reflexed rawhide backed osage longbow

[Bow Nut]

This is another one I have been working on while I am waiting on my recurve to cure the sinew still has some time on the recurve so I might get another 2 or 3 made before it is fully finished. this one is 62 inches N2N pulls 58 pounds at 28 inches.  Osage selfbow with rawhide backing deer antler tips and rabbit fur handle.  I darkened the rawhide with dye.  the fades are 1 3/4 inches wide tapering down to 1/2 inch at tips.  It started out with about 6 inches of back set and after tillering still has 3 to 4 inches of back set.  it shoots really fast the wide limbs are smooth to draw but you can feel it when the slam forward.

[Bow Nut]

more pics

[gstoneberg]

I like it!   George

[adb]

Nice work! Good looking curves.

[ErictheViking]

Very nice work Bow Nut, looks like it wants to go hunting.

[Cameroo]

Beautiful bow!  You've got more guts than me, carving two shelves into the handle!  Well done.

[Gordon]

Wow, look at the profile on that one. Fabulous!

[blackhawk]

Nice. It should smoke some arrows with that profile.

[crooketarrow]

   I don't mean rain on all the nice comments and the work manship is good. But I'd say the tillers way off. The top limbs beening way ( MID LIMB) to much and both limbs need to been more towards your fads these 2 things are why your felling so much hand shock. not the reflex. The bottom limb is finishing way earyer than the top. You fix these two things and you'll have a real burner with that much reflex. OHTER THAN THAT IT IS A NICE BOW AND IT DOSE HAVE A NICE LOOKING PROFILLE. I not trying to be mean or anything just the way I see it.

[Bow Nut]

Thanks for the honest comment crooketarrow but I will have to disagree no offense taken and none to you.  I leave the fades long on purpose to give it a bit of a whip limb design.  This way les limb is bending so less weight to carry and in turn more bend and more stored energy.  the tips don look like the are bending as much because they are more reflexed than the rest of the limb making them look less bent at full draw and braced.  and I dont know if the angle is bad for you on the full draw photo but there is actually a small stiff spot mid limb top limb I can see it because I know it is there.  I saw it when I brought it down to weight.  I left it because after a chrony test I was very happy with the results.  It shoots and average of 162 FPS with a 400 grain cane shaft and 125 grain field points 5 inches wild turkey feathers and plastic knock making the total arrow weight 530 grains the bow is where I work along with my camera on tuesday when I get back to work I will take my chrony and get some pics of this.  also the bottom limb is a bit stiffer you can see that in the braced photo I did that on purpose as I like to shoot 3 under usually.

[crooketarrow]

  None taken
  I'm sorry but you may want to think your logic. Your design may make sence in true a recurve (not flipped tips)where the curves store your engery which is mid to upper limbs. With a straight end flat bows your BEST preformest comes for engery strored all through your limbs. Up through your fads to below the tips where you should leave the last 4 inchs thin but stiff. This also helps with hand shock as well as tiller your limbs so they finish the same.
   I would'nt be surprised if in the not to near furture.With all the exture stress on your upper limbs you start lossing some of you reflex and start getting some string follow and stress cracks. Hope you do'nt likly you will.
   I agree your pic.'s has a bad angle I took this into affect. But if you tillered your limbs to been that far up. I can see this now ,that you said thats the way you did it. But sure looks like your bottom limb still beens to much. And like I said  this is one of the resons why you have hand shock.  I'll built lots of bows that came out with excessive reflex. I ad reflex to all of my staves. And with well tillered limbs and thin,stiff  tips I never have hand shock. The way you tiller your limbs and the lower limb finishing first is proff.  You have hand shock.
   But I know I'm not there shooting and holding the bow and it's hard to tell much from a pic.s. I would have never commemted except you said it had nosicable hand shock. If you hav e hand shock there's a reason.

[Bow Nut]

well I will look it over again when I get to work tuesday and to the pics of the speed test I am afraid to do any more work to it as I like the weight where it is at and it is plenty fast.  But I might just for the experient try what you said even though every thing I have ever heard is that whip limb bows are much faster.  I will have to look back in my bowyers bible and find somthing about that.  I have not read them all so I might not have gotten to that part yet.

[Badger]

   I like to leave my fades on the stiff side as well but it looks like your are a bit too stiff a bit too far out. The tilller you used is excellent for speed and efficiency in a bow. Your handshock is most likley due to the tips being a tad too wide for such a heavy wood as osage. If the tiller is off a bit that will contribute as well, as much as the mid limb is working it may be difficult to hold your tiller after a lot of shots. Steve

[Pappy]

I  also like to leave mine a little stiff at the fads,but like others have said not quite that far out, It is knid of to each there own,I don't like a wipped end tiller,I know some that do. Not sure on the hand shock but with a wipped till they seem to stack worse for me.  :)Your's turned out nice and love the profile and finish work, That is pretty quick also. Nice work.
   Pappy

[crooketarrow]

  I like to tiller right down into the fads but not through to the handle to even out stress this helps to reduce set and string follow. Your tiller will never change and you end up with a nice forgiveing stable hunting bow likeI said never changes.I'm a hunter and and just like building hunting bows.
    I'm not trying to take anything away from your bow YOU'VE DID GOOD.  Your young but after a few years through trile and arror and lots of bows, different designs,different leanths,different woods you'll end up  building  bows the kinds of bows you like to build. What works best the way you see it. I did this you will to everyone dose.
    This is why every bowyer thinks he builds the best bows. That is if you get around to thinking your a bowyer. I like to build bows but like I said I'm a hunter not a bowyer. Been there none that it's not for me. Keep at it your well on your maybe comeing a bowyer if you wish to.