2 piece self bow ... first try. finished pics pg 11

[broketooth]

upper limb fade total upper limb

[Pat B]

Ruddy, you have become quite the bowyer since we first met at Hickory a few years ago. This looks like it is gonna be a very special bow. Looking forward to seeing her when she is done. Keep us posted!

[broketooth]

mr pat, i sure do appreciate it. its hard for me to work on osage im using a dust mask now when i work on it. before the mask it would make me feal terrible im also taking frequent breaks. beleive me i want to finish it soon but i know i nee to take my time. upper fade side profile total upper limb side profile

[broketooth]

lower limb side profile total lower limb side profile

[KellyG]

That is going to be good one for sure. Cant waite to see her finished.
Kelly

[red hill]

Good lookin' bow, Ruddy.  Osage is a gorgeous wood. I love the grain and character of your stave.
Stan

[Pat B]

Lets see her bend Ruddy! Having her all dressed up ain't no good if she can't dance! d;^)

[broketooth]

well mr pat, you asked me for a few pics on the tiller tree. so i came up with this this is the bow @ rest. the grid is 6' wide. 3' to the center. the grid is 3"x 3" squares. 3 is a prime number and easy to work with.every thing is level, and plumb. as you can see in the pic i have some deflex to heat out this pic is getting the limbs to move 3" on the long string with tiller boots. tell me what ya think. ruddy

[ber643]

I got to see this bow Ruddy is working on, up close and personal, Thursday before we went hunting (or freezing - LOL). This is going to be a beauty of a bow, IMO. I was real impressed as soon as I saw it resting in his bench vice. Even more impressed after handling it and watching him show me his floor tiller progress. If he keeps going as he is, this'un is going to be a real "Doosey". I bet it will shoot sweet too. Keep up the good work, Rudy.

[Pat B]

One suggestion for you Ruddy. Make a shorter tillering string out of para cord. Mine has a slip knot on each end and I cut shallow temporary nocks in the limb tips; just enough to hold the string. When it comes time to finish the tips the temporary nock grooves will be removed and the final ones added. The long tiller string should be just long enough to go over the tips and be slack. With a longer tillering string like you have you pull the tips almost straight down. With the shorter string you pull the tips more inward like with a short string. This early on in the process it isn't so critical but soon it will make a big difference.
  So far things are looking fine. Like I told you on the phone last evening all of the leverage is on the inner limbs so care has to be taken not to remove too much wood from the fades and just out past them. Once you get your limbs bending a bit more, evenly and together you can work back into the fades to get them bending with the rest.
  Try to overlook the deflex in the limbs for now. Concentrate on getting each limb bending evenly. When you get to 8"or 10" of tip movement and everything looks good, go to a low brace height of about 3". Then you will be able to see how the string tracks and if the limbs are infact bending evenly and together. Until then you are just removing wood to get the limbs to bend.
  Also remember you are not building a Swiss watch. This is just a piece of wood that you are trying to get to bend evenly. You can easily over thing the process and that can be as detrimental than underthinking.

[broketooth]

i did what you suggested mr pat. i filed some  temp shallow nocks . and a shorter long string . i also had to drill a new hole for my peg due to the shorter long string. is this better . ruddy

[Pat B]

Start scraping near the 4th vertical line on the left limb and the 3rd on the right limb.
   How thick is each limb now? Scribe a line about 1/8" below the belly but parallel to the back on each side of the limbs and bevel from that line to the center of the belly(making a facet) then flatten the belly again, exercise the limbs(only short, 2" to 3" pulls for now)after each wood removal session. Your limb thickness will eventually taper from fades to tips so think about that as you remove wood but don't over do it. You still have a long way to go.

[ber643]

Now you're logging, Ruddy - you can't get a better "guide" than Pat is - just make sure you understand exactly what he is telling you before "doing" it - LOL. (He already knows what he means when he is saying something - we just have to make sure we know what he means - LOL) I am glad you are in touch with and talking to him. As I've told you before, he has all the good stuff in his headbone, and is always willing to help.

[Pat B]

Hey, I resemble that remark Bernie! d;^)

[ber643]

LOL - I know, I know, Pat - but you know I am a firm supporter of your abilities and knowledge. At least with Ruddy, when you impart something to him, he can remember it, while I'm lucky to remember stuff from minute to minute -  let alone when I lay off for a year or so  :D

[Pat B]

Bernie, the boat I'm in ain't too far from the boat you are in. Now, what were we talking about...and who is Ruddy?

[broketooth]

 thats pretty funny pat and bernie. mr pat , i did what ya told me and made a 1/8 mark down from the belly on both sides of both limbs and i scribed a mark down the center of the belly of both limbs.

[broketooth]

i also scraped wood away to the lines on each limb. i started at the point on each limb like you had told me earlier. i checked it on the tree and im showing significant limb movement especially on the limb with character which would be on the right

[Pat B]

now work from the 3rd vertical line out on the left limb and between the second and third lines on the right limb. Leave the the fades and out to those lines alone for now. Get more bending out both limbs. The left one will be a pest because of the reflex on the last 1/3 of the limb. Take care there as to not take too much off. Exercise plenty after each wood removal. You need to get to about 8" of tip mivement and then go to a low brace. When we see how the string tracks it might be time for some heating, removing the deflex and adding even reflex to both limbs.

[ber643]

Neat, "watching" this (on a rainy day and night) transpire. Keep on keepin' on, guys.