#VINE MAPLE HOW TO#

Put it back up on the tillering rack and keep doing this until the bow is bending 50# at 28'.

When you see it not bending, where it is straight, take the bow off the wall and file or cabint scrape some wood off. So pull the bow to 25-50# and watch it bend. Never pull the bow beyond 50# if you making a 50# bow. As I pull on the rope in my hand I can watch the bow bending and see where to take off the wood. On the other end of the scale hook I tie a rope that goes through a pulley close to floor level to my hand so I can stand back from the wall and have a better look. With my pulley set up I put the bow in a secured holder (at the handle) on a wall and place a big game scale that has a hook on one end and place the hook on the bow string. Some use a tillering tree which is a 2x4 with notches for the string every 2' apart and with a place to hold the bow handle on top while you are watching the bending of the bow. Having a way of tillering with a tillering rack is necessary to continue bending your bow. That means when you put one hand on the handle and the tip of one limb on the floor you can push the bow at the handle and watch it bend and more important where it is bending and not bending at. What we want to accomplish at this stage is to have a ruffed out shape of your bow and a bow that is called 'floor tillered'. Otherwise your draw knife may dig in too deep and alot more wood can come off that you expect. Be careful with your draw knife that when you are pulling it towards you that you also use a slicing motion across the belly.

#VINE MAPLE HOW TO#

Using your draw knife is how to ruff in the shape of your bow if you don't have access to a bandsaw. Easier said than done I know but keep that in mind it's just taking off wood. Tillering a bow to bend correctly is as simple as 'taking off wood in the right places allows the wood to bend correctly'. If you are wanting a rounded belly like an ELB, leave enough wood on the belly to make the sides rounded up with a peak or crown at the center of the belly. I would make it I 3/4 wide at the beginning of the fade out and narrow it towards the limb tip from there. Now shape your bow how narrow you want it. Between this non bending part of your tip and the fadeout is where the tillering will be made to make your bow bend. This seven inches will be your non bending tip of your limb. From the tip of your top limb measure towards your handle seven inches. Then do the same from the bottom of the handle for your bottom fade out. That will make your four inch handle.ДЇrom the top of your handle measure four inches and mark this for your top fade out. From your marked centerline measure up on the top limb one inch and down from your centerline three inches. Decide which limb you would like to be top or bottom. Find the halfway or center of your bow stave and make a centerline mark.

Vine maple