May be a stupid question, but?

[Bentstick81]

 I seem to short draw my self bows when i hunt, but i don't with my recurve. I guess its because i'm afraid it might break. How do quit doing this? I really like hunting with my self bows, but am gunny about them breaking. Does anyone else do this? It really ticks me off!

[George Tsoukalas]

Tell us about your selfbow. Hw long and wide? Wood? What draw was it tillered to? What is your draw? Jawge

[Bentstick81]

  Hi George, how you been. I have a 66" hickory board bow, 1 1/2" wide, down to approx. last 10", then 3/8" at tips. I don't remember what i tillered it to, i think it was 28". I have built quite a few bows since, and i always have that feeling of getting whacked up side the head at full draw. My draw on my hickory is 26 1/2", and recurve 29".  Its all mental i do beleive. It just seems like if i draw it 29", i am always afraid of it breaking. , especially in pretty cold weather.  I built this bow in 2006, off the specs on your site George. It may not be to the exact specs, but it was my first board bow, and it shoots accurate. Sometimes i wonder about myself.

[aznboi3644]

hickory is tough stuff...just takes some practice to gain faith in the wood that it will hold and not explode.  `

[Sparrow]

I broke my red oak board longbow a couple of years ago,I was really bummed for a couple of days,so I started making a new one. (They ain't happy if they don't get to go hunting.( Like Labrador retrievers)  '  Frank

[Pat B]

Take time between now and next hunting season to build up the confidence is yourself as a bowyer and your bow as a viable hunting weapon.  I'd say it is too late this season to try to build up your confidence so enjoy your hunting with the recurve and after the season is over begin your confidence building program with your wood bow.
  For some reason folks believe that wood bows are inferrior to glass bows but for over 10,000 years they have been supplying meat and protection. Sometimes they break but so do glass bows.

[Cameroo]

I'm not sure what to do about that Bentstick, but your comment got me wondering how many people have had a bow blow up on them while hunting in sub-zero temps and what they were made of.

[n2huntn]

Never had a bow , self or laminate blow in subzero weather. If mine go they go during tillering or when I'm shooting them in. Since I do most of my building in spring summer when the weather is warmer they have passed the test by the time winter gets here. I hunt in Missouri and go regardless of temperature and haven't noticed a difference. My bows stay inside the house warm and dry until I go out to the woods. I usually give them a few warm up pulls when I get on stand and give myself a warm up pull now and then so I'm ready if I get the chance.
Have to agree with Pat B on the confidence building part. If they survive several pulls on the tiller tree it helps me relax when hand drawing the bow.
Good Luck and your not alone,
Jeff

[Pat B]

The only wood that I know of that is tempermental about cold temps is yew. I've heard that yew gets very brittle when the temps drop and that can affect it'd durability..

[bucksbuoy]

I had a string break as I was drawing a bow recently. Judo chopped myself in the nose and almost broke it. Bows are dangerous.

[Pat B]

I've been building bows and strings for 25 years at least and never had a string break(on a wood or glass bow) and only a few bows break.

[gstoneberg]

I've only hunted sinew backed osage and mulberry bows in below zero temps and have never had a problem with either the bow or string in cold weather.  (I do have trouble with my old shoulders trying to pull a bow when it's really cold.. )   I have broken strings before, but never without them giving some indication they were going to go.  Lately I've been making strings 2 at a time so I could break one in, put it in a zip-lock bag in my back pack and shoot and hunt the other one.  If I see damage, I switch strings right away.

George