Does heat treating raise draw weight?

[Christian Soldier]

So I've got this hickory self bow. 62" long, kind of pyramid shaped, stiff handle, and draws about 45lbs @ 26". It's been drying for several months, well tillered, and takes about an inch of set.

I want this to be my hunting bow this year but I'd really prefer that it be closer to 50lbs and I'd also prefer not to pike it so I can keep the whole 'longer bow velocity/stability" thing.

If I dry heat a little reflex into this bow or just heat treat it can I bump it up to 50lbs?

If so, any advice for doing so?

[paulsemp]

I would say heat treat it with about 3 inches reflex and you should have no problem bumping up 5 pounds if you do not have to tiller much

[PEARL DRUMS]

You will get an easy 12-15#. Odds are you will have to reduce it afterwards.

[tom sawyer]

You might get as much as 5lb from a good heat treatment of the belly.  I'd be hesitant to try to reflex a shot-in bow.

[Josh B]

Simple answer-yes.  Heat treatment will raise draw weight, however it is a  far more profound increase if you do it before shooting in.  I wouldn't try to induce reflex after a bow has already been shot in because the belly wood fibers have already been crushed to some degree and trying to put those damaged fibers under a tension load will be real prone to tearing apart.  I'm not saying it can't be done, because it has been done.  You just run a higher risk of ruining the bow.  When I heat treat, I use a heat gun on high about 3 inches off the wood.  I start at the fade and let it just start turning a light Caramel color, then I move it a half inch towards the tip.  I let it set there for a little bit and then move it another half inch.  It will take some practice to get the timing right, but by moving the heat a little at a time, you can get a nice even heat treatment along the entire limb instead of the black blotches here and there down the limbs like I sometimes see.  Just my .02.   Josh

[Pappy]

You should easily pick up 5 lbs,probably more,be sure to give it a few days afterwards to rehydrate. 
   Pappy

[blackhawk]

Why do you need it to be 50 pounds? Are you more accurate with a 50 pound bow than a 45 pound bow? Will a deer know the difference between the two with a well placed shot? Nothing wrong with a 45 pound bow with one inch of follow....do you already shoot the bow well? If so..leave it alone IMO. Bows are about trade offs and is it worth the risk of possibly ruining it? That's up to you....but yeah you can heat treat it inducing reflex into it and gain that 5 pounds easy....as long as a bow is above hunting weight 5 pounds of difference is too insignificant to me to change that...but that's just me.  Or what if you do gain that extra poundage and you can't shoot it as well as it was before? See where I'm going?

[Del the cat]

Yes, but only if you do it right.
If you aren't bored half to death doing just one limb you are going too quick.
Del

[Joec123able]

YES and heat treating isn't hard to do

[BowEd]

What was said pretty much sums it for ya.It's what Steve Gardner calls tweaking a bow to get it to be more efficient.I've done a lot of hickory heat treating and it can be quite a transformation that happens.Make sure your back looks very sound.Say you did heat treat it,you induce reflex,and the 1" of set disappeares.The reflex put in it should slowly increase as it goes towards the tip and it is better to start at the tip end first heat treating it too because you don't want most of the reflex being put right at the fades.It might go over your 50#.You can at that time side tiller it to reduce mass and lower the draw weight and really have a more efficient bow keepng your reflex in the process.But now there is'nt a guarentee to exactly predict how much poundage you will gain doing it.I will say somewhere between 5 to 10 pounds.If you do it what it'll teach you if you hav'nt done this before that a combination of belly and side tillering will produce a nice efficient bow for ya.Personally I would just make another one then try the above tactics on it,but a slow even tempering to me is the key 3 to 4 inches away from the belly.Let that bow rehydrate at least 10 days afterwards too.

[SLIMBOB]

Ditto Blackhawk.  Can't hardly tell the difference between a hard stacking 45 and a sweet pulling 50.  If raising the draw weight 5 lbs  is the only reason you are doing it, I would reconsider.  No harm in experimenting though, you just may end up with less than you started with.

[Christian Soldier]

Thanks guys!

I just drew it to 27" yesterday and I haven't shot it yet, so that's a good thing I guess. It just 'feels' too light. Its hard to explain. If you are a gun guy it's like the difference between a polymer .45 and a 1911. Both are .45 and release the same amount of energy but the recoil just feels 'better' in a 1911.

This is also turning out to be something of my 'perfect bow' and I want it to have my 'perfect draw weight' as well.

I think I'll take Gun Doc's advice and heat treat and give it just a little reflex. then let it dry for a week and finish/stain it. Pictures will be up then.

[bubby]

I got to agree with Blackhawk, ya know sometimes we just cant leave well enough alone and a lot of good bows end up ruined, you say that when you draw it it feels light, maybe it's just smooth, i'd rather have a smooth drawing bow than hit a certain# and not like the way she shoots, jm2cw, bub

[Thesquirrelslinger]

Brace it higher? Take 1/2 inch off of each tip?
Maybe heat treating will help, maybe not. I do know that when I heat treated an super-shortie elm bow it acted weak in tension... but I kinda literally burnt the wood. Black char spots, and actually caught one tip on fire.

[smoke]

I heat treated a hickory board bow last winter and it increased the draw weight 10-12 pounds.  It was a real rocket launcher and I shot it a lot . . . and then, out of the blue, it blew!  Oh well . . . trade-offs.  (It was fun anyway!)