Ok, so when I am building a selfbow, and my tips are not complete, I shouldn't test fire? Tips are the last thing I do.

I chipped a huge chunk off one of tips of my selfbows. I ended up getting the crazy glue out and it's just fine.

If that's the only damage, and it didn't affect the string groove, it will be fine. Pin nocks have been used on countless bows--I have a recurve with pin nocks on it that have much less surface than that one.

Be careful not to damage the string, and inspect it close (before and after stringing) to be sure there is no other damage.

Chad

For crying out loud, drill a couple of tiny holes in the tip horizontal to the lost section, tape a piece of paper around the tip, pack with reinforced epoxy or fiberglass and file sand to desired look.

I don't know personally, but have heard of guys being injured when bows broke and I absolutely believe it. I had a solid fiberglass bow break just after full draw and it knocked me to the ground like a rag doll being thrown down! Could easily have ripped a muscle or worse (no see able flaws in bow, Ben Pearson)), young and dam lucky!

To answer your question, you would be nuts to tempt fate!

I'm no genius when it comes to these bows, but if that's the only damage and the rest of the bow is sound, it should be perfectly okay to shoot. Think about it. All of the force of the strung bow is on the bottom of those grooves and the front of the tip. The top section of the grooves is only there because the groove was cut into the pre-existing material. There's no way that string is going to jump over the tip that still there, and the only time the string is going to contact that part of the tip is when you string it and unstring it. That particular part of the bow is cosmetic and it would shoot just fineif it was missing on both sides. Oh yeah, I'd better add that this is "just my opinion".

Lots of opinions, and I appreciate all of them, even the confusing ones.
The bow is sound, it is in great shape, that tip is no indicator of what the rest of the bow looks like. It appears that someone prior to me has chipped the tip, it does not come down to where the string rests, and has no other bearing on the bow besides the fact that part of it is gone.
It is a wood bow with a fiberglass overlay, I put a new string on it, ran a few arrows over the rest in the backyard today and it is shooting just fine.

Pydpiper post pictures of your face when the string slips off for some weird reason ....

Brad, you have never had a string break????? I have a few times. I try to get 3000-4000 shots in one sometimes.

never


maybe because I don't use strings that have the potential to be old, frayed, overshot ... you know, like using a bow with a limb tip 1/2 broken off and damaged ?