sinewed 5 curve with that.

[k-hat]

It's hackberry bro!  Can't wait to see what she can do, and i'll probly cry like a baby when i send her off to her betrothed

As for sinew, I don't have any and don't think i'm ready for it yet!  I was really hopin to do this one unbacked to prove to myself that i can , since i had to back the last one that i really didn't want to cuz she lifted an ugly splinter.  This one is super clean and no pin knots on the back at all (after removing a lot of bad sapwood and chasing a ring), there is one nice lil knot that i may be able to profile away

[blackhawk]

i think you can still make an  unbacked 5 curve IF theres no knot in that handle area...if not then i think it would be safe to heat that area and take a lil bit of that setback out. if there is a knot there you can take some of it out in each fade area as well,but carefully is the key word to either way.you ll have to slowly ease her down lil by lil,step by step,twist by twist of a clamp with dry heat. once pliable ease her down a lil to the point of where it just starts to tighten up,then stop,reapply oil and keep heating it,then repeat till your just a hair past your desired goal. understand amigo?

[k-hat]

Thanks for the input Blackhawk.  I comprende amigo (intentional bad spanglish there ).  So are you saying that as is the handle is set back too far?  There's no knot in that area, very clear, so bending it shouldn't pose a problem. 

[k-hat]

Well, she's not my tradebow as i thought, but she's done.  I decided to gift her to the guy that let me cut the tree down that she came from.  I wound up chasing down to a good ring and tillering her with very little correction at all.  I did flip the tips slightly to diminish stack because the guy has a long draw (29").   She's actually the sister stave to this one  http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,30090.0.html, i think you can see the resemblance!

Specs:  Hackberry, 50#@29", 66"ntn, osage rest and tip overlays, light walnut finish with poly then waxed.

Oh, and her name is "Beauty" due to the lovey beauty mark on the top limb

[k-hat]

more:






Hope y'all like

[lesken2011]

Nice, K-Hat. Real nice profile!!