3 splice bow ???

[Nasr]

Has anyone ever built an all spliced bow?? Like a splice in the handle and a splice on the levers? And if so how strong would the levers be are they reliable without any wrap? If anyone has pictures of such bow or a link I would love to see it. I want to attempt that bow but not sure I can get a perfect fit on the splices.

[PatM]

All the time.  There is a lot of leeway to finesse your splice fit.  Seems many folks cut the splice and if it doesn't fit perfectly they abandon ship.

[Nasr]

Patm I am one of those people to be honest. I just don’t know how good the joint must be to survive the stress I am not too worried about the handle but more so the splice at the tips of the bow cause at least the handle I can add a piece to build up that handle area. Idk I really want to get good at splicing so I can make better use of my small pieces of wood.

[DC]

i think tips are easier than handles. You "V" joint them and "V" joints are easy to finesse. http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,60489.0.html Look at this thread, PatM helped a lot with this.

[Nasr]

That help a lot DC did you ever finish that bow?

[DC]

Yup, turned out good.http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,60711.0.html

[gfugal]

Many Horn-bow makers make not just 3 splice but 5 splice bows. A handle section that has two limbs spliced at the beginning of the fades. Then two siyahs spliced at the tips.

[Nasr]

DC that bow is a real beauty is there any bend at all where the v splice Siyah are. And did you make any more since that one

[DC]

No it doesn't bend where the splice is. I made one more much like it.

[stuckinthemud]

I v-splice the handle as well, a nice long v-splice is plenty strong

[Nasr]

is a v splice really strong enough at the handle? If so i might as well do that. i am also gonna be adding an extra piece of wood for the riser. I literally just tried to do a v splice and my band saw machine doesn't want to cot a straight line.

[PatM]

A V splice is plenty strong for a handle, especially if you are adding a belly piece.  You can always wrap your handle and siyahs for insurance.

 Try just using a hand held saw.

[Nasr]

so i am trying the v splice on a test piece and see how it holds up. i will take a hammer to it once it dries to see how it breaks. there are some gaps on the test piece if it were the actual piece i would steam it then clamp for a few days. if this holds up to the test then it will definitely work especially with an extra piece of wood behind it.

i am not doing this test cause i don't take your word for it guys its just that i am not good at making splices this test will see if i could do it and not if the v splice itself is strong enough.

[gfugal]

so i am trying the v splice on a test piece and see how it holds up. i will take a hammer to it once it dries to see how it breaks. there are some gaps on the test piece if it were the actual piece i would steam it then clamp for a few days. if this holds up to the test then it will definitely work especially with an extra piece of wood behind it.

i am not doing this test cause i don't take your word for it guys its just that i am not good at making splices this test will see if i could do it and not if the v splice itself is strong enough.

You don't want any glue gaps in your splice. I can see some in your picture. So you either need to use more glue (which may not be an option as it may run out if your gaps are too big), use a gap filling glue such as an epoxy, or finish your gaps better so they are a real tight fit. Your fit should be tight enough that you can't see any light in the gap between the fittings. Also, a little tip that may help, I too strugled to get a perfect cut on the bandsaw, so I rasped it to pretty much no light, then I boiled the ends and clamped them tight together. This caused them to mate up almost perfect (as long as your fittings are straight, parallel, and perpendicular).

[gfugal]

Sorry don't think I'm dissing your work. I just don't want it to fail on you. I want to add that your gaps don't look that bad. If you would have used epoxy I'm certain you wouldn't have had any gaps in your glue line. before breaking it down, I would suggest trying to fill the gaps you have now with more titebond and see if it sets without running out. Some might suggest doing it over, but I think if you can get it to work as is, that's better.