Broken Sinew ERC w/pics. (This one REALLY bummed me out.)

[ricktrojanowski]

I had this one just about ready for finishing up.  Just taking off the final couple of pounds and getting it to final draw length.  I had pulled it many times to 25" and was going for my final draw of 26".  I had heard some creaking when I got to 24" and beyond, but told myself it was just the sinew and glue making a little noise from stretching.  I had it at 54# at 26" and it was bending really nice.  So I took it off the tree and gave it a few pulls then........ .   I've broken my share, but this one really hurts.    I'm really short on bow building time and had pretty much all of it invested in this one.    Not sure why it broke?  It was 58" tip to tip.  It had 3 complete layers of sinew and 1 crowning layer.  I've been storing it at 78 degrees and 30% humidity while I've been working on it.   It seems to have broken in the handle which seems like an odd place to break.  It was bendy handled but it wasn't moving much at all at full draw.   Any ideas?

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[rileyconcrete]

OUCH!! That sucks.  Couldnt tell ya why it broke, maybe a weak spot there in the handle?

Good luck on the next one.

Tell

[Justin Snyder]

That really sucks, it was a gorgeous piece of wood. It seems to me that they always break just as I am finishing the tiller. 

That is strange to see the sinew broken off in a straight line like that.

[Ryano]

Well I know some people like ERC, but every bow I've made out of it has done that at some point. (Exploded for no aparent reason) Backed or not. I've given up on erc.  I've got much better, reliable,choices for bow wood around. Sorry about your luck, but I can't say I'm surprized. You should have better luck with that hawthorne.

[Josh]

Sorry Rick!  It really blows when one goes like that, especially right when you are closing in on it.  I also hate to see that it broke right in the handle too so no you can't even build another limb for it either.     Good luck on your next one.  hope it holds for a hundred years!    -josh

[Badger]

  How thick and how wide at the handle where it broke? also too dry may have aggravated it. cedar dries out quickly. Steve

[Keenan]

Ouch,,thats a bummer for sure. That was a very nice looking piece of wood. Just part of building bows.

[El Destructo]

Man...I am sorry to see this one Rick! Thats a lot of work down the Toilet there....Sorry! I am with Badger here...Maybe being kept that warm at only 30% R/H was too much for the ERC to handle....looks like the Belly may have had a Compression Failure and when the Belly fibers gave up the Farm...the Sinew followed...I have always had good luck with ERC...I had only one so far that Blew Up...and that was due to a String Failure at a Nock Cut that was too sharp...and it really looked just like that does....it broke in two in the Handle also...make sure that you soak all of the Sinew off and reuse it...too much time in all that Preparation  to just toss it too....better luck on the Hawthorne Stave

[medicinewheel]

AAAhhh, too bad! Really feel sorry for you!

[DanaM]

Well damn Rick that sucks

[Kviljo]

That's weird. 3 layers of sinew should be able to take a huge amount of stress. There must have been a flaw in the wood or in the sinew layer. I once had a sinew backed ash/oak recurve break. It had only one layer of sinew, but the single-growthring ash "core" did snap right off in tension. The sinew layer didn't tear itself apart though. There was no flaw in the wood at that spot, so I concluded I had just overstressed the limb too much.

[Badger]

  I think that the handle failed in compression, erc doesn't like being too dry. Steve

[Pappy]

It's ERC , I am with Ryan on this one,I know some people build some nice bows from it,but I have never had any luck with it.I plan on trying one more but plan on leaving the sap wood on.Sorry I know that stinks with that much work in it.
   Pappy

[Tom Leemans]

ERC really isn't what you'd call "bow wood" in my book. Sammich it between some glass and you'll be alright, but that's as far as I'd trust it. That said, I think your bow may have survived if it was longer and perhaps maybe even a tad wider. Every wood species is different. They will all only take so much stress; some more than others.

[coyote pup]

Yep. Not trying to jump on the bandwagon now that one broke, but I say the reason it broke is it's ERC. ERC breaks.

I tried ERC once and it exploded before I could even brace it. When a wood explodes like it did for no reason, it tells me never to use it again. If a bow cracks, it's one things. But if it straight up explodes, it's just not good wood.