HH longbow question (Don't tell the wife I'm asking!)

[Trumpkin the Dwarf]

Hey guys, I really, really don't need another project right now, but curiosity has been driving me crazy. I've been kicking around the idea of making a HH style bow, and I have a couple questions.

1. I draw a true 33" with my Toelke bows. What length bow would I need to even be remotely comfortable shooting a hill style bow?

2. Are hill bows glassed on both sides, or just the back?

3. Can someone please convince me I don't need one of these with dual shelves?

 

[Flem]

Go for it! I draw 28.5" with my recurves and 27.5 with an ASL. 33", you have a serious Ape index. Howard Hill bows are glassed both sides, don't know what design adjustments you would need to make for a back glassed only bow. I tried one like that with Osage lams and it exploded. Dual shelves?, don't know, can't shoot ambidexterous.

[kennym]

My understanding is glass on one side usually don’t live long. For a 33” draw I would want 70” bow but.... I’m not a hill style guy. 

[Trumpkin the Dwarf]

My understanding is glass on one side usually don’t live long. For a 33” draw I would want 70” bow but.... I’m not a hill style guy. 

I figured glass on both sides, just wasn't sure. And Kenny, the rule of thumb I found on the internet, was 2x your draw length, plus 10 inches! That's a 76" bow!

[Forwardhandle]

Here is a good book on making that style glass bow A to Z , lam formulas and all , pretty easy read if your interested !

[kennym]

That be a LONGbow!! I didn’t have any rules , just gut feeling! I think bigbob made a 68” off my d/r form for a really long draw but it’s not a hill...

[SportHunter]

Hill style bows vary more than just draw length. I have a few that have wider limbs and are thinner overall stack and others with thick lam stacks and thin width profiles. I prefer the thin profile and thick stack. My favorites are the Armbruster Grevys so far. I draw 28" and the sweet spot for me is 69" to 70" Hill style bows. The longer they are the smoother the draw, conversely, the shorter the quicker they stack up or felt weight increase.
Laying a 66'' bow next to a 70'' bow shows minimal overall difference in practical field use as far a nimbleness. I bet you can get away with 70" or 72" even with your draw which I would expect to be slightly shallower when using a Hill bow with proper form.

[monterey]

Ask canopyboy when he gets back.  He has some measurements for various bows and maybe he can tell you which ones would work for your draw.  There is more to it than length, of course.

[Overspined]

Wouldn’t hurt to make it a reverse handle Hill Bow. You’d kick the draw length down about 1.5-2” due to design, obviously wouldn’t matter much with that draw lengths but it would be arguably inherently easier to shoot and lessen the need for a bow over 70”..just a thought

[bigbob2]

I think you might get away with a 70' HH if you used a tip wedge [reverse taper] to reduce string angle. As Kenny said I did make several 68'' bows off his deflex/reflex design and they were for very long draws, around the 32 ' mark. with the wedge they worked very well and string angle was within right parameters.

[Forwardhandle]

I have a fairly long draw 31 '' I like the R/D style because it allows you to draw a long draw bow in a shorter faster package , I have the form , lams for one of Kennys 68'' R/D bows that Im putting together over winter, it would easily go there to 33'' draw ,heck I think the 64'' would , plus most of the guess work is out of the design for you !  at your draw I would bet you would get a crazy fast/stable  bow ! Here is the 64 '' @31''

[JBuchin3]

I just completed my first ASL build this spring, and have been collecting a few here and there from other builders, just to compare bowyer styles.  I have found that I draw my ASLs about 1.5" shorter than my R/D bow.  My bow arm is bent more, but solid at full draw, and my upper body feels more compact....sounds wierd, but that is the feel...a more relaxed style of shooting, more natural, flowing form.
My bow was made 68" long, straight limbed, with a deeper than average slight wedge grip, that measures 2 1/4". My draw on my R/D is a good 28", but with a heavier # ASL, more like 26.5".
With a draw that long, I would bet 70" would be pretty good for you.

Look into some photos of Howard shooting, and compare to your form with an R/D bow, and I bet your draw will reduce a bit.

[canopyboy]

I keep my risers very short, like 13.5-14”. Takes a little more care to transition to a good fade, and means a tighter radius to consider if you want a lam to run up the belly of the riser. But overall that leaves more working limb and lets you go a little shorter for the same draw length. Combined with tip wedges, my personal 66” bow has a linear draw curve well past 30”. I think you could hit 33 with a 70” bow doing something similar. And the point made about a reverse handle also helping should not be discounted.

[Trumpkin the Dwarf]

Thanks for all the replies fellas! I appreciate the insight. I was specifically asking about HH bows cause I had an itch after reading the 200 page thread on the powwow. But right now I have a boat to build, so this project is going to stay in Wishland for now.

[onemississipp]

Here is a good book on making that style glass bow A to Z , lam formulas and all , pretty easy read if your interested !

Just ordered, thanks!


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[Forwardhandle]

He put together a pretty good book on the subject, I never made one but could probably do it with the knowledge in it , he is a preety detailed fella I enjoyed it !

[RJonesRCRV]

I have a "Hill style" Kimsha 'Boo Bow, 56#@28, 64", that is bamboo backed, glass belly.  Tom said he made it in 1988 or so, shot it a bunch and killed some critters with it, before I got it.  I did stopdrill, super glue and wrap a hairline crack coming from one node, but its still going strong.  I was surprised to see a glass belly only bow, but I guess it can be done; bamboo is maybe the best choice for such a combo.