Just Can't Do It

[DarkSoul]

Are you sure that is elm?? I am very doubtful about that. It looks like ash to me!

I am pretty sure that bow was roughed out using a bandsaw. Either the stave was not split, or a snakey profile was cut out of a straight grained stave. A break like that is impossible if the grain runs in the same direction as the sides. Someone terribly violated the grain there... I also think heat treating a belly is often not necessary. Focus on getting a shootable selfbow first, before you start worrying about heat treating the belly. Actually, I can't even see any discoloration of the wood due to the heat. Are you sure you heated the wood warm enough? And did you heat the belly and not the back?

[mikekeswick]

Are you sure that is elm?? I am very doubtful about that. It looks like ash to me!

I am pretty sure that bow was roughed out using a bandsaw. Either the stave was not split, or a snakey profile was cut out of a straight grained stave. A break like that is impossible if the grain runs in the same direction as the sides. Someone terribly violated the grain there... I also think heat treating a belly is often not necessary. Focus on getting a shootable selfbow first, before you start worrying about heat treating the belly. Actually, I can't even see any discoloration of the wood due to the heat. Are you sure you heated the wood warm enough? And did you heat the belly and not the back?

Agreed. That break isn't a 'normal' break due to the stave being over-strained through poor tillering etc. As Darksoul says forget heat treating until you've got a finished bow in your hands.

[dwardo]

Are you sure that is elm?? I am very doubtful about that. It looks like ash to me!

I am pretty sure that bow was roughed out using a bandsaw. Either the stave was not split, or a snakey profile was cut out of a straight grained stave. A break like that is impossible if the grain runs in the same direction as the sides. Someone terribly violated the grain there... I also think heat treating a belly is often not necessary. Focus on getting a shootable selfbow first, before you start worrying about heat treating the belly. Actually, I can't even see any discoloration of the wood due to the heat. Are you sure you heated the wood warm enough? And did you heat the belly and not the back?

Agreed. That break isn't a 'normal' break due to the stave being over-strained through poor tillering etc. As Darksoul says forget heat treating until you've got a finished bow in your hands.

That looks like it was cut with a light sabre! Never seen such a thing and believe me I have broken my fare share

[PEARL DRUMS]

Are you sure that is elm?? I am very doubtful about that. It looks like ash to me!

I am pretty sure that bow was roughed out using a bandsaw. Either the stave was not split, or a snakey profile was cut out of a straight grained stave. A break like that is impossible if the grain runs in the same direction as the sides. Someone terribly violated the grain there... I also think heat treating a belly is often not necessary. Focus on getting a shootable selfbow first, before you start worrying about heat treating the belly. Actually, I can't even see any discoloration of the wood due to the heat. Are you sure you heated the wood warm enough? And did you heat the belly and not the back?

I promise you its elm, I cut it myself. I promise you it was split with an axe, wedges and a maul, I did it myself.


And Justin, heat treat away. Its not rocket science and there is NO reason not to do it on your first self bow, or your fifteenth. Its a heat gun and wood, not a lab experiment. You simply missed a turn in the grain as you laid it out, its obvious. Thats why it broke. 

[The Gopher]

unless, it is a very special bow, i always remember making the ones that broke more than the ones that didn't!

The second bow i tried to build was from cedar, as in "a deck board cedar" that one woke up the neighbors when it exploded! Then there was the white white oak bow that was coming along nicely (i thought) and it too sounded like a gunshot, unfortunately on that one, i was nearly at full draw and i punched myself in the nose, i won't soon forget that one  Then there was the one...

[BowEd]

Maybe my eyes are decieving me but it sure looks like you have a lot of grain run off from your picture there.That won't work too well I know.

[Scottski]

I have broken 4! One I had shot maybe 50 times. The last time it was at full draw and CABOOM!!! Punched myself in the face and bout knocked my off my feet. After my brother and everybody saw I was ok laughed so hard at me I thought someone would pee there self. I'm going to make some good ones in my future!

[johnfolchetti]

Bowhuntin',
Me & RBLusthaus are gettin together at my place on the afternoon of 13 April. I'm 3 or so hours away from you. You are welcome to take a drive down. We've got some BL, hickory, HHB. You can pick whatever you want.

[sleek]

Here is the pic I promised ya... I dont know why the pic is so big, I resized the heck out of it... all the way to 400x400, but its still huge. How do I fix this?

[crooketarrow]

  Get you a straight, clean, osage stave forget the boards the heat (straighting,or reflexing) the backing and everything else your hereing.
   Just make a 64,66 inch simple bow. You can get a bow in the 40,50 # range easy. If you've broke as many bows as you say you won't have a problem makeing a simple osage bow. My oldest son made a osage bow a 12 years old. I still have it and it still shootable. And he did it with out the internet.
  Don't sweat it if you really have the desire you'll make that bow. And beleive me once you do there's nothing like shooting ,hunting with your own bow. Take a deer or turkey or what ever you hunt. You'lljouin a club that not manypeople belong to.
  You'd almost have no exsperance at bows at all to screw up a straight,clean osage stave.

  I use the KISS METHOD on just about everything.
  KEEP IT SIMPLE STUPIT.