advise on hick selfbow

[sailordad]

well i got this  hick stave from mike ( the other hick stave i have is put away ,my younger son wants to work that into his own bow little by little when home on leave)
it is pulling 14 inches with a 1.5 inch brace right now at about 35 lbs.
one limb had natural deflex the other natural reflex,light proper twist.  i have been thinking of making a form and heating some reflex back into both limbs before i go
any further on the tiller.
not real worried on a real high draw weight,the person it is being made for isnt real picky on weight but about a 26 inch draw.

let me know what ya all think of the tiller so far and about adding in reflex.
feel free to make little circles or marks to point out tiller issues.

here are some pics

this is like i said,14 inches with a 1.5 brace


unstrung,same limb to the left


thanks                                                                              peace,
                                                                                              tim

[redwasp]

looks good to me so far how long is it? looks like right limb should be left alone at the fades but im not an expert.

[armymedic.2]

im thinkin both could use more bend midlimb to tips, and the fade on the right could bend more also.  i would leave the fade on the left limb alone for right now, i think it bending there is why you are getting the set.  i know nothing about reflex but i would say it looks like a real good start.  JMHO.  tell your son i wish him well.

[George Tsoukalas]

What armymedic said. To me the right limb appears stiffer. It could be an illusion. Flip the bow around and see. Jawge

[Jbell]

I would say If you are going to reflex it do it now. I wouldn't do any more tillering until you get both limbs reflexed the same amount. A good 2-3" reflex will work nicely. Good luck!

[DanaM]

Tim How long is it? what is the front view profile Pyramid? or paralell then tapering?

As for adding reflex I would do it, you don't need a form you can brace it backwards about 3" and
hit it with the heatgun. As for the tiller I would stay away from the fades for now, its easy to get a ton of set
in the fade area. Remember with hickory to keep it dry.

[sailordad]

thanks everyone,
i dont have the ambition to go get my tape measure right now,or at all today(its our 20th anniversary today so no touching bows)
i know the wood is good and dry,its been in the house for about a month,the indoor humidity is at 35% and i dont plan on turning on
the humidifier untill this on is finished.
i will try and get measurements and more pics much later tonight. gotta spend lots of quality time ,with my wonderful and beautifull bride of 20 yrs ,today.


                                                                         peace,
                                                                              tim

cant believe she actualy put up with me and all mt crap for 20 yrs, i think she is a keeper

[DanaM]

Congrats tim

[El Destructo]

Congrats on 20 Years....I have been with Mine for 26...so I think I will keep Her also....heck I wouldn't know what to do with any Strange at this point in my Life anyways!!!!!!!! 

As for the Stave....glad to see that you are finally getting to work on it....Thats Pignut Hickory from Tennessee....tough stuff.....I would leave the Fade alone on the Left Limb for a while....and get it bending smoothly from a little  before Mid Limb to 5-6 inches from the Tips....The whole Right Limb seems to be a Bit stiff....I would work it from the Fades on out some more.....and get it short stringed as soon as safely possible too ....this will give you a better look at how the Limbs are really bending....and like Dana said....give Us a Profile Shot too....helps get the Juices flowing...if you can see all of the Bow

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[sailordad]

well i did a little more work on this one tonight,managed to get it on a shorter string too
was nervous stringing it on a short string for the first time,like always(i have heard that horrible crack sound doing this before).
its braced at 4.75 inches from the top of the existing handle right now,have it pulling to about 15 inches on the tiller stick.
it is 1.75 inches wide at the fades,tapers to 5/8ths at tips,62 inches ntn
need a little more advise please.
feel free to make those cool circles and what not
and oh yeah,more pics and a front profile as asked for
it will get a little narrower in the handle area yet too


braced


the drawn pics are from each side(flipped on the stick)



as always thanks for the input folks

                                                                                 peace,
                                                                                      tim

[El Destructo]

looks good so far Tim....the Left limb may be a bit stiff right out of the Fade.....take it out a little more and see what it looks like

[DanaM]

Brace looks good Tim, Personally I would stay off the fades for now. I disagree Mke the left limb looks good, Right fade looks stiffer and then out a little bends a bit much. I think I would get the outer limbs bending more but leave the tips stiff. But I'm having a hard time as it looks like you took the picture on a downward angle and thats messing with me.

With that front view profile I would go for an eliptical tiller with the fades barely bending.
Is it showing any signs of taking Set? If so figure out where and thats where its bending too much. I would heat in some reflex also.

[El Destructo]

                     Depends on what Picture you look at left in one ....right in the Other.............

[DanaM]

Either way their bending about the same just not in the same places

[DanaM]

Come on guys weigh in on this eh