Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: Wildchild on August 04, 2009, 08:34:15 pm
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ive been reading alot on here and some other forums trying to get a basic understanding of bow making, and i have some unanswered questions
first, what is tillering? i know it may be a dumb question, but i cant find the answer for it anywhere, thanks in advance!
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Wildchild, tillering is the process of removing wood from the bow in order to achieve the curve you desire.
It would do you good to bumb into a real life bowyer.......have you asked around at your local sport shops? May be one nearby who would help you out.
Otherwise, lean on us.....we'll all give advice.
piper
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Tillering is just a fancy word for getting the bow to bend the right way. You remove wood from the belly which is the side facing you. Or you remove wood from the sides to get the bow to bend right without any stiff spots.
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Tillering is when you take off wood from each limb of the bow to make them bend the way you want to. If a straight board is bent on a pivot (the handle) It will bend mostly in the handle. Tillering tapers the limbs and allows the force of bend to be evenly distributed across the entire limb so that no single point of the limb is taking more stress than another. I'm sure you've seen pictures of bows with good tiller so I won't explain that. "To tiller just take off wood where the limbs don't bend enough and leave wood where it bends too much." - Bowyers Bible. Can't remember the author but probably volume one.
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okay, thanks for that!
another question i had was what are growth rings?
and i do know of a few bowyers in my area, but i dont have a way to get in touch with them until the next trace or rendezvous that i can attend
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a growth ring is if you look at the end of the wood you will see layers of wood, like osage it will be yellow and the next ring will be brownish color. if you look on this site on build alongs you will see tiller. and alot of it. you may buy a book. tbb is real good, billets to bows by Glenn StCharles is good. i learned to make bows by reading books and getting my feet wet. the rest i learn from here and just try new things.
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Growth Rings are the Cycles of the Trees Growth...you have a Fast Growth Ring for Spring/Summer Growth...and the Fall /Winter Ring....here is a Picture of an Osage and Mullberry Stave so you can see the difference in the Growth Cycles.......
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Check out your local library they probably have one or two good books, if your lucky maybe more. Just get a librarian to help you find them.
also check out the howto and build alongs, and even the search engine on the bows page is a big help for finding old topics or answers to some of your questions.
Best of luck. And hope to see a bow from you soon.
This is certainly the best place on the web for solid info on bowmaking!!!!
Mike
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okay, thats what i thought they were! thanks alot!
and i have a couple books on hold at the library right now!
im also planning on buying the bowyers bible, and The Witchery of Archery, soon as i get the extra cash anyway
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Don't take me as a smart a**, but I see that your age and location are hidden. Sometimes it pays to add those bits of info when you sign up. Many on here look at things like that and ya never know when somebody is gonna say "Hey, I see your from such and such place, I just live a few miles from there. Let's get together sometime". ;)
Don't be skeered, we're all here to learn and help others learn. ;)
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lol, i havent had a profile for much longer than a few days, ive been reading on here for a few months though, and after frustrating myself looking for answers to the many questions i got from reading, i decided to make an account, and just got the email back a few hours ago that it was confirmed and i could start making posts!, but ill add the rest of that info in a few, thanks for pointin that out!
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You .....a Smart-A#$ Shannon.......No Way....eh!!!! I'm Da Smart A#$
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Your not a smart a** Micheal...just a straight shooter ;D
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;D ;) >:D
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Your not a smart a** Micheal...just a straight shooter ;D
yup,thats why i like him,both reasons lol
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im also planning on buying the bowyers bible, and The Witchery of Archery, soon as i get the extra cash anyway
TBB part 1 will be enough for you to get started; don't overload yourself with info in the beginning!
Jim Hamm's article on tillering is very good and comprehensive!