What do you guys think? Bowyer says these are fine and not to be worried. 23" ilf

2 identicle risers, 2 years old, never shot(backup bows)

Riser1

Riser2

I would not be happy with that at all. good luck Ken

I've got an old wing with some mild cracks but it shoots fine.

It's wood and it expands and contracts with heat and moisture.

Looks like drying checks to me. Caused by stress in the wood as one part shrinks and the wood next to it or further inside doesn't. I know it looks horrible but it is probably safe to shoot. Sometimes this is caused by bowyer not allowing wood enough time and proper environment to dry to uniform moisture content that will prevent this. Also the bow may have been built in a more humid environment than where you live and store it. The wood is simply trying to get to equilibrium with the surrounding relative humidity. You didn't tell us where you are storing the handles. It is also possible you are storing it in a place that is much too hot and dry. That would cause this too. So, if you are hanging them next to your woodstove for example, that would not be good.

the bowyer could fix it to look good. I had a new bow do the same think I sent a photo they said send it and we will fix it. dry check is what they called it. if its under warranty still he should make it look good again.

Thanks guys. Thats basically what the bowyer told me. Moisture difference in wood and atmosphere creating dry cracks. I store them in my safe which is in my house. I do not have a dehumidifier in there or anything so it should be relative to the standard Ohio humidity changes. Not much I can do other than that. The camera does a really good job of showing the cracks and you cant really see them unless you hold the riser up to the light so I will shoot them some and see how it goes. As far as any self repair attempts I was considering some super glue for the one cract that appears open enought that glue might actually penetrate. What do you think?

Also I trade bows a lot so would you guys consider it ethical to sell these to another shooter as long as I disclosed the cracks and the feedback from the bowyer?

HAHA Deerdander = Darkarcher = Deerdander, not sure how that happened. Old vs new account I guess.

Loctite 420 will go into all of them

DDave

Dryad?

Wood doing what wood does--stress. Fill them with CA, let'm dry, sand it down and spray a little urathane over it.

agreed BUT it KILLS your ability to sell the bow used

Loctite 420 is great but it would cause you to have to sand after and refinish

The "check" in the light colored wood will still be a visible flaw even when filled.

Two cracked risers, same bowyer, two years. Hmmm.

I agree with Tucker.

I am not sure where on the riser the crack in your first photo is, but it looks like it is on a glue joint, and possibly on the side of the riser. If so that would definitely concern me. The rest, not so much...

I am sure the bowyer will take care of you. Just talk to them. They will be more helpful if you don't drag them through the mud. Most bowyer's are willing to work with you. Good luck.

Some are cracks one looks like a separation. It could be the lighting on the picture though,maybe that is not a joint,in the first picture. Dry wood wet wood I don't know. I have bows that are over 40 years old that don't have any cracks. I would go back to the bowyer. Just my 2¢ worth. Ken

I would insist on replacement as expensive as those hot rods are.

wood does not go in a safe without a de humidifier.

God bless, Steve

mines doing the same thing, traded for this bow a while back its been taken care of well, boyer said "fill it with super glue it might work what do you have to lose" best i can figure about same age as yours, figure ill just scrap the riser and sell the acs limbs

better pic, part way through shelf and down grip

As much as they flex in that slo mo video I'm betting crack not check.Return it if he let's you.

Three of those are in critical areas with metal hardware adjacent. Never been shot? I would not have much confidence in them when you decide to shot them. Those are called Flawed.

"Never been shot? I would not have much confidence in them when you decide to shot them. Those are called Flawed."

I agree 100%. They would be on the way back to the bowyer for repair/replacement if they were mine.

Thanks again for the feedback everyone. I have decided ot send them to the bowyer. If I dont do my part they cannot do theirs. We shall see how it turns out and hopefully they come back good as new.

I had a Schafer riser do that . Called Schafer and Dave told me he had a batch of wood that had not been dried properly. Based on photos I had sent him, he told me it was safe to shoot, until I returned from a hunt. I sent it back to him for repair, after the hunt. Not long after I got it back another area on the riser did the same thing. This time Dave made me a new riser, at no cost to me. I still have the original riser and have had no further issues.

The action wood shouldn't have had a drying issue and I definitely wouldn't put it in a safe with a dehumidifying rod of any kind (I know you said you didn't)...but I wouldn't store it in a safe anyway. The fact that both of those risers with actionwood experienced cracks means that there is an issue somewhere and the safe likely has a seal on it that prevents any moisture from getting in. Not uncommon on many bows, but with risers that new, it's best to have them seen about. BigJim

I agree with BigJim, action wood is usually stabilized and should not have checking problems due to drying. They appear to me to be stress cracks. I think you have done the right thing sending it back to the bowyer. Also, what weight arrows are you shooting. If they are extremely light they will cause undue stress on the bow.

BigJim, if you don't like dehumidifying what about Phoenix AZ ?

I think the threaded insert may have had just a tad too much tension when screwed into the wood. I have seen that on other wood projects I have worked on.

I have had diamond wood and "actionwood" develop cracks just laying on my desk in my office for a period of time. Neither are stabilized by the process used to manufacture them. If wood does not contain moisture, it turns to dust. A safe provides an completely arid environment, not the best place for anything made of wood.

Im having a hard time excusing an unshot expensive custom bow cracking for being locked in a cabinet in a house.

Fwiw, I bought a new Fazion53# Rd longbow that was built in 2014 in Phoenix AZ ...both actionwood handle and two actionwood lams plus one boo lam..very, very fast, zero flaws. Maybe John Fazio had a natural advantage due to low humidity in the southwest.

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