MW's trade bow build - tillering questions - 6-15 tragedy

[Monkey Wrench]

Hey guys, I'm a little behind on my bow and need to make up for it this weekend.  My son has made the all-star baseball team, it seems every night has been baseball, baseball, baseball.  12 games in 2 weeks...sheesh.  I'm going to start dropping his butt off and work on my bow while he's at practice!

I'm making a BBI, straight profile.  It's glued up, the fades are cut into the riser, and in the first stages of "floor tillering".  I'm getting ready to move to the stick, but it's still pretty stiff.

I've made some mistakes before on waiting too long to put it on the short string, not this time!!!  My plan is to just keep shortening the string until I get close to the real string length, anyone else do that?  

Also, should I radius the corners of the bamboo backing and the ipe belly before tillering?  It seems pretty sharp right now and I'm worried about lifting a splinter.  I'll post pics tonight when I get her on the long string.

Thanks!  Please let me know your thoughts on string length and radiusing.

Brad

[SEMO_HUNTER]

I'm making one myself Brad so I'm not much help with most of your questions cause this is my first BBI also.

I round the edges of the bow limbs a little bit on all my bows. You don't have to get carried away with it unless you are rounding the belly, but just enough to make it a round edge and not a square edge is usually enough to keep from pulling up a splinter. A round edge is stronger than a square edge. I just hit it with a file to put a bevel on it then smooth it down with some 120 grit sandpaper.

What glue did you use for gluing the backing on?

Looking forward to your pics.

[PEARL DRUMS]

Rounding the edges is a sure thing. An aggressive sanding block works great as well. I dont use a long string at all anymore. I thin the limbs down until I get a 70# bow on the floor, or less. Then I brace it at about 2" and go up from there as I tiller. For me personally the long string has proven itself worthless.

[SEMO_HUNTER]

I use it until I get enough flex to be able to get a low brace. I have a really hard time stringing it with a low brace like 3" or so. I need to be able to get at least a 5" brace before I can string it without worry of breaking something. Maybe I'm just doing it wrong too? That's always a possibility.          :D

But I have started switching over to a short string just as soon as I can do so safely. I used to stay on the long string way too long before switching over and it almost cost me a good tiller. So if you do use a long string, get it shortened up as soon as you can.

[don s]

i round the edges of back and belly. i believe i read in one of the tbbs that rounding your bows edges to the radius of a pea is good. don

[Pat B]

I round all edges as I go during the tillering process.  Also when I get 8" to 10" of tip movement and the limbs are bending evenly and together I go to a short string braced at about 3" mol. At that point you can see how the string tracks and at what length you hit draw weight then work the limbs out to full draw, exercising the limbs as you go.

[KellyG]

The only thing I can add to this is make sure of what kind of string you are using. I was tillering away on my bow, and would shorten the string, (using a bowyers knot)and it just was brace very little. But I would scrap and shorten the string. I then got to the point where I was looking at my bow and its string. I put up my long string next to it and they were the same length. I put that string on any my brace was now at about 4" or more. The 550 or para cord really stretched. So yes I walked the string down but I was using one that really stretched.

[SEMO_HUNTER]

Para cord is strong, but not good string material way too much stretch. You would be better off to pull the individual strands out of the center of it Kelly and do a primitive flemish twist out of them, that may take out some of the stretch by twisting it up? Dunno, just thinking like a survivalist in a dire situation and you had to make due with what ya had.

[KellyG]

Don't know semo, I think I would look for natural hemp growing and spin it first.

[Monkey Wrench]

http://i919.photobucket.com/albums/ad35/MonkeyWrench2010/IMG_2779.jpg  

Here it is on the tree.  The string laid loose about 4".  So this is pulled about 6" over that, to 30 lbs.  It looks to me like the left side is bending alot at the fade.

Thoughts?  Time to shorten the string up a bit???

 No pics over 600 pixels wide. Thanks

[Stiks-n-Strings]

Looks pretty good MW if you can get it braced at a low brace of 3" or so then you need to get it on the short string asap. That long string will get you in trouble if you stay on it to long.

 Stiks

[bigcountry]

Its not unusual for bows to look like they bend a bunch at the fade on long string.  I think

Get it to short Brace on short.  I think its time.

[k-hat]

Put it on a short string that lays flat and snug against the belly/handle (effectively a zero brace), work some more bend into the limbs, then go to a shorter string.  My most recent tillering string starts there, and i twist as i go to slowly raise brace as i tiller.  I put it on the final string when i get pretty close to or at full brace.  i used to go WAY to long on the long string too, and it is now just what it oughta be, a stringer and no more!

[Monkey Wrench]

Got a string made (and a stringer) for brace height, pulled it about 8" at 25 lbs.  If the bow were for me, the target would be 50lbs at 30".  The person getting the bow is close enough to that for estimation.  Need some help with the tiller, it looks to me like a hinge on the left and the right looks good.  For a hinge, do I concentrate more towards the handle or more towards the tip?  

 

 

[PEARL DRUMS]

Its getting a little hingy on that left mid limb, be careful. Use a gizmo and remove where the marks are left.

[Monkey Wrench]

Well, I learned a hard lesson tonight, one I will not soon forget.  Never tiller a bow with the belt sander.  In a split second, I ruined that sucker.  I'm bummed.  This sucks.  There is an 1/8" groove cut into the bow about 4" from the tip, looks like it's ready to explode right now, since the bow itself is only 1/4" at the end.  No way I could send this out.  I'm going to go hide in the corner.

[KellyG]

sorry to hear that, but now you get to make another one.  

[Inuumarue]

Monkey, where is the grove?  I'm assuming its on the belly.  If so you may be able glue on another lam in that area and likewise on the other limb and save the bow.  You might not want to use it for your trade bow, but at the very least it's good practice that could end up in a nice bow. Either way, sorry to hear about the slip-up.

Adam

[Osagetree]

It was looking good! Lesson learned,,, stick with the hand tools.

[Roy from Pa]

Ouch, sorry about that Monkey.