max draw.

[Dazv]

Hi guys!!!

So i am making a 52inch long t-t oak D-bow 1/1/2 inches wide and hoping for around 50lbs. What do you guys think the max draw i could get without damage to the bow???

Thanks so much for all the help.

[Josh]

usually with red oak I try to stay within the 2x the draw length mantra sometimes a little over depending what the grain looks like. With a 52" bend through the handle red oak bow I wouldn't draw it past 26".  Maybe 24-25"  If you were wanting a full 28" draw I would go with a piece closer to 58"-60". Don't get me wrong you could probably get away with a longer draw for a little while but it will just take a bunch of set and eventually break from the stress. Good luck with whatever you decide.

[PEARL DRUMS]

Stave or board makes a HUGE difference. 

[Dazv]

Hi guys thanks for replying, it's a stave of English oak I think it is very similar to your white oak.

[PEARL DRUMS]

I would say 24-25" would be a very healthy max.

[Dazv]

Thanks that is just about perfect a friend of mine has the other half of the log and his draw is 24-25 inches. Thanks for all the help.

[DarkSoul]

English oak can very A LOT in quality. I've seen great quality wood with very little earlywood and an estimated SG of 0.80. On the other hand, I've also seen exceptionally lousy oak with very fine rings and way too much earlywood. This wood was exceptionally brittle and did not want to become a bow at all. In general, I think European oak is rated lower than White oak.
Best case scenario: you'll get 26" of draw. However, I think 24" is more realistically. Depending on the quality of the particular stave that is.

[Dazv]

Thanks for the help this stuff is pretty good not to much early wood.

[JackCrafty]

You can also take the approach of pulling the bow until you reach 1-1/2" of set.  More than 1-1/2" means that you are stressing the wood too much.

For an average 52" bow t-t, I would say that 1-1/2" of set will be reached at between 23"-24" of draw.  For an exceptionally well tillered bow, that amount of set would be reached at 26" of draw.

[Dazv]

That's for all the advice. This has helped me a lot.

[Badger]

Another approach is to weigh the bow at say 14" or so, as you progress the draw keep going back to the 14" mark and see if the weight is dropping. If it drops more than about 5# I would call it quits and limit my draw to that distance.

[JackCrafty]

Badger, very interesting approach.  Would you need to re-weigh at 14" every time you remove wood?  I think the draw weight at 14" would drop quickly if you didn't "zero" it in each time, if that makes sense.

[George Tsoukalas]

23-24" I'd say. Jawge

[Gordon]

Would you need to re-weigh at 14" every time you remove wood?

You have to recalibrate after each wood removal session. I use Steve's method when I tiller and it works very well.

[JackCrafty]

Thanks Gordon.