Riser forward design

[elk ninja]

I have been pontificating the riser forward designs, thinking about building a form for some home brewed bows.... lets discuss the benefits of a riser forward R/D or recurve.  
* I have heard it allows the limbs to "relax" more than traditional designs.
* Traditionally, with a clamp or a hose form, the bow goes a certain way on the form, i.e., it is built up.  Are riser forwards built "backwards?
* anything else, including a picture of your non- top secret riser forward form is greatly appreciated.

[beachbowhunter]

In my experience there is no difference. I believe the "riser forward is more stable" thing is an urban legend. People seem to like OL's set-back risers and my Zipper Extreme is as stable as anything out there. Some of the twitchiest bows I've shot have been the radical forward riser bows.

[Mark Baker]

I'd have to disagree, respectfully with that, beachbowhunter.  Riser forward design is more stable in that it places the work being done by the limbs and your draw behind your bow arm, greatly reducing any "torque" a weak grip or bow arm might produce in trying to control the drawing action.  A good analogy off the top of my head would be pulling a trailer with a vehicle down the road as opposed to trying to push it.   Deflex also does the same thing...it moves the balance behind your bow grip.   When you see a radically set-back grip area, it usually is followed with a large deflex area of the limb to counteract the set-back.  A bow with a forward riser thus is more "pointable"...takes less effort to keep from torquing the grip and throwing off the shot.  Same thing also with deep or thick handles vs. small ones.   A thick handle lends itself to more lateral forces from an improper grip causing torque.  A small round grip is much harder to torque via a poor grip hand...also less likely to torque as a result of poor release like "plucking".   It's all simple leverage.

[vermonster13]

Mark pretty much nailed it.

[elk ninja]

What about haveing a longer brace height?  All others considered, doesn't that make the arrow a smidge quicker and the bow more stable?  

Any idea on how the forms look?

[insttech1]

Longer brace "usually" equates to a slower arrow, because of the power stroke, and where the arrow actually leaves the string during the stroke.

The really "hot" bows, as in speed-wise, usually have a much shorter brace...even for compounds.  But that is not necessarily a good thing...you must find the tradeoff for shootability, of course.

And the forward-riser should add stability, not detract from it, as stated above.

The forms should just be an exact image of the bow in question...it just depends on how they're shaped when built.  Whatever goes in for glue-up should come out with the same profile.  So in the case of a really forward handle, there should be a large "hump" on the bottom of the form, and a large cavity in the top of the form, with the hose on top.

Take Care,
Marc

[John Havard]

A bow can be poorly designed with either sort of riser shape just as they can be well designed with either sort of shape.  If well designed, neither has an advantage over the other in pointability, shootability, stability, or smoothness.  

In general I'd prefer a poorly-designed forward riser over a poorly-designed "less-forward" riser.  Having said that, however, I'd prefer a well-designed "less-forward" riser over a more forward riser because of the additional inch or two of energy storage.