Profile Taper vs Lam Taper

[Shredd]

I think I know the answer to this but I would like some feedback and thoughts on this subject before I do anything...

   My 64" R/D longbow is about 1 3/8" at the fades and about 7/16" at the tips...  (just where the overlays end...  About 1" from the nock...

   I here that narrower limbs can give you higher performance...  I am thinking about reducing my my limbs down to just over 1 1/4" at the fades...  I am feeling this may mess with my performance and I may or will have to increase my taper rate or change my hyper lam to get it back up to par on performance...

  What is your experience or thoughts on this??

 I kinda hate to go having to find a new recipe for a proven design...  But if it promises another 2-3 fps, I'll do it...

[Roy from Pa]

But if it promises another 2-3 fps, I'll do it...

Why would you mess around with your proven recipe to gain 2 or 3 fps?

[Bvas]

Just my thoughts.......

Narrowing the entire limb would show more performance gain than just narrowing the fade end of the limb. But you are already pretty narrow on the tips.

I would probably try one without altering anything else first. From there you could decide where you want to see less bend. If just inner limb, increase the power lam either in length or thickness. If both inner and mid limb, then increase the taper rate.

Also keep in mind that narrowing the fade will probably have a greater effect on stability.

[Wolftrail]

Gaining 2 or 3 fps,  not worth the effort for very little gain.  I know some guys are trying to hit the 200fps. mark with a wood bow.  They are getting close but does it or will it improve their accuracy.  Different strokes for Different folks I guess.   Ever tried trapping the back and getting the finish extremely smooth.  This would reduce drag would it not..?

[Roy from Pa]

Shreddy is so old now he can't even see the arrows flying, and he wants more fps?

LOL

[4 point]

My thinking could be totally wrong but I wouldn't think narrowing the fades would gain much speed. The tips would make a bigger difference but you'll lose stability. I'd much sooner have a stabile bow than a bow a few fps faster. It would be interesting to see the real world results if you try it though.

[Flem]

I'm not going to be much help. I've settled on slow bows as the ones I like to shoot.
But I say go for it, tweak the design, mess around with materials, have fun and learn something you or anyone else never knew.
If someone had not screwed around with new ideas, you would all be shooting slow bows like me!

[monterey]

Do you want to change the design or modify the bow in hand?

[Shredd]

  Roy...  I like tinkering and trying to achieve the best performance out of a design...  I feel there is at least 3-4 more fps to get out of this bow...  My goal is to hit 188 fps or more if possible...

Bvas  Are you talking torsional stability???

Wolftrail  I have made some gains by trapping...  But I am not into doing it all the time...  I think trapping can be useful to squeeze the last fps out of a bow...  Gains come small at higher speeds...  To me 2-3 fps is a lot...  I started at 150 or less fps...  Got into the 170's and now at mid 180's...  What if I never pursued higher speeds??  My arrows would still be bouncing off the target...

  4point   I agree...  I will not sacrifice stability for speed...  There within lies the challenge...

Flem   Like your thinking...

Monterey   I want to tweak the design to see what I get...   



   My thoughts are, and my question is if I go narrower I will need a thicker stack to meet the same weight...  If I have a thicker stack the return to brace on the shot cycle should be quicker, giving you a faster bow...  But being that the stack is thicker will the draw weight stack faster keeping the performance the same or making it worse??  I don't want to make the tips any thinner...  Thinner fade area won't do much for wind resistance at the base of the limb but it might help just a hair at mid limb to the tip area... Also a thicker stack should give you a hair lighter limbs...

   Thanks for your thoughts guys...  You gave me some things to consider...

  And Roy you have been especially helpful...         The part about not seeing the arrow...   True Story...   Lol...

[monterey]

Are you using stabilcore?  Makes narrower tips more practical and dampens some of the oscillation when the string slams home.

Hey, be brave, make you some 1/4" tips.

[Roy from Pa]

No problem, Shreddy..

I'll pm ya my addy so ya can send me the check...

LOL

But hey if ya wanna go for, then go for it..

[Crooked Stic]

Any thing to take mass weight out of the limb will gain fps. Where to take it out will take tail and error to find. Optimize the design it's called T&E and $$$ to experment.cdf

[Bvas]

Yes Rich, I was thinking torsional stability. Wider limbs at the fades are always going to control a limb better(easier). However, limb design and how radical your turns are will effect that more. But I also believe your thinking is on the right track. You should have to add less thickness/mass back into the stack to maintain draw weight than what you would remove in width. Thickness trumps width for strength.

I am really considering doing an extremely narrow limb with no string grooves on the sides. If you consider that the string groove is the area taking the most stress, you should be able to taper the limb down to that width. Then with tip overlays, that no longer becomes the weak spot.

[Crooked Stic]

For a longbow narrow and deeper core.all this stuff grabs a few FPS 2 or 3 things can add up. Gotta do them one at a time so ya know. If it helped or not.

Sent from my LM-X410.F using Tapatalk

[Mark R]

I will tweek and push it till I get it as optimal as the design will allow, and then start the process over again with a different one, I see no reason not to, because I enjoy it.

[Shredd]

I will tweek and push it till I get it as optimal as the design will allow, and then start the process over again with a different one, I see no reason not to, because I enjoy it.

Zackly...

[Stagmitis]

Hey shredd at 188fps is that at 10gpp?

[Shredd]

Hey shredd at 188fps is that at 10gpp?

   10 gpp, Always...       Unless otherwise stated...

[Roy from Pa]

Heck I make wood trilams that shoot 188 fps..

[kennym]

That's cookin along pretty good Rich! Nice!