A Success!

[jameswoodmot]

After the last run I thought perhaps best to go back to basics a little before doing more experiments.

I had the other half of the Hazel stave from the long bow I posted a couple of weeks ago.

I have it MUCH less heat treatment than the last two bows I’ve done but still a good cooking.

This is the bow that I had intended the last Hazel bow to be but as I got bandsaw happy on that half of the stave it came out lighter.


Needs prettying up yet and a little bit of tiller work. Think I’ll give the last 6” another cook and narrow them slightly. Will be sure to get it shot in before then. Probably around 50 arrows at the moment.

Ended up as my fastest bow yet which is very cool, good to join the 170’s club. I am shooting it at 28” which is a long draw for me,  26” is what most of my bows are tillered to. I was shooting with  the tillering string which is much thinker and made out of amazons cheap string material that is sold as HDPE, I was getting mid 160’s with that and then made an 8 strand FF string and was getting between 171 and 176 (mostly around 174). Amazons stuff is definitely not bad but I think I’ll make a lighter string for this bow and from it and see how it stacks up. £2.50 a roll vs £40 a roll is worth losing a few fps over I think.

This bow does have a little handshock, I’m finding most of the bows I make over about 35lbs seem to be this way. I’m narrowing tips to the point that some are pulling straight, think my overall tiller is ok. I’m wondering if a 40lb + bow is ever going to be a gentle to shoot as a 30lb bow orif there is just more energy in the system so inevitably some gets into your hand. It’s not like it’s trying to dislocate my elbow or anything but it’s not the “dead”  feeling at release that in after. Wish there was a way to quantify handshock.


On bendy handle too btw, just a tiny bit

67” long, 1 1/2” at widest point
2 1/4” reflex after rest  (photo after shooting)
43@28”
420 grain arrow low-mid 170’s

[Hamish]

Bow looks good as has good speed. Some of the felt handshock may be due to how you hold the bow. Its not securely in the crook of your thumb and forefinger. Because of this its not going to feel secure.

You can also pad out the grip, on the back with glued on shims of leather.  Shape it to a comfortable grip, helps to absorb shock. You could also use a heavier arrow, but you will lose some speed.

[jameswoodmot]

Interesting, I did find some shots felt better than others so I guess that’s likely to be differences in my grip.

I’ve got a couple of layers of thick leather shaped up to glue to the belly to give a bit more of a secure grip

[Badger]

  Perfectly tillered bows with the round profile tend to be very shocky regardless of how narrow the tips are. I forgot the word I am looking for right now, but a little more oval-shaped will eliminate the shock.

[Pat B]

Very nice arc of a circle tiller and I like the way the tips opened up. Well done. 

[Del the cat]

Handsome bow.
My theory on handshock is that is often due to an uncomfortably shaped grip. Any grip that is slightly rectangular in cross-section may have corners that are uncomfortable on the knuckle at the base of the index finger (or elsewhere, like base of thumb). I try to be very critical about where I feel any grip pressing on my hand, and sometimes a few strokes with a half round bastard file can make a huge difference.
I don't much like cloth/leather grips on bows, but on a narrow grip one may be advantageous. This post from my blog shows what I've done on one of my roving bows to cure hand shock.
https://bowyersdiary.blogspot.com/2022/02/leather-grip.html
Del

[bjrogg]

And that’s how you do it.

Climb right up and look way over that edge. Then after a few falls, back up a little.

Nice bow

Bjrogg

[Jim Davis]

Good advice above. I'd add to hold the bow loosely--fingers barely in contact.

[sleek]

That perfectly balanced tiller is the mark of craftsmanship. You did a darn good job. Speed is above average too.

[superdav95]

Good advice above. I'd add to hold the bow loosely--fingers barely in contact.

This!   I agree.  That bow looks too well balanced and tillered to have an uncomfortable or unreasonable amount of handshock.  As you mention James, it varied from shot to shot.  Loose up your grip a bit as Jim says.  I suspect that after shooting this bow a bit more concentration on your grip and release you will see more consistent handshock if not eliminated all together.  Another great option if wanting to build up handle area on bendy is cork.  Looks great James. Well done on that one. 

[Badger]

 The perfect round tiller is what causes the handshock. The limbs hit at the same time instead of unwinding. Excellent speed because perfect round tillers take less set. One of the trade-offs we put up with.

[bjrogg]

The perfect round tiller is what causes the handshock. The limbs hit at the same time instead of unwinding. Excellent speed because perfect round tillers take less set. One of the trade-offs we put up with.

I’m thinking it’s like resonate frequency thing?

Like a tuning fork

Bjrogg

[jameswoodmot]

This is great I’ve got loads of things to look at now (and more experiments)

I’ve heard about bendy handle bows having a lot of handshock but not experienced it myself, however this is the “roundest” tillered bow I’ve made. When tillering I just tried to get an even bend and maintain the even set. The idea of bendy handle bows having a lot of shock I assumed to be more about them bending too much in the middle and not enough at the tips and as a result being too heavy in the tips. It didn’t occurring to me at all that it would be anything other than that.

I have noticed one of the tips is quite a bit bigger, maybe an extra 1/8” width on the last 6”, I feel like uneven weight is probably also going to make the bow resonate weirdly?

Got a leather pad and comfy grip on it and the one tip slimmed down, will see how it shoots tomorrow

[Pappy]

Nice job, beautiful tiller.
 Pappy