Longbow tip question

[Paul_R]

I notice folks tend to go on about skinny/narrow tips on longbows. Is there some actual performance gain with narrow tips or is it just cosmetic preference?

[dhermon85]

I'm sure there is. No expert here but it might be a good one to ask in the bowyers bench. I think I've read before it helps the bow "recover" faster and reduce handshock.

[Hermon]

The larger the tips are, the more they weigh.  Being on the end of the limbs any extra weight slows how fast the limb can recover.  And when the limbs come to a stop, there is more weight to get stopped.  So the smaller the tips, the better is a general consensus.

[macbow]

Just as Hermon said. Usually reduces hand shock.

[Brandywine]

Tip weight matters, a little even in low draw weights.

Larry Hanify can help more with info from Blacky Schwartz's independent test of A&H's lighter tips.

Contact Larry at A&H for details.  He knows what matters.  Tx.

Regards,
Kevin

[Orion]

Any extra weight in the limb anywhere slows it down some.  So the lighter the limb, the faster, all other things being equal.  Narrowing the limb is one way to decrease limb weight.  However, in most bows, unless there's a corresponding increase in limb thickness, It also lowers draw weight. There are always tradeoffs.

ACS limbs get their speed from a number of sources.  One is the patented concave/convex limb cross section. Two is the carbon used on the back and belly (lighter and stiffer/stronger for its weight than fiberglass). Three is the thin core material.  Because of the design and carbon back and belly, very little core wood is needed; a couple of thin maple actionwood laminations usually suffice.  Bamboo is also an option and is even lighter.

Because of the limb design and carbon, ACS limbs are among the lightest and fastest longbow limbs available. Their limbs are  thin, but not particularly narrow. They also use carbon for limb tip overlays, keeping weight to a minimum there as well.

[Paul_R]

So what I'm getting here if I understand correctly is that if a bow with wide limbs and tips is narrowed down, speed will increase and draw weight will decrease. Basically canceling each other out and achieving the same (or close to the same) speed at a lighter draw weight? With less hand shock? It sounds like a win to me. Thanks guys!

[Orion]

I wouldn't go that far.  It's not a one-to-one ratio.  If you narrow the limbs, you're going to lose draw weight, and it will have a bigger effect in reducing speed than the physical weight reduction in the limbs will have in increasing speed. In short, if you take the limbs down, you're going to lose draw weight and performance, i/e., your bow will be slower.

[Brandywine]

Please discuss this aspect with Larry Hanify at A&H.
From Blacky's test of the Gen-2 ACS limbs, there is a velocity increase for the same draw weight.
Regards.

[Orion]

Yes.  If you make two sets of limbs the same draw weight and one set is narrower and lighter than the other, it will be faster, all other things being equal.

If I understand the conclusion Paul R draws in his post between my two above, he's hypothesizing about what would happen if you  take down/narrow an existing limb.  As I said, that would reduce it's performance.

[mike g]

I've herd you can reduce bow draw weight by 5 Lbs just by rounding the corners off....

[Overspined]

You can knock off some weight rounding off corners and removing glass, but you could mess up a bow if you aren't careful.

[7 Lakes]

Mike g, I take off 7# on a longbow from the sharp edged, cut out blank to final finish.  You would have to trap a limb that's already been finished to lose 5#.  Some bowyers may not round their edges as much as I do so your milage may vary.

I reduced a longbow that was 51@26, that had a pronounced bend right off the fade outs.  It had a tendency to have side to side misses and quite a lot of limb wobble. I shot the bow for distance before the trimming.  After, It was 7pounds less, less shock, more accurate and shot same arrows well, it also shot them the same distance.  That was years ago and the bow is still in full service for the person that I gave it to.