G10

[Jon Lipovac]

For those of you that wanna know more about G 10. This is why it’s so tough and so hard on blades. This is what was left in my fire pit after I burnt some stuff I didn’t need anymore. This was quarter inch G 10 black.

[Crooked Stic]

Looks like fiberglass without the resin.

[Jon Lipovac]

Yep. Roughly 28 laminations of fabric in only .375” piece of G10. That stuff is saturated thriugh with resin then compress at very high pressure. I thought it was pretty cool that the resin burn completely off but the fabric stayed intact.

[Kirkll]

There are actually different types of G-10 products. Some are fire retardant, some use glass, and some even use carbon fabric.

Here is a link to more info...

 https://www.ownplastics.com/garolite-g10-for-industrial-use-what-it-is-and-why-its-the-best-choice-for-your-application/

[Buemaker]

Looks like some serious tough stuff.

[kennym]

Yep. Roughly 28 laminations of fabric in only .375” piece of G10. That stuff is saturated thriugh with resin then compress at very high pressure. I thought it was pretty cool that the resin burn completely off but the fabric stayed intact.

Yep, if you burn a bow (a friend says ) the glass strands remain too...

[Kirkll]

I have a real Love / Hate thing going with the G-10. Its absolutely incredible material. It mills very well, has excellent strength, and finishes beautifully.....

But... It's very unforgiving laminated to wood that is subjected to serious MC changes. I've had bows that i built with low MC levels in the wood that lasted for many years with no issues at all . Then they were shipped to a very dry climate , with low humidity and have the wood shrink. Some just crack the finish at the G-10 lines in spots. Others have opened up to large cracks in multiple locations.  I've never had one i couldn't repair and refinish, but it's frustrating sometimes for both the customer and myself having to do the warranty work.

I know a lot of bowyers that quit using it just for that reason..... But i refuse to give up on it myself...   Kirk

[Crooked Stic]

I use a lot of Spectraply single sheets for accents. You can get them all colors Lime green one of my favorites  using composites might be better off with stabilized wood or diamondwood.

[Jon Lipovac]

Agreed Kirk. But, if you are able to stabilize the wood thourghly first, I have had zero issues with the wood moving next to the composites. I have risers that sit in my garage or shed year round in Iowa from high humidity 100*+ to very dry -10* temps and no problems at all with the stabalized bows.

But......not all wood stabilize well, especially the oily varieties. Bocote is one, I stabilized some of it one time, and while it stabilized OK, it ruined my batch of Cactus Juice. You could literally see the oil coming out of it with the air and it turned my juice into Root Beer.

For those of you interested, here is a link to my supplier. Been very happy with them. If you are just using the G10 for accents, limb pad caps, and tip overlays etc, it pretty reasonable. I use .031 alot. For I-beams the .375 will run about $20-$30 per riser depending on the size of your riser block.

https://atlassupplies.com/collections/pre-cut-scales-sheets-slabs-solid-colors-1

[Crooked Stic]

Bet you thru that Root Beer out huh? 

[Jon Lipovac]

Bet you thru that Root Beer out huh? 

HAHAHA. I did!
I used for some of the darker tone woods after and it deluted down a bit as you added fresh to it, but I wasn't sure how much it was compromised moving forward.

[Kirkll]

Agreed Kirk. But, if you are able to stabilize the wood thourghly first, I have had zero issues with the wood moving next to the composites. I have risers that sit in my garage or shed year round in Iowa from high humidity 100*+ to very dry -10* temps and no problems at all with the stabalized bows.

But......not all wood stabilize well, especially the oily varieties. Bocote is one, I stabilized some of it one time, and while it stabilized OK, it ruined my batch of Cactus Juice. You could literally see the oil coming out of it with the air and it turned my juice into Root Beer.

For those of you interested, here is a link to my supplier. Been very happy with them. If you are just using the G10 for accents, limb pad caps, and tip overlays etc, it pretty reasonable. I use .031 alot. For I-beams the .375 will run about $20-$30 per riser depending on the size of your riser block.

https://atlassupplies.com/collections/pre-cut-scales-sheets-slabs-solid-colors-1

I never got into stabilizing wood much using cactus juice. i got set up years ago with a vacuum chamber and messed with it a bit, but it was short lived.

I buy my G-10 FRP in 2-3' X 4' sheets. in 3/8" & 1/4"  directly from Professional plastics with no shipping cost.... Yes... Its expensive, but i use it on ILF risers , Bare Foot risers, and my Sasquatch Special with a full overlay G-10 back, as well as I beams.

I have pretty good luck if i cook the riser after it's rough shaped in the spray booth for a couple days at 100 degrees. if it's going to crack or open up, it does it then and i can fill it before finish sanding.  I could probably do the same thing in my hot box, and have a few times.

I'm repairing a B&W ebony one piece right now that shrank real bad. That material has been bone dry for quite a few years too. Sometimes it makes no sense at all....   Kirk