Hickory back popping splinters

[LittleBen]

I have a hickory backed jatoba bow thats got a couple very small but still very scary splinters coming up on the back of the bow. I know hickory is normally pretty good but this hickory has alot of runoff.

How should I go about repairing it? Is some superglue worth a try?

It's a 3 piece takedown so I'm not going to grind off the hickory and reback. I already have plans for a new set of recurve limbs, and a set of longbow limbs. I just wanna repair the current limbs for the time being.

So anyway, superglue? titebond? brown paper? silk?rawhide (might be too heavy)? any ideas and experience would be great.

[macbow]

Ben is it splintering on the edges with the run out?
If so maybe the edges can be rounded over some more.

I think my choice if it need something to help keep splinters down would be some very thin rawhide. Or skins.

[LittleBen]

No it's not, that's whats strange, it two spots in the middle of the back. Not near an edge at all. Edges are very rounded.

I'm considering the rawhide more and more. Any thoughts on where to get some real thin rawhide like you're talking about?

Otherwise I'm thinking of giving it the brown paper bag treatment .... maybe if I stain it dark brown and some wipe on poly it'll look almost like brown glass .... at a distance at least. I'm less convinced it will hold the splinters than rawhide though.

[Roy from Pa]

Buddy of mine said to give hickory backing a U bend test before putting it on a bow. He said it's either going to break or be ok. Just sayen LB..

[LittleBen]

Roy you're totally right. I should have done that.

For some reason I decided to use a questionable piece to test out this 3pueve takedown. Now that everything but the backing worked out I'm kicking myself.

[Roy from Pa]

Well don't feel bad, I forgot to do it once too and pop went the backing:) Any chance of grinding it back off?

[LittleBen]

I'll  probably just glue up another set of limbs. It's got a pretty serious recurve in the limbs so it'd be a pain to grind.

[LittleBen]

Well I made a call on this, I decided to work some Titebond III into the crack.

Mind you these splinters were no more than 1/4" long and 1/8" wide. I just wanted to fix it before they're 4 inches long.

My logic on Titebond vs. Superglue was this:
I would never laminate a wood bow together with superglue so why would I repair one with it. I fugured it was TBIII or epoxy and TBIII was just alot easier.

If they reappear I'll go to some Rawhide or brown paper.

[Pat B]

If you used TBIII to glue the backing on you can heat it up and remove the backing. The glue will release at 150 deg. I used a heat gun and starting at one tip heated it until I could get a chisel between the back and belly then just heated and worked down the limb to the handle. Then start at the other limb tip and do the same. Sand the belly smooth and glue on another backing strip.

[LittleBen]

Yeah I did use tbIII pat but since its a takedown limb removing the backing only leaves a tapered 3/16th jatoba slat and a wedge

[Pat B]

Super glue the splinter and add a silk or paper backing.

[Bowjunkie]

The reason I like super glue for such repairs is the 'thin' viscocity version will suck into the very, very beginning of any crack. TB3 and epoxies, even with heat, or clamping pressure, can't come close.

I've made SERIOUS repairs with super glue, akin to 're-laminating' on highly stressed bows, and they're still holding.

[LittleBen]

Good information Bowjunkie ... Hopefully I didnt screw up using TBIII. Time will tell ...