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A bit of a rant

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Jim Davis:
I've only made one  bow from sugar maple. It was a short 50# bow with about a 25" draw. It was more than 20 years ago and I don't remember where that bow went.

I have made quit a few from red maple and had no trouble with frets. I made all those  maple bows 66" NTN, 2-1/2" wide at the fades, straight tapered sides to 3/8" tips, about 7/16" thick from fades to tips. They were all near perfect tiller right off the band saw. Finished up on a belt sander. Draw weight averaged in the high 30s.

I have made two lighter bows from loblolly pine that did not fret. They too were about 7/16" thick with lengths appropriate for the draw length. They were narrower and came in at 25#. Neither had any frets. Both took about 2" of set from their pretillered condition.

For any wood, for a given amount of bend on a given radius, there is a particular thickness above which damage will occur. A piece of maple or balsa 1/16" thick might bend 180 degrees without damage. A sample 1/2" thick probably would break before reaching 45 degrees.

Thickness needs to be appropriate for the amount of bend. Draw weight needs to be the result of width.

JW_Halverson:
Yeah, this is an old thread, but it dredges up some names I miss seeing. Some I will reach out to and re-connect with. Others can no longer be reached.

But the information and the learning is still right here, a legacy for all to access. Reminds me once again of the debt we all owe Sleek for resurrecting the forum.

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