Brush Nocks - A Tutorial - FINISHED!

[4est trekker]

Howdy, all.  I've had a few people contact me recently asking me how I do brush nocks on static recurves.  I thought I'd do a simple tutorial on what I've learned and what works for me.  Below is a 64" osage recurve I'm working on that I'm adding rosewood and padauk brush nocks to.  


Step 1: Prepping the Various Laminations  
I cut them on a table saw, then true them up by hand on a belt sander.  I find it easier to work with wider pieces to prevent rocking/cupping.  As such, I'll be cutting the padauk lams down to size later.  

     


Step 2: Tapering the Limb Tips  
I taper the last 7" to make it easier to bend the recurves in.  I use a belt sander to get a perfectly flat surface.  The tape helps give me a reference so I don't go too far.

     


Step 3: Bending the Limb Tips  
I use a heat gun and go SLOW.  It takes about 20 minutes per tip.  If you let the wood plasticize properly (slow and even heat), you'll not struggle with the belly cracking under tension.  I get the last 4" good and hot, then place that tip in the jig and work my way down the limb.  I use one hand to gently support the weight of the bow (which is now sticking up in the air) but let a little of its weight help pull the bow down over the form.

     


Step 4: Prebending the Laminations
I heat and prebend the first three laminations on the same jig.  They don't hold near as much bend as the tips do, but it helps immensely.  I use a scrap of particle board as a backer to keep the lams from lifting splinters.

     


Step 5: Applying the First Lamination  
I use leather pads and small wooden blocks to help spread the clamping pressure out evenly.  I use Titebond III, which requires a smooth surface for glue-up (i.e. it does NOT fill voids and gaps).  This is prefect since both surfaces have been prepped with the belt sander.

     

[4est trekker]

Step 6:  Rough Shaping the First Three Laminations
I apply three laminations, two of which are full length (7") and one that is 4".  Then I use a disc sander to rough shape them, leaving the last 3" alone.  I do this now while I still have room to do it.  Once I get the final laminations on the last 3" of the tips, it makes it VERY difficult to fade and taper these first three laminations.

 


Step 7: Final Shaping the First Three Laminations  
Using a rasp, file, scraper, and sandpaper, I true up the fades of these laminations and round over the sharp edges, again leaving the last 3" of each tip alone.

 


Step 8: Preparing Limb Tips for Final Laminations
I use a disc sander to flatten the last 3" of each tip.  This makes it much easier and quicker to add the laminations that will eventually create the raised portion of the brush nocks.

 

 


More to come!  

[razorback]

This is great 4est. I've been interested in this as well as many others. You do great build-alongs that many will copy.

[takefive]

I'll be book marking this page.  Very cool!

[Echatham]

Nice.  I found that boiling the laminations makes them keep more of the bend off the form.
 

[mwosborn]

Very nice - great info here.

[4est trekker]

Thanks, Mitch.  Nice to see another fellow Nebraskan here.  

[4est trekker]

Step 10: Gluing Up Riser Blocks
This three-lamination piece will form the elevated "riser" section of the brush nocks

   


Step 11: Profiling the Riser Blocks (Which I Screwed Up!)
I use a drum sander on my drill press to put a concave hollow on the end of the riser block that will eventually face away from the bow tip.  I also taper the block slightly, although I treated the wrong end of the block which made me glue it on with the taper going the wrong way in the next step.  Oh well, that's why I leave plenty of extra material.  It'll be fine in the end.

   


Step 12: Gluing On the Riser Blocks
This step is nothing special, although I'm careful to line up the end of the riser block with the edge of the flatted portion of the tip to make it super easy to blend the two together later on.  You can see the slight concave radius to the front of the riser block and how the taper is actually going the wrong way.  It will still work because I have just enough height left to work with.

   


Step 13: Rough Shaping the Riser Blocks
I use a band saw and disc sander to get the profile of the tips roughed in and trued up.

   


Step 14: Blending In the Riser Blocks
Using a few round files, sandpaper, and a pocket knife for a scraper, I blend the riser blocks into the rest of the limb.

   


Just a few more steps left!  

[Echatham]

nice.  im gonna have to try this. thanks for the tutorial.

[razorback]

This is cool. Couple of questions though.
Are brush-nocks just for preventing brush from snagging between the string and the nock or is there another purpose for them.
Also does the added mass at the tip increase hand shock. Seems it would going with conventional wisdom of smaller tips for reduced hand shock.

[4est trekker]

Razorback:  Yes, they're desinged to keep brush from snagging between the string and belly of the limb.  As far as hand shock goes, it's a bit counterintuitive.  If you have working recurves or a very short recurved/flipped tip, then yes, this style of nock tends to add a bit of shock.  However, if you've got a pronounced static recurve, then no, I've found I get no hand shock (assuming the limbs are tillered/timed properly!).  It works on the much the same principle as a horsebow.  Logic would suggest that those long levers (siyahs) would jar your teeth.  However, for a number of reasons, horsebows are amonst the smooth drawing and shooting bows.

[razorback]

Ahh, will we ever understand all there is to know about bows. thanks for the answers.

[Mark Baker]

[Pat B]

I hope not, Razor. I'm enjoying the journey to much! d;^)

[4est trekker]

Step 15: Profiling Tip Overlays and Underlays
I use a disc sander to create a flat, angled pad on the tips that I glue an overlay to.  Angling the pad keeps the transition smooth and the bulk down.  In this case I'm using some stabilized flamed maple for the overlays.  I also further profile the brush nock underlays, especially out toward the tips.

 

 


Step 16: Final Shaping and Sanding
Here they are all dressed up for the prom!  I use a Dremel tool, round files, sandpaper, a pocket knife (as a scraper), a carbide cutting rod on a hacksaw (makes cutting in the initial string grooves a breeze) and patience to do all of the final shaping.  They really don't take that long to shape since each previous step is designed to chip away at them incrementally, preventing excess work on the following step.

 

 

 

 


I don't have any pictures of the bow strung yet, as I need to tweak the tiller on the long string again before getting it to brace height.  As such, I'll post a separate thread when the bow is finished with some close-ups of the brush nocks "in action".  I hope you've enjoyed this little tutorial and that it can be of some help to you.

[Iron Eagle]

Thanks for the build along. Excellent work I tried my first brush nocks on my last recurve. I used walnut and it didnt seem to take the curve as good. I think im going to try and boil them next time.

[bornofmud]

great build along, those nocks are beautiful.  Super cool stuff!

[Robert Armstrong]

Those are nice, really nice! Thanks for the how to insight. Good job!