Glass Flaws Bug You?

[legends1]

I stand by all the comments made here by other bowyers.  My personal bow has black glass. I like the rich old school look of colored glass. Believe this, when your building awesome wood type under clear glass and you later find a flaw. It sure isn't very exciting.

[Kris]

Streaked and unclear glass REALLY bugs me...enough that I do not care to own bows with clear glass anymore.  It’s mostly the expectation of receiving something worthy of “a price" ($1000 plus).  Even when glass is clear initially, it seems to become hazy and cloudy after years of use.   I know it's not the bowyers fault, most of the time, that's why I've resigned myself to black or other opaque finishes...paint, skins, etc.  

Wood veneers under clear glass are pretty for sure but they just add mass to limbs and do nothing to enhance performance.  I have some bows with perfect glass and after a while you just say uhhhh…so what, you don’t look at them anymore.  I’m practical about my bow use and tastes now.

Kris

[xtrema312]

Are there veneers that are much less likely to not cause the bubbles?  I see most of them in knots or other density variations in the grain.  I know light color helps with the streaks showing.  It would be good to know what the better options are for clear glass limbs.  

I don't care for black myself.  It is okay on some bows, but I like the green and brown glass a lot better.  I wish there were more boyers using green glass out there.

[David Mitchell]

There would be if they could get it.  Steve Turay and Jerry Brumm went together and had to buy an entire production run to get the green glass they use.  Sure is good quality glass--nice consistent color.  I love colored glass on limbs like my green glass Shelton.  Steve told me it's older guys like me who really dig the colored glass.  It takes us back to the great bows of the past, I guess.

[Thumper Dunker]

As long as it shoots good . Most people will never see them. Adds charactor to the bow.

[Matthew Bolton]

It doesn't bother me much because I scratch up bows anyways so the imperfections just blend in lol

[durp]

could care less...it's not gona be perdy after the first horseback trip anyways...i care more about funtionality than looks

[Brock]

wish it wasnt there but nothing can be done about them...and they are there under the colored glasses too...just cant see them.

i dont mind too much really...as 99.9% of the limb is perfect in my mind and a scratch or two that is going to occur under my use will be fare more distracting.

[Keith Langford]

yep, just paid $1600 for a custom recurve, glass is streaked from one end to the other, may not be the bowyers fault but maybe they should have checked their stock a little better, this is a well known bowyer with a long,long career in the bussiness. Thats alot of money to pay for something not even close to acceptable, just sayin! I will say other than the glass the bow does look good and perform solid, that is the most important part but the flaws do bother me at that price.

[SERGIO VENNERI]

I'm like henry Ford "build'em any color your want as long as it is Black" ! Love Black Glass!  

[ChristopherO]

I just glued up a clear glass bow this morning.  To be sure all the dust and any finger oil is removed I spray brake cleaner on the rough side minutes before the glue is spread on.  This is when the imperfections can show up before.  On these particular strips of glass there were a couple of small white sploches.  And this was applied over black walnut lams.  Guess I'll have to see the outcome once the tape is peeled off.
Oh well, at least no one is going to be paying $1,000 for it.

[Shawn Leonard]

Not really, my bows are tools and I have owned some beauties, still do but I end up marking them up worst than a few marks under the glass. Does it suck, yes and if I paid over a grand for a bow and it was all streaky and had more than one or two small marks I would expect the bowyer to compensate me in some small way. Shawn

[Mike Mecredy]

When things like that happen with clear glass, it nearly gives me a nervous breakdown.  I HATE using clear fiberglass.  Period.  I like the outcome usually, but if it were up to me I'd never buy it.  I had at one time quit using it, but had a cuatomer talk me into it, then he posted a picture, and then I was aked "why do you use it for him and and not me?"  SO then had to start using it for whom ever wanted it. yada yada yada....

Sorry, just venting, I'll get over it.

[Red Beastmaster]

I must be lucky. I've owned several bows with clear glass and never had a blem.

I have one bow that gets milky looking when exposed to several hours of rain. I thought my beautiful bow was ruined last year at Hog Heaven. Two days after returning home the bow looked like new. ????????

[Gdpolk]

Nah, it doesn't bother me too bad.  It's no different than a scratch on a rifle or wear on a good knife.  A bow is a tool meant to be used.  

It is beautiful because of what it is and how it works.  I like to see the woods beneath but don't get too torn up when they get used and have imperfections.  With that said, I take care of my tools as best I can so that they will take care of me when I need them to.

[Surffever]

I picked up a beautiful used bow from a highly respected bowyer.  It has a silvery streak running full length on the face of one limb.  It's the only flaw on the bow I can see.  But I didn't have to wait 1+ yr for a bow.  I didn't pay close to full price.  And I'll be darned if any of my arrows notice it.
If I could get brown or dark green glass that would be the ticket on a pure hunting bow.

[McDave]

It's interesting to me that people will go out of their way to get wood veneers with "character," meaning flaws, and then will turn up their noses at some character in the Fiberglas.  Really, as long as there are no structural problems, it's all the same thing.

[Over&Under]

Originally posted by LongStick64:
I hate it and admit it bugs me, but it's not anyone's fault, it's part of the bow.

X2

[daveycrockett]

Originally posted by McDave:
It's interesting to me that people will go out of their way to get wood veneers with "character," meaning flaws, and then will turn up their noses at some character in the Fiberglas.  Really, as long as there are no structural problems, it's all the same thing.

Exactly right!      

[BigJim]

This can be funny in a frustrating way. I buy hundreds of pieces of glass at a time and we grade them. 1,s 2,s 3,s. there are seldom any ones and this is just what we can see while soaking them.

I try to use the best glass I can and ocasionally have to eliminate a few pieces due to too many flaws. Most know that the imperfections show up every time over dark veneers, yet 9 out of 10 of my customers request "something dark".

Now we build the bow and when it's done, if there are any visable flaws, we should have to discount them?
Wait a minute, I understand the limbs that have terible flaws, but I can find flaws in every limb ever built, by me or others.

You know all of us bowyers are living a secret life where we rake up our money in big piles in the back yard and then jump in them and roll around laughing. "If they only knew how rich they are making us by buying our bows" hahaha...sob,sob,sob.

If the guys can stay busy building bows and get $1000's of dollars for them, they have earned it and they have probably sacrificed much of there health breathing toxic dust and fiberglass to get there.

Now lets complain about the price of bows...oh yeah, culling lots of glass and then culling bows...that will make the price go down. I hear it all the time, "I can't believe so and so gets so much for there bows, I'll never pay that", well then you won't get one.
It is said about every bow from the cheapest to the most expensive.

I would love to know how many people out there that complain about bow pricing would put in the hours it takes to make a living at building bows.

I love it by the way and wouldn't change much although my wife would like me to change a few things. Maybe I would cut it down to 6 1/2 days a week.

BigJims rant for the day