diagnose this failure... a fix?

[Echatham]

So i took my new trilam huntin with me.  Shoot a few stumps on the way to the blind... Alls well.   Get to the blind and lean her against a tree.... Felt a sharp edge. Dont know what happened or when.  Never heard a funny sound.    Aint goin back to the house for another bow.... So maybe we will see if she has one last shot in her.  I hereby name her "last chance"
 
 

[Roy from Pa]

I think you left the edges too square, you can see the abrupt edge on it in the picture. I would have rounded the belly over to more of a radius belly. And your core lam is too thick. Both the core lam and belly lam need to be thickness tapered from flares to tips at least by 1/16th. And I can see rasp scratches on the side, you need to get out all of those, that is a starting place for failures. Thought I learned you better than that, son:) You need to slow down and finesse bows into their final stage. When you think it is done, go back over it with a fine tooth comb, looking for any little tiny scratches or nicks, and sand them smooth. Then put a light coat of stain on it and look again. You will see where it needs attention. But your not doing too bad, Skippy.    

[onemississipp]

Yeah, Thought Roy learned you better!

Where is the failure on the limb? And which limb?

Guessing here, upper limb about 3 to 5 inches out of the fade?

[Echatham]

Bottom limb ten inches from the tip

[fujimo]

cant help with the bow, i would listen to the ol'guy- saw a photo of his 'pipes' a while ago- man i would be skeerd!!
but sure like to see people using the asat leafy suits- my favourite hunting gear.
missed a nice spike buck yesterday at 5 yards( dont ask!!!    )
and he just stared at me in my leafy suit. and strolled off unspooked!!

[fujimo]

i might try and wrap something around the area for the rest of the day- duct tape, cord, anything!!
then a C.A. fix and C.A. saturated wrap-  later tonight- would still make it usable tomorrow!!!
but im sure you had that figured out anyways!!

[John Scifres]

Um it cracked.  Diagnosis complete  

Looks like some swirly grain in that area to me.  Is that the belly?  Also looks like the glue line might have failed???

[Roy from Pa]

10 inches from the tip? Holly crap, my mid limbs aren't that thick..

[Roy from Pa]

missed a nice spike buck yesterday at 5 yards( dont ask!!!

Well I gotta ask, Wayne:) But don't feel bad, I did that once too:)

[onemississipp]

I was guessing from the thickness it was near the fade.. Got any photos before the failure, full draw or on the tillering tree?

I guess that may be a close up and just look thicker than it is.

[fujimo]

he came in pretty quick to the squeal, and stopped sort of right in front of the tree( i use a tree seat) but at the base, so it was a near vertical, round the tree, contorted sort of shot- should have just waited till he walked away some- and given the perfect shot- like he did after i shot        he just stared at me for the longest time, and slowly strolled away, by the time i hads another one nocked, he was behind some brush!!
just misread the situation- thought that he came in fast, that he might leave in a hurry too!!

so echatham- is the bow surviving the day!!!

[Echatham]

well, didn't have anything to shoot at... to windy tonight.  it does have a weird swirl in the grain there, probably a hidden pin knot.  the glue joint seems to have failed to, might have been starved... wonder if that could have been the clacking noise i couldn't figure out.  tell ya what, im 0 for 2 on these bamboo backed bows... Roy, you can have em.  im building another self bow      

here's a full draw pic prior to today, bottom limb on the left

 

 

[Echatham]

not sure why you guys think its thick... just over a quarter inch.... is that thick?
 

[onemississipp]

Man it looked nice! Must have been the swirl and glue problem.

Round the belly more on the next one, just as Roy said.

Your learning things you can't get by reading a book. Some times these lesson don't come the way we want them. But I bet you will never forget to check for these things you learn.

Roy may have hold you back a grade for saying your giving up.

[onemississipp]

It was the close up, we had nothing to compare for a size reference.

[onemississipp]

I think it was the glue failure that caused it. Maybe clamped her to tight. What glue did you use?

Has nothing to do with it just wondering.

[fujimo]

did you use C clamps??
a lot of people use clamps successfully- i just dont like them- too much margin of error- i prefer bands- but then you gotta make a caul, then might as well use an air hose- which is probably the quickest cleanest most accurate.
just my opinion thats all.

[Roy from Pa]

Eric, it wasn't always easy...

[Echatham]

used bar clamps on the posts and spring clamps on the rest.  i believe it likely was the glue line that caused it... coupled with the tiny pin knot.  just seems like theres a higher rate of failure with these laminated bows... they are sensitive i guess... guess you could say they were sissy pants bows... i guess thats fitting though... considering who builds the most of em      
 im not stressing over it.. hell i got another one on the tree and one in the oven.  there will be lots of bows and lots of lessons learned.

i got a HHB molly at low brace, but it needs a few more heat sessions to get the tips lined up with handle, and i got a very clean (only one pin knot and its in the handle) osage stave roughed out almost identical to my last osage bow... 64" ntn, top limb one inch longer, 1.5" for 5" past the fades then straight tapered to half inch.  and im going to make it as simple and as perfect as i can.  very slow... like tillering with 400 grit slow...  no flipped tips, just mild reflex, and im shooting for a straight standing finished bow about 45-50#

[Roy from Pa]

I don't use spring clamps. I use C clamps.