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Author Topic: Cracks in the back, what causes it  (Read 2150 times)

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Offline DustinDees

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Cracks in the back, what causes it
« on: June 25, 2009, 04:31:33 am »
I have this beautifully grained hickory board i had been saving. was going to make it a present for a friend, first i made the limbs to skinny for my target weight and realized it as soon as i was finished cutting out the shape  :P. ok, well now im shooting for 50 +/- 5 lbs or so, i hit 63, not going to complain about it, i can handle that weight and she sure is pretty. so i finish tillering, shoot it in, stain with some watered down grey acrylic paints let dry and clearcoat. about 20 min after the clearcoat is dry i pulled it back enjoying the weight of it and *crack*, im looking everywhere and dont see anything wrong, pull it back slowly and nothing. pull it back regular draw and *crack* i took the string off and searched it, the back has small cracks across it that have some texture. i restrung the bow they stand a hair higher, oh and the limb the cracks show up on gained about 3/4" string follow from before cracks to after... is there anything easy i can do about this? or should i plane the back, glue a new board to it and retiller? here are some pics of said culprit.





Thanks for any advice in advance.

Dustin D
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“Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for.” – Epicurus
Put your hand on a hot stove for a minute, and it seems like an hour. Sit with a pretty girl for an hour, and it seems like a minute. That's Relativit

Offline Pappy

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Re: Cracks in the back, what causes it
« Reply #1 on: June 25, 2009, 05:52:09 am »
Looks like to me you have a lot of grain violation and grain run off.Don't do board bow so Iam not sure but that would be my guess.I would think you could back it.I am sure some of the board folks
will come along and give some advice. :)
   Pappy
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Offline DustinDees

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Re: Cracks in the back, what causes it
« Reply #2 on: June 25, 2009, 09:13:41 pm »
thank you Pappy. the board is quartersawn stock, the grain runs off a little, but i have had hickory hold very well with much more runoff than this. i think its odd that the cracks all seem to run from one growth ring to the next and stop but its only the top limb doing this, could this be from weathering? oh yah, because i didnt hit target weight with this, i dont mind loosing 30lbs or more fixing this if its easier than planing the back, can always use a light target bow. reason being i have to travel 35 min to the jointer i have access to. thanks again.

Dustin D
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“Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for.” – Epicurus
Put your hand on a hot stove for a minute, and it seems like an hour. Sit with a pretty girl for an hour, and it seems like a minute. That's Relativit

Offline Eric Krewson

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Re: Cracks in the back, what causes it
« Reply #3 on: June 25, 2009, 11:41:52 pm »
My guess is the board was cut out of a log that was on the ground too long, hickory deteriorates quickly.
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Offline DustinDees

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Re: Cracks in the back, what causes it
« Reply #4 on: June 26, 2009, 03:26:08 am »
Thank you Eric. well, the board it was cut from was left on my balcony for the past 3 months, i thought i could just file some off the back and have a good bow (no room for storage in my apartment) the deteriorating fast thought makes perfect sense. i guess from now on im going to buy hickory as i need it, not just cause it looks good and is on hand.

Dustin D
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“Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for.” – Epicurus
Put your hand on a hot stove for a minute, and it seems like an hour. Sit with a pretty girl for an hour, and it seems like a minute. That's Relativit

Offline ravenbeak

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Re: Cracks in the back, what causes it
« Reply #5 on: June 26, 2009, 03:56:14 am »
you could back it with something flexible like silk rather than planning the back flat.

just a thought.  it ain't broke until it's in more pieces than one....
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Offline DustinDees

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Re: Cracks in the back, what causes it
« Reply #6 on: June 26, 2009, 05:23:55 am »
Thank you Ravenbeak. I was thinking about that, want to get rid of the bad wood first tho. maybe 1/16 plane off the back and check if i got all the cracks through then silk or other backing. i really like the grain on this one, but if i have to sacrifice looks for use, then im there.

Dustin D
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“Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for.” – Epicurus
Put your hand on a hot stove for a minute, and it seems like an hour. Sit with a pretty girl for an hour, and it seems like a minute. That's Relativit

Offline Eric Krewson

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Re: Cracks in the back, what causes it
« Reply #7 on: June 26, 2009, 09:48:01 am »
I ran into the same thing salvaging a tornado downed hickory log. It was bad through and through not just on the surface. Your board is probably toast as well. Hickory has a high sugar content that is quickly broken down by micro organisms if left out in the weather( at least that is what I read somewhere).
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