Re-shaping a handle?

[tarponnut]

Any advice out there for how I go about re-shaping a bow handle to fit my hand better?
Just need to reduce the throat a little.
What do I finish it with after getting it where I want?
Thanks.

[jsweka]

All you need is a couple rasps (flat and rounded) and some sand paper.  Shape it the way you like, sand out all the tool marks and make it nice and smooth, then apply several coats of finish.  It might be a little tricky to get the finish to match the rest of the bow unless you refinish the whole thing.  I use minwax wipe-on polyurathane on the bows I build.

One note of caution...If you reshape the handle yourself, you will likely void any warranty from the bowyer.

[tarponnut]

Thanks for the advice John.
It's not under warranty anyway.

[rmorris]

You can do it! Just take your time and creep up on it. I would not advise the use of any power tools because they tend to take off more material than expected. When  I am working out a riser I find that the riser feels very different when it is sanded smooth compared to it being roughed up by the files , even though the shape is the exact same. I hope you enjoy this project and hope you show some before and after pictures.

[Robertfishes]

what is the riser/grip made of, removing material will weaken that part of the bow.. But most bows are plenty strong and a little sanding is ok.. I use an osilating spindle sander to shape grips then hand sand. If wood is oily like bocote or cocobolo you will need to seal it with bullseye shellac, then apply your finish..i use minwax spar urethane in a spray can..i would like to use Thunderbird ,Krystal or whatever BlackWidow uses..

[Robertfishes]

On the first glass backed bow I built I was using a rasp to shape the arrow shelf, I lifted a glass splinter 1/8 inch wide and 2 inchs long on the back...had to glue it down and put an overlay over it. When rasping go glass to wood..i went wood to glass and the rasp caught the glass...i knew better and dont know why I did it..

[Greg Szalewski]

4 in 1 rasp. Bingham sells it but I have seen it at big box home supply stores.

It is good to see you take the bull by the horns and do what so many are afraid to do. Please take before and after pics to post here.

[BWD]

You might be suprised how quickly you can remove material with sand paper alone. Start with a very course grit and working your way thru with finer grits. Sure eliminates having to sand out the file marks, and really does doesn't take that long.