Arrow Pass Relief

[DesertDisciple]

There's been lots of great questions on the board lately, and I thought I would add one of my own.

How do you all go about relieving the arrow pass? I'm finishing up a bow that I don't plan on cutting a shelf into, and I've read several methods. Some say as little contact as possible, some say let the arrow lay flat; some put point of contact close to belly, some to the back.

 I usually just round it and round the shelf (glue on) itself so that the "high" points are at the same point on the arrow, usually in the middle of the riser, or slightly forward.  What are all your thoughts, opinions and creeds? 

[loon]

Widest towards the back if possible so the arrow isn't forced into as much of an angle at brace height? I'd probably just try straight (or rounded) and narrow, but I have a wide and somewhat deep handle on a Mead Longbows kit bow, made it trapezoid-oval shaped narrower on the belly. Like a victorian English bow I guess, D cross section?

Arrow pass should be hard and with little friction?

[DC]

I put the point of contact as close to the back as I can. I think I read it in TBB4 and it made sense to me at the time. It makes the arrow think the bow is closer to center shot. In the end though, I think all it does is change the required spine a bit. I think most archers would be challenged to notice the difference between back and belly contact.

[Peacebow_Coos]

I usually do it like you do, seems to work.  I shoot it for awhile and see where the arrow is hitting, then carve that out and inlay something there.

[DesertDisciple]

Loon and DC, yeah contact toward the back made sense to me too. I never considered that belly contact would change the arrow angle, that's a great thing to consider. I can't remember where, but I was looking at a blog or buildalong and they removed wood on the 'backside' of the bow with the idea that the arrow would recover from paradox sooner if it had good clearance past the riser.  I guess if the angle was good before doing this it makes sense, but on a narrow handle you might be cutting into the back to far.

Peacebow, so would you say, other than getting clean arrow flight, that tuning the arrow pass is a part of tuning your arrows? Would moving the point of contact forward or back be a way of clearing up minor spine issues?

[Jim Davis]

Don't grip the bow and it won't make a nickel's worth of difference. I'm shooting sleeved take-downs and the arrow pass is just where the arrow touches the round sleeve. I can shoot a wide range of spines and they all go where I point them.