Bevellok.com

Bow Joint Description

The Sppets International joint system for traditional longbows and recurves offers the compact portability of a take-down without sacrificing any of the ergonomics or consist draw weight, limb alignment and tiller inherent in a one-piece bow. It requires no fasteners or tools, yet joins the limbs so securely as to totally eliminate any lateral motion or vibration in the bow, back to belly or side to side, even when unstrung. Translation, an absolutely quiet take-down bow.  No creak at start of draw on a cold December morning and no buzz upon release.  The joint is uniquely designed to combine the strength of interlocking flat surfaces with the zero clearance of a tapered dovetail. 

This design and machining process ensures any and all forces exerted on the bow, from unstrung through full draw and release, will be evenly distributed across the entire surface area of the joint and cross section of the riser.

The systems ability to precisely maintain the geometry of the bow relies on two factors. First, the joint is installed in the bow before that final geometry is achieved. In fact, most bowyers install the joint in the riser block or billet first, construct the bow as a one-piece, and separate the limbs at belly and back just prior to final finish.  Second, the two limbs are locked together in much the same manner as a bit chuck is held in a drill press. That connection is a friction fit between a tapered spindle and socket and is commonly referred to as a Morse taper.  Similarly, the bow joint locks with a modest thump of hand or fist to drive the dovetail together. Thus struck, the joint engages to a point of zero clearance and in exact alignment every time the bow is assembled. It remains securely locked until struck in the opposite direction with sufficient force to overcome the static friction between the opposed surfaces.

The development of this take-down system and its installation process has been the collaborative effort of John McCullough, Craig Warren and Jim Stepp with much appreciated input from  Ron LaClair, Dean Torges, O.L. Adcock, Gordie Mickens, Ken Beck and many others.  John, Dean, O.L. and Craig deserve special credit for investing their time, energy and materials in prototype bows. I had the privilege of taking two of John’s creations (a Super Shrew and a Griffin) to Colorado September 2001. Both were works of art and both performed flawlessly.

Many thanks to you all.

Send mail to JStepp@sppets.com with questions or comments about this web site.