string alignment on osage selfbow

[DVSHUNTER]

I am having some issues getting the string to come down the center of my handle in my ltest selfbow.  Every time I heat the likmb and try to bend it in the right direction, it never holds its place and creeps back to the same place.  Nohing I am doing is helpng.  Cana bow be heated too mch and develpoe a memory?  I know that when I am heating I am getting it hot enough all the way through. I am getting frustrated, btI won't gve up!  Has any one else had this problem?

[George Tsoukalas]

Is the string on the handle? On what side is it off? If you leave the nocks wide and the handle wide you can make minor adjustments without heating. I can explain if you are interested. Jawge

[Pat B]

What George said!  Will you post pics for us to look at.

[Shaun]

You can heat and bend at the handle or tips, but not the working part of the limb once it is tillered. Working sections of limb will return to their original shape and will loose cast if you heat them. Bend it at the handle (takes a long slow heat to get this thick area to bend) or in the last six inches of the tip. In the future, try to get the sting (tips) lined up after floor tiller and before tillering further. I like to put the roughed out bow on the cull after floor tiller stage - when it is first starting to bend at the bow blank stage - and induce some backset and line up the tips.

[Eric Krewson]

Bend the tips or handle at the fades and go a little past where you think you need to be. I always over correct and go back a little if I need to.

[DVSHUNTER]

I think that I may have messed up here.  The bow is tillered already and it just sort of crept in this direction.  I am going to try to heat the tips up now because heating the handle has not worked yet.  I always leave the nocks wide as per advice here, but this one is too messed up.

[George Tsoukalas]

I've made bows where the string was not on the handle. Not a problem really. How far off is it? Jawge

[Pat B]

Feel the thickness of the limbs, not only along their length but also side to side. If the limb are moving to one side or the other as time goes by it is an indication that the limb thickness, from side to side, is uneven making one side of the limb stronger than the other and pulling the limb to the weak side.
  Heating and bending will bring the limbs back into line but if they are uneven they will go back to where that were before. You have to "fix" the problem to get good results.