Twist in handle

[upstatenybowyer]

work on getting the bow to bend even, dont worry about the handle it is fine,, shoot the arrow off the side that the string going too,, you tips are wide enough,, if you want to move the string more toward the center,, then move the nocks that way,, getting the bow to bend even is the main thing right now,,

+1

[gfugal]

Yeah, there's some real work that still needs to go into it. It is kinking right below the handle at that spot, It's also very stiff in the upper limb right above the handle. I think I'm going to just tiller as is. I was hoping that I could get 50# out of it, hence why I was thinking of recurve & reflexing it some more but it's already taking set. I'm surprised that it has any string follow at all since 1) it was originally reflexed, and 2) I haven't gotten it anywhere near full draw yer.  Have you guys had that happen, and if so were you still able to get a strong bow? My situation might be different since it's such a short bow--43" nock to nock. 

[aaron]

Your bow is really short at 43 inches, and with a stiff handle, your limbs are even shorter. You can minimize the stiff handle by shortening the fades some, but be careful not to create a hinge at the end of the fade. If your next stave is short like that, make it bend through the handle.
For a beginner, a good rule of thumb is that a self bow can be drawn to 1/2 the working limb length. So a 48 inch bow that bends in the handle can be drawn to 24 inches. Your bow is 43 inches minus the stiff handle-say about 37 inches. This means it can draw to about 18 inches. As you gain more skill and find better wood, you can break this rule, but even the finest bowyer would have trouble getting that to draw 28 inches.

[aaron]

How narrow is the narrowest part of the bow? How tall are you? It may not be too late to make it bend in the handle.

[gfugal]

 My first bow was super short like 38" NTN.  I somehow managed to get it to a draw length of 23 inches with a working handle and sinew backing. However, it was disappointingly week at 20#. In an attempt to raise its weight I applied another layer of sinew. It did get stronger but, without thinking of rechecking the tiller, I drew it to full draw and it broke on me.

My second bow is 45" NTN recurve with a non-working handle. I am in the process of finishing it up at a 26" draw length; just got to wait for the second layer of sinew to dry and this time double check its tiller. I'm hoping to get it above 30# but It was getting close to its limit before the second layer with about 1/2" - 1" string follow and major chrysalis.

As you can tell I have a trend for making short week bows. I was hoping to get something stronger but probably not. This is due  partially to not having long billets to make a longbow, and partially due to me being a sucker for short bows. Your probably right and I should resign to the fact that I probably won't get anything stronger than 40# unless I do a horn bow.

If I added extended tips to it do any of you know if that increases the draw length? It probably would increase the strain so I might not see it make it to that draw length if it does.

[aaron]

Sounds like your first bow broke because it was too short. Sounds like your second bow failed (chrysals) because it was too short. How many super short bows do you want to break before you decide that you want to make one that actually works? I commend your enthusiasm and hard work, but the reality is that if you want a working 50 lb bow, you will want to make it longer. Later in your career you can start breaking the rules, but for now I reccomend a design that will have a higher chance of success.
Splicing in stiff tips would add a little draw length, but reduce draw weight

[penderbender]

Why don't you splice tow of those 40 inch billets together and make a stave of a decent length? Cheers- Brendan

[George Tsoukalas]

One limb seems to have a hinge(lower limb-just off the handle) and the other is whip tillered (bending too much-around mid limb on).

I'd unstring it and attempt to straighten out those problems with the long string.

Did you skip that step?

Anyway, here's how I remove excessive twisting.

http://traditionalarchery101.com/fixtwist.html

Jawge

[bradsmith2010]

I think I missed something, I did not know your goal was 28 inches with a  43 inch bow,,
20 inches with a working handle would be reasonable draw,,
if you want a 50# bow from that you would need to sinew back it,,flip the tips a bit,,
and it might go 21 or 22 inches,, make the handle work,, and it might go a bit further,,
but the sinew backing will increase your odds of getting a heavier bow....
if you like short bows, dont be discouraged, they shoot well and are fun and effective as a hunting bow as well,,