im building a pyramid style bow (red oak) and for the handle i have two piecesof bocote that are 5in. each. my question is when i glue them to the belly of the bow do i need to sand the ends that join to a 45 degree angle or can i just sand them square and glue them end to end?

Thanks

are you laying them end to end to get a 10in handle?

yes sir that is what i had planned

im new to trying to build a bow this is my third try at it the first one had a bad spot in the wood didnt see it till i had trim the limbs down and the second one i was trying to hurry it along and i cut the limbs to thin so it pulls like 10# lol, this one im wanting for it to turn out good, its laid out 64" ntn and 2 inches wide at the fade, the handle is 4 1/2" long and the fade to fade is 8".

also another question is there a reason that no one uses burl wood for tip and riser overlays?

I have seen burl maple used on a couple bows, So its not like it won't work. I imagine the reason its not widely used is because it is not as common, and will less likely be in local stores near where people live, unless you are one of those lucky people who has a store that sells the more rare and exotic woods. Also I imagine if you ordered it, it would be somewhat more expensive to get than some people are willing to pay for such a small piece of wood.

Though don't quote me on that, it is just my speculation.

the handle needs to be glued on befor the bow is ripped to thickness. as the fades need to carry down onto the limb, and not just end at the end of the handle-this is to avoid seperation of handle from limb.
i think all handles flex a little bit- even the"solid riser" handled bows- so if i was going to put a leather handle wrap on- i might Z splice the two blocks- but hey- somebody else may have experienced this first hand , and chime in here.
good luck.

yes i am going to glue the handle on before i cut the thickness of the limbs down....well i glued the pieces together just end to end i guess we will see how it looks when im done i have to do a little more sanding on the handles pieces that i glued together to get them back flat evidently when i glued them they were off just a little bit and i profiled the handle to the bow just a rough cut off the bandsaw.... hopefully the end to end will work.

you can do it either way, as far cutting first or not. I mark where i will glue the riser on and then taper the limbs up to that point, then i cut 45s off each end of the riser. Once glued, I sand the fades down into the limb and then tiller from there.
You must not be cutting a shelf. I have not made but a couple shoot off the hand bows so your dimensions seem short to me. Remember either way that if you splice the two, that it will be shorter (don't mean to insult your intelligence, but i mention it because i have overlooked the obvious before)
since you went end to end on the two pieces, i would add another piece over them, it would be a contrast and insurance, you could add a "handle overlay" for more than cosmetics, and it would not only round out your grip, but stiffen the joint

Loren, im going to be adding a floppy rest and i also like the idea of adding an overlay to the handle hadnt thought of that, have to see what i can come up with.  When ever i finish ill try and post some pics dont know yet when i will be able to finish.

Thanks

heres a link to help you out

 http://tradgang.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=2;t=000122

The tiller on a pyramid bow should be circular.  How wide is your bow to be? Why such a long handle? The reasoning for the circular tiller is the wider near handle bow is doing its share of the work an this, cutting down on set. Jawge

george, it is 2" at the widest part of the limb

i have allready profiled the shape of the limbs and filed it down to my mark but since i havent added the riser/handle section yet i havent cut the thicness of the limbs down.