First Osage stave, looking for design help.

[ionicmuffin]

ok, here's an Osage stave a traded for. I thought it was going to be shorter, much shorter... well, as it turns out, it grew  and now instead of being 50 inches, it's about 64-66 inches     I want to make this a hunting weight bow, approximately 50 lbs at 26" and about 60 lbs or whatever it comes out to at 29" The 26 in draw would be when im crouching, measured that one several times. I would like to make sure the bow can be drawn to 30 in but i probably wont actually draw it that far every time. The 29 inch draw is when im standing up and drawing full. I will sinew back this bow and want this bow to be fast, i also care about accuracy, so if there is a good balanced design for sinew backed Osage in that range ill go for that. I am open to any number of designs that could work. I guess if i finish it no later than this upcoming summer i will have 3-6 months to shoot it and get acquainted with it. If combining the use of different draws for hunting is a bad idea then im willing to switch to a one draw length bow. I plan to take this one about as fast as a slug  mostly because i want to make it shoot, so im willing to sacrifice getting it done and shooting it early, for making the bow i want it to be. I also plan on adding purpleheart tip overlays and maybe some cherry bark to the back. Im not picky about it having an arrow pass or just being a shoot off the knuckle type.

[turtle]

Why do you want yo sinew back it? At 64" you should be able to hit your specs unbacked without any problems unless theres a problem with tne stave i cant see.

[ionicmuffin]

Well, aside from having to chase a ring i dont see any problems with the stave. I dont have to sinew back it. Guess i just thought i would. Probably better if i save the sinew for ERC rather than osage

[Will H]

For your first Osage stave I would suggest going with 1 1/2" limbs out to midlimb then taper to 1/2" at the nocks. I wouldn't sinew back it if I were you. Leave it long, 66" ttt with a 4" handle then mark 1 1/2" on either side for the fades. Be sure and follow a single longitudal grain for your centerline and lay everything out according to it. Just my 2 cents

[turtle]

Dont let me talk you out of sinew backing it if thats what you want to do. I was just curious. If i was going to sinew it i would shorten it to no more than 60" but i dont claim to be an expert on sinew backing. I actualy started my first sinewed bow in june. Put 3 layers on a 46" osage stave and put it aside to dry. Havnt got around to picking it up again.

[RyanY]

I'd go with the dimensions Will H gave you. Make sure it has an elliptical tiller.

[ionicmuffin]

well, in all honesty, i probably shouldn't sinew back it because i live in Washington...the rain-all-day-everyday state. I was going to sinew back it because this stave when it left the shippers hands was 50 inches(in reality he switched them, but 50 inches is what i was expected)

[osage outlaw]

Will H gave you some great advice.  I wouldn't sinew back it either because of the length.  Save your sinew for a shorter bow.

[kid bow]

i would follow the grain and make it wiggily on the sides it makes great character bows

[ionicmuffin]

sounds like a plan. Ill take it one step at a time, chasing a ring, laying out the bow, roughing it out, floor tillering, basic tiller, final tiller, adding tip overlays, sanding and finishing it, adding a handle wrap(that's just how i like my bows), then shooting it in. I hope to start soon, and maybe finish either around 2-5 months later.

[JW_Halverson]

Go back and read some of the recent threads on bendy handled bows.  Pay special attention to the ones with flipped tips.  If you are using this bow for hunting, you get some of the best of all worlds....lotsa working limbs, low string angle, and less limb hanging out in the wind to catch on brush, and low mass for carrying in the field. 

Have a care when chasing the back growth ring and you won't need your sinew tricks yet.  Inch and a quarter wide tapering mostly in the last 1/3 of the limb to 1/2 inch wide at the nocks.  Nock to nock length can be simply twice your draw length.

Not sure how you shoot accurately without a set anchor point registering your draw length, or even how you match arrow spine to the bow, but if you can do it then more power to ya.  Fact is, I ain't shooting so straight with matched spine arrows built specially for the one and only bow I am shooting at a carefully indexed draw length!!!

And as usual....post pics!

[ionicmuffin]

Ill make sure to look at previous posts, I don't change draws, as i said in the post, the shorter of the two is when im crouching, i don't get as much draw out of it, the longer draw is when im standing up strait and extending my draw to a comfortable max. My anchor point is the same, i draw to the corner of my mouth with my index finger touching the corner. And from what ive read, you measure all your spines from 26" then you change it based on the length of the arrow, so if i made a 31" arrow, i would be lessening the spine, i could also just make 2 sets of arrows(27-28 and 31-32.) One for short draws and one for the longer. Then just separate them in the quiver and make some distinction between the two(could be 2 fletch vs 3) I was thinking that once i chase a ring i would take a compass and draw a circle with the center where i drew it based on grain, ive seen a lot of people doing this to get accurate wiggles and snakes. This stave does have some reflex, but not that much. I will more than likely flip the tip like you said, that combine with narrow tips seems like it would shoot fast and wind up with less hand shock, and as you said, it would have a lower string angle and would be effectively shorter, allowing it to clear bushes better.

[JW_Halverson]

I wait with bated breath for your first pics!  This is gonna be good.

[ionicmuffin]

when i finish with my current board bow for a friend i will get started on this one. Ill also get my sis to take pics with her nice cam so you all can see better.

[Bryce]

Go slow