Osage question ?

[bushboy]

Greetings folks....I don't work with Osage orange very often because I live in Canada and it's very expensive.the stave I received was full of cracks and some delays.i reduced it down but ended up with a couple of pin knots right on the edge of the limb.my question ,is this a fatal flaw or has anyone seen a bow hold up fine with this issue?thanks I'll put up some photos soon....regards bush!!

[bushboy]

Some pics

[Pat B]

Not necessarily a fatal flaw. In the second pic it looks like you left an island around the knot. Is this on the back or the belly? It's not necessary to leave an island around knots. It is actually safer to have a continuous ring on the back. The island can lift a splinter when bent.
 Can you eliminate the pins on the edge. Even if the width is a little uneven at that point. As long as it doesn't affect the tiller or draw weight that might be an option.
 You can add a sinew or thread wrap set in glue at that point for protection and add one on the other limb for symmetry.

[bushboy]

Thank for the reply pat.....that's the belly in the 2nd pic.the not is close to the fade so will not see a great deal of bending.i will keep an eye on it...the bow is somewhat floor tillered.

[Hamish]

Ideally you would have left a little sideways swelling at that spot. Some bows with the same issue will survive, especially if they are left longer or wider than usual. Otherwise its down to luck rather than design, plus osage is a very tough bow wood(so you have that in your favour)

As you have shaved that edge off, your best option at that spot is to leave a swelling on the belly as you continue to tiller.

[simson]

Go on, this isn't a problem.
Be sure the back is intact.

[Eric Krewson]

No big deal, almost all my bows have pins on the edges of the limbs, none have failed and there are a lot of my bows out there.

Another thing; you don't leave extra wood around a pin unless the grain snakes around the pin, other wise you are creating a grain runout. Most of my pins are are situated in straight grain.

[George Tsoukalas]

Not a problem. When I tiller  a knotted area, I leave it a little flatter than the rest of the limb so that it does not bend as much. Jawge

[bushboy]

Thanks for the input guys....gives me more confidence....maybe I should have left a swell but  it would have been big an unsightly....bush