Older Bow, can you help me bring it back?

[jesswprater]

Well, I drew the bow to 27-28 inches and it broke. I want to kick myself for pulling it all the way on the tillering board, but then remembered what Pearl Drums said. It was a bow I purchased. I doubt that it was made right. I didn't see a consistent "Back to Belly" taper. It looked like it maintained the same taper from just past the handle to the nock. The width did taper. Oh well, time to stop belly aching / procrastinating and build my own. I have a dry Osage stave. I've read the bibles and have the two PA issues with Osage Bow Building Parts 1&2 Dec/Jan 2014 and Feb/Mar 2014. Any other advice or direction for a first bow build? My draw length looks to be 27 1/2 inches. Somewhere I read how long to make the bow for that draw length.

[sleek]

Pics?

[jesswprater]

Not sure how well this will show. 2nd picture shows the picture. Dang! I have to figure out how to shrink the size of my pics. I will try again in the morning, Sleek.

[lebhuntfish]

Try using photo bucket! Patrick

[jesswprater]

I adjusted the Cell camera, then used Microsoft Picture manager to reduce the resolution. Hope you can see the cracks on the back next to the handle. I recently read that the bow should have a consistent taper from handle to nock. Note that this does not. This must be one of those 10 year bows. It shot fine in 2003.

Ok, let's try this time.

[sleek]

Looks like all the bend must've been happening out the fade. You can still wall hang it. When we get to meet up I will give you a hond on an osage bow if you dont have one completed by then.

[jesswprater]

Hey Sleek! Did you get my e-mail on contact information?

[sleek]

Yes I did. Im sorry I completely forgot to let you know. Im looking forward to a gap in my schedule where we can hangout and make some wood chips.

[mikekeswick]

I don't buy into "warming up" bows. Id simply brace and pull it back. If it breaks, it was bound to anyway. If it holds, it was made right.

If you do what you just said and it holds likely it was overbuilt and you've been lucky!
If you leave a bow unused for a long time then the belly loses a bit of it's 'tillered in' compression (set). Just stringing it up and 'pulling it back' is asking for trouble.... Like when you are tillering a new bow - you find a stiff spot so you remove some wood then exercise the bow to 'bed in' that freshly exposed section of belly wood - same principle is applying with a long unused bow.
You don't need to string it up and pull it back to see if it was well made. Look at the distribution of set when it's unstrung.
Personally the way I see it why not take your time with it? All you have to do is string it up and let it sit for gradually increasing periods. Then gradually start increasing the draw.
An old bow deserves some love 

[SLIMBOB]

Too much bend at the too abrupt fade if you ask me.

[sleek]

Yeah, those fades look awfull. Very short and not much actual fading going on.

[jesswprater]

Hi SlimBob and Sleek! When you refer to fades, are you talking about the side taper from the handle to the nock? If so, that is why I included that picture. There was nothing gradual or consistent about them. The handle dropped right off to a fairly constant thickness clear out to the nocks. That must be why it broke.

Hi Mike! I did gradually extend the time the bow was strung over two or three weeks. I worked up to 36 hours. My mistake was pulling the bow to full draw once I had the tillering board made.

Anyway, it will make a good wall hanging. I heard too late last year of an annual bow building meet in Perkins, OK. I think it had been happening for several years. Does anyone know if it will be held again this year?

I'm looking forward to meeting with you when you get a gap in your work, Sleek!

[SLIMBOB]

The transition from the handle to working limb should be a gradual one without any sharp angles, anywhere.  The thickness taper itself, (no taper in this case as you stated) is not the problem here.  No thickness taper (or very little) is proper for a pyramid design.  The problem here is that the handle goes from 1.5 inches thick to a thickness of 3/8 of an inch at the start of the working limb.  The transition from 1.5" to 3/8" should be feathered out gradually so that there are no sharp angles that separates one from the other.  If there is, it can result in what you have here.  It takes some practice to get that feathering right.

[sleek]

^ what he said.

[Joec123able]

I don't buy into "warming up" bows. Id simply brace and pull it back. If it breaks, it was bound to anyway. If it holds, it was made right.

I agree some what, but not for bows that have been sitting for a long time.