Modifications to a Sage riser?

[Msturm]

I am looking to reduce the blocky look of my Samick Sage riser (just for fun). I will either use a drum sander or a 1/2 in rouder on the parts that are 90 degrees. (with the exception of the limb pockets)

1. will I be compromising the structural integrity at all?
2. Has anyone experimented with this before?

Thanks in advance.

[BigJim]

I'm sure you could make some small adjustments. Just don't make it too thin anywhere.
Sages are good bows, but have been prone to riser breakage. It's not incredible common, but you have a 55lb sage and that can be a determining factor.

bigjim

[T Folts]

I reshaped a sage for a friend of mine. You can do alot without making it weak. Rounding everything nice, just leave the grip area alone.
T

[LittleBen]

I think you've got good advice there from Jim and Terry. Jim probably builds more bows in a month than 99% will in their entire lives, so I usually take his advice to heart and recommend others do as well.

My only addition is that it's really not a lot of wood removal to go from blocky to sleek, so I'd recommend doing it by hand and avoiding power tools. The more power you have the quicker you can ruin the workpiece.
I'd probably just shape it with a half round file and then sand it down nice. You probably don't even need to start rasping unless you're really impatient or you have a light touch with the rasp. Can't tell you how many time I put bad rasp marks in a riser, had to remove a lot of material to get them out and regretted not just using a file and taking it slow.

[Msturm]

Great stuff guys!  I have a bunch of files. And as summer break is almost upon us here in the Hawaii DOE I will also have a bit of free time.  Hand Tools It Is!  

You guys are great!

Sturm

[Msturm]

Well thanks for the info guys. I went ahead and spent most of last night working on it.  After I got it to shape, I was looking around and found a jar of vinegar/steel wool stain I made up a while back to try on some bamboo. I figured why not? Whats the worst that could happen.  Here is how it came out.

Stock Riser for comparison:  

Mine after reshaping sanding, staining and 9 coats of deft matte finish.
 


I like it.  let me know what you think.

[Trux Turning]

Great job- that's a nice improvement!!

[Wolftrail]

It turned out really nice, I would of left the lighter strip of wood natural.  But thats just me.