Limb tip ? Please help!

[fling]

Hi all, this is my problem. Going to a 3D shoot in a few weeks and after reading the rules for the longbow class it seems my bow dose not meet the requirements. The rules state reinforced tips can not be over 1/2" thick and no longer than  
1 1/2" long from tip to fade. Well my tips are 2 1/2" from tip to fade. The limbs are 5 lams of red elm clear glass with Purple Heart  overlay on the backside of the tip. So my question is to get the tips to 1 1/2"  I have to do some sanding. I can only take  so much off the tip from the nock grove to the tip. If I sand the rest off the fade about 1/4" which would still leave me an 1" from fade to grove will that weaken the tips and cause them to fail? Would hate to mess up my bow. Thanks Jon

[macbow]

Jon, I'm not up on all the rules but in a class that includes glass bows that is crazy.

If your in it for the competition and are good enough to have a chance to win. Then maybe it is worth the chance of messing up your bow.

If you just want to shoot, you can register and show them the discrepancy and have them mark your card " not for competition" or something to that effect.

It is all in what's important to you.

[Roy from Pa]

Just shoot for fun and leave the bow alone. It's only a game:)

[fling]

Macbow the rules state bow can be made of any material but must be a D shape when strung. Was told that a reinforced tip is a tip with phenolic in them and that just wood overlays did not apply this was from a bowyer that make bows that meet all the requirements for NFAA longbow class. But when I called the headquarters no one knew a thing about the longbow rule. My state rep said he didn't know but he said I should be fine. Told him that I will be traveling 1500 miles for a shoot with some friends and would hate to find out he was wrong. I shoot a HH style bow so I meet all other requirement.

[JamesV]

Our club has one class: if it don't have wheels it is traditional.

[DVSHUNTER]

Just sand it down until you see glass and make em pretty, until they meet. Overlays, in my opinion, are for looks and to help round the edges to prevent the string from cutting or being cut. I don't see a need for a two inch overlay other than looks. The rule may be there to prohibit a person from touring on recurves as tip overlays. Anyway, you would be able to sand the tip from the bottom up towards the string groove until to meet the rules, however odd they are. Good luck at the shoot. I get half the trophy if you win though.

[Bowjunkie]

I wouldn't alter a bow of mine in any way to meet someone else's requisites. But I don't shoot to compete either so...

It would suck to mess with your bow, then when you get to the shoot they say, "Ahh, it would have been fine the way it was"

Hey just be careful when sanding/filing those overlays that you don't thin the glass as you're doing so. Sometimes it helps to wrap some making tape around the limb in the area that you want to protect. I would do the bulk of the work with small, smooth-cut files, then finish up with sandpaper.