HH bug got me ... Part One!

[Brianlocal3]

Ralph,
I agree with the others on all accounts. But your wood choice is amazing, they blend so well it gives the appearance of a self bow!!!!

[Bud B.]

Originally posted by Brianlocal3:
Ralph,
I agree with the others on all accounts. But your wood choice is amazing, they blend so well it gives the appearance of a self bow!!!!

That's what I was thinking. I like the blend.

I have a Hill style I rasped to a locator grip. I wish it was back straight.

[swampthing]

Do you know why happens to the string alignment when you start getting "rasp" happy?

[TommyBoy]

I really like the carmalized bamboo. Any appreciable difference in the cast compared to raw bamboo?

[Ron LaClair]

  Do you know why happens to the string alignment when you start getting "rasp" happy?  

That's something to consider..   :rolleyes:  ..You may also want to check to see if it would void your warranty..  

[David Mitchell]

No way would I take a rasp to that beauty. I used to like the locator grip until I got used to the straight grip, now it's all I want.

[swampthing]

Caramelized and carbonized bamboo is made by "boiling" it, that softens the boo approx. 20% . I'm pretty sure Howard wasn't tempering his bamboo to make it softer!!  If you do not like the blonde color of flame tempered bamboo put some colored glass on it.

[rmorris]

Thank you all for the kind comments, but there may be some slight confusion... I have been reading this thread for a while now and finally got the time to take a break form making them reflex deflex bows and try something new. I had a bad experience last year when I tried my first Hill style bow and I have been thinking that with the popularity of this thread I must have tried a lemon. A few weeks ago I started gathering dimensions and specs to attempt a Hill build.

This was one of the funnest builds I have done in a long time and I am looking forward to the next. The reason I was not happy with the Rosewood was because I have some super dark stuff that I was thinking about using but did not because it is part of an 8' by 12" board that I did not feel like processing and the light stuff was correct size and handy(teach me to take the easy way out    

Tom I have not noticed any difference between Caramelized bamboo and standard bamboo in any bows I have made, but then again I am fairly crude. All I can say is that the same stack of each type of bamboo makes the same poundage bow with all other specs being equal.

I am also thinking that the tiller of the bow could change some with a new grip, with a locator grip I am thinking that it would change the dynamic fulcrum up a little on the bow causing the lower limb to become stiffer. I will make sure the tiller is correct and update you all of the results once I make the changes. For now I will continue to shoot it as is because it is still quite enjoyable.

[SportHunter]

    -    

    -     [/QB]

Great job on the build Ralph! Now you've got me thinking about next years TG bow swap already...

[swampthing]

Well I refigured the obvious today. As the season approaches and my "tuning" continues, I found that I could not get a 28" bop, 52# shaft w/125g point to fly out of my bow. A 68" 50# Hill style. They would: porpoise, fishtail, twang, and do all the other than fly right.
  Brace went from 5.75-6.75," nock point went from 1/8- over 1/2" and everywhere between. The only thing that helped was a 190g head. It took most of the crap flight away, and shot over a foot higher at 40yds! but still did not have that perfect arrow flight. Played w/ grip from heel down, to high wrist!!  various amounts of  heel pressure but no difference!  Then I thought well shorten your draw a bit, 27" flew a little better but still had disgusting arrow flight. Then I went and shot with a slightly more open stance, made sure I was not straightening out my bow arm, not drawing past my lips, just what felt natural and with NO exaggeration. 26" draw, ouch, I'm 5'10" with a similar arm-span. But near perfect arrow flight, flew tail stiff, but no porpoising! now we are getting somewhere. Now drawing these 52# shafts cut to 26.5" w/ a 125g point puts me #10 over spine, so... I full length tapered them! first cut was 8" from nock, then from 1/2 way point, finally from 3"  behind point. These full taper shafts and a 125g head weighed 465g flew a bit stiff, but no porpoising or tail wagging!! And with good trajectory.  Never had much luck getting good arrow flight with any of my setups past and present when drawn past 26.5" regardless of FOC or spine.
 Shooting from a hunting posture got me good results, getting shafts 5-10# under bow weight for my 26" draw and FF string w/ 125s is working good, slow, but way quieter, less shock, and most importantly, straight shooting accuracy.

[Brianlocal3]

I too am 5' 10" with a 26" draw. I don't like it, but. Since I stopped trying to stretch out my DL my arrows are flying good again too. Funny

[Nate Steen .]

After reading this 'tuning' stuff, it makes my head spin.  I refer to Schulz in his latest book..."it's generally the archer/shooter that needs tuning, not the equipment" or some such words...

maybe I'm blessed, maybe I don't know what I'm doing, whichever, but I shoot woodies cut to 26 1/2" bop, pulling the head onto the shelf, shoot anywhere from right on spine with 125 gr heads to 10-15# overspine with 150 gr heads and all the arrows group where I look.  sometimes the arrows might wobble a little, usually not.  It's mostly my release when that happens.

two days ago I went out with three arrows, judo and two Zwickey No Mercys....shot all three into a 2 1/2" group in the lawn at 42 yards, no warm up, didn't know the distance until after the shot.  went back and hung up the bow on the rack.  They might have wobbled a little in flight, don't know, don't care.  They hit where I looked.  That's the whole point of this archery game, but maybe, just maybe with all this advancement in information and knowledge we have micromanaged our shooting and are actually shooting worse because of it.

months, years of shooting the same technique, same equipment, will produce such familiarity and hand eye coordination that good arrow flight and accuracy will be easily accomplished 99% of the time without being a chore. ( I'm talking about fairly matched equipment of course)  Almost like shooting without thinking, autopilot. but alas, human nature likes to tinker with a good thing, sometimes spoiling it in the process and sometimes making it better.

[Bud B.]

Originally posted by swampthing:
Do you know why happens to the string alignment when you start getting "rasp" happy?

It was back in 1979. It was a u-finish bow.

All is well with the bow.

[dragonheart]

Originally posted by ChrisM:
Got my Mudd Hat in.  Guess I am now a marry man.
 

PS how is my form?

You need a photo with a critter on the ground and that hat!  Form looking mucho awesome.  

Shoot the middle!!!

[swampthing]

A little wobble from a slightly stiff shaft is fine, if not more consistent than the opposite when it comes to wood. With my 26" draw,  a cedar spined 10# under bow weight, w/125's, is what get's it coming out straight, even w/ FF string.

[Brianlocal3]

Nate,
My shooting went downhill in a hurry when I learned about "good form" and real tuning and all the other technical stuff.  Now that I am back to shooting like I did before ( it's actually good form) my shooting is rocking out again.

[swampthing]

"Putting the arrow in the bullseye that's proper archery form."
Byron Ferguson, maybe you've heard of him.   :D

[Shinken]

Swamp!

Thanks for sharing your adventure in arra tuning!  When I am not shootin' woodies, the best flyin' arras out my Hill bow are AD Trad Lites and your arrow design certainly could fit the bill!

Shoot straight, Shinken

   

[Ben Maher]

I agree Nate ... but I think you'd find inherent to any good archers successful results one thing ... consistency !!!

I am probably at tad more upright than most , and i bend my arm "enough" but at 5'10" I still draw over 27" with a low wrist grip and hunting weight bow .

A great part of this silly sport is tinkering ... tinkering with form , tinkering with gear ... I am as guilty as anyone ... [ hence my love affair with Ad Trad Lites and Sighted 'curves ]

But the best thing about this sport for me .. is a windy Autumn day ... with just a touch of chill in the air ... a straight limb longbow in hand and a back quiver full of well crafted woodies ... and the embarrassed camaraderie of fellow archers , equipped with squiggly and  fast longbows and uber techie synthetic arra's , who just got their arse handed to them on a platter over the course of an afternoons roving by me and my out of date gear ......

Keep shooting the same gear , the same arrows with the same form .....
you'll be further ahead in the game than most !

[Berliner]

Nate-
Thanks for getting back to the basics. I agree - it`s getting mucho technical here and then. When I started Trad Archery again 3-4 years ago I soon learned that "arrow-tuning" was an endless topic around the campfires.
Over here in Germany, the overwhelming part of the threads in the local Trad Archery-Forums are very technical: grains, spine questions, FOC, EFOC, material, set-up, advices, etc. A typical and theoretical German discussion I say as German-Engineering is renowned around the globe.      
BUT where is the magic, the romance of the sport, enjoying ourselves in nature, watching a magic arrow in flight hitting where we looked? It`s the main reason why I started over with the longbow again.
I used to play Ultimate Frisbee a lot in my youth and I can tell ya: This is pure Hand-eye-coordination. Hand-eye-coordination and the right rhythm along with a good solid form. That`s it! At least It`s my approach to Trad Archery. Keep it simple. Just my 2cents. No offense....