ipe wood
Below is a hastily crafted ‘shallow hook’ style thumb ring, made of ipe wood.
In previous instances, as with other things, various examples of my confusion have been exhibited regarding thumb ring styles. The culprit of these mistakes is partially my never having owned a thumb ring not made by my self. Although I still have no tangible comparisons for measure, I’m now confident that I fully understand the concept of the shallow hook, although my implementation may require improvement.
Directly below is an image which conveys some amount of scale:
The finish is a bit rough. This is due to this particular piece of ipe wood, which was not the best. The density seems on the lighter side of an average chunk of ipe. It’s probably fine for 45lbs, but I’d hesitate to pull much more. Of course, the shallow hook lends itself to lighter draws for at least one reason; the thumb is not reinforced by the index finger behind the thumbnail, but more so secured by placing it on the thumb’s tip. This, at least in my experience, provides a comfortable but weaker hold on the string.
Whether it is a proper implementation or not, there is something appealing about the shape and robustness of this style. As mentioned, I intend to make a similar version in aluminum.
NOTE: This style was abandoned and replaced by the exclusion of a full string guard. Later rings implemented the guard only on the sides, leaving an opening in the center which allows the string to contact the thumb, but not excessively. Additionally, I do not recommend ipe thumb rings due to the brutal nature of ipe splinters.