I heat the crack first. This way the glue heats as it flows into the crack and penetrates better.

122 shooter bows so far. 10 or 15 I abandoned before I finished them because of wood flaws or bowyer error.

Hey Mark,one of these days I"M gonna jump in there and help ya get a grip on these beasty bruins.I gotta couple small issues left on my osage from last years baltimore classic,its done.Hang in there.EF

QuoteMy downstairs has been at 15% humidity with a woodstove going.  

whoa!      :eek:  

that is too low! It'll dry your wood down to dangerous levels.   About 40-45% Relative Humidity is about as low as you want to go .

more thoughts of one on Rh and selfbows:    http://analogperiphery.blogspot.com/2007/02/relative-humidity-and-selfbows.html  

hope it helps.

WE have to consider the relative humidity at the time! During the summer(in most places) the R/H is usually high and that is when we need to store our bows and staves in a more controlled environment to maintain a proper m/c. During the winter(in most areas) the R/H is quite low and we need to consider that as to where we store our staves and bows. None of this wood bow building is cut and dry(pun intended). Just like the wood, if we are not flexible enough we will break.

Yea, I was rather shocked when I checked how dry it was down stairs.  I moved everything out.   Except the hickory.