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Author Topic: decrowned heartwood yew bow  (Read 10270 times)

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radius

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decrowned heartwood yew bow
« on: August 03, 2009, 12:28:13 pm »
To carry on the spirit of Sami Bow's thread...

I brought home  abunch of yew recently, and it has checks and rotten sapwood and bug holes and everything...  look at this picture...



and this is how far down i had to go to get to where the cracks were so tiny i could justifiably fill them with CA and call it good....



So i have decrowned the entire thing...




we'll see how it goes...

This wood is well-seasoned...i love the colour, dark and almost sinister...
« Last Edit: August 05, 2009, 12:33:25 am by radius »
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radius

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Re: decrowned heartwood yew bow
« Reply #1 on: August 05, 2009, 12:38:09 am »
I love twisty, curly staves:  you can get near to centershot all the time, if you tiller the limbs properly.



Here's an idea of how badly the back is violated:










Specs:

62" OAL.  pulls 52# @ 28".  Took some set, so i heat tempered the belly, clamping it down to a straightedge.  Smooth draw and release.  This was from a tree i found dead, god knows how long. 

Yew is interesting:  comes out quite a bit thicker than say, hickory or osage...i like it.  Strange smell, though...

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Offline JustAim

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Re: decrowned heartwood yew bow
« Reply #2 on: August 05, 2009, 12:50:41 am »
Looks Great! Nice Job.
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radius

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Re: decrowned heartwood yew bow
« Reply #3 on: August 05, 2009, 12:56:03 am »
thanks!  i really made that sucker bend, being so short...i like this yew wood alot...

after it acclimatizes, i'll finish it up and post some more pics..
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Offline JustAim

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Re: decrowned heartwood yew bow
« Reply #4 on: August 05, 2009, 01:17:40 am »
Quote from: radius on August 05, 2009, 12:56:03 am
thanks!  i really made that sucker bend, being so short...i like this yew wood alot...

after it acclimatizes, i'll finish it up and post some more pics..

Yeah, its bending pretty good. l'm working on 57'' osage with some extreme curves right now....so l know what you mean. :D
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radius

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Re: decrowned heartwood yew bow
« Reply #5 on: August 05, 2009, 01:27:32 am »
57...

so subtract 8" (4 handle, 2 fades)...gives ya 49...that's a 25" draw at most...safely!
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Offline medicinewheel

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Re: decrowned heartwood yew bow
« Reply #6 on: August 05, 2009, 01:30:58 am »
Quote from: radius on August 05, 2009, 12:38:09 am
....  Strange smell, though...

It's poisonous, you know that, right??

Man, that bend looks fantastic!! Will you put on a backing of some kind?
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Frank from Germany...

Offline D. Tiller

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Re: decrowned heartwood yew bow
« Reply #7 on: August 05, 2009, 02:12:58 am »
Try sinew backing the next one you decrown and make it like one of the Northwest shortys they are sweat little bows!

David T
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Offline DanaM

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Re: decrowned heartwood yew bow
« Reply #8 on: August 05, 2009, 06:54:35 am »
Looks good Scott, well done
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Offline Josh

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Re: decrowned heartwood yew bow
« Reply #9 on: August 05, 2009, 10:33:54 am »
hey Scott, that looks great!  Nice tiller!  You have been pretty busy lately, huh?  You are really cranking them out.   -Josh
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sami bow

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Re: decrowned heartwood yew bow
« Reply #10 on: August 05, 2009, 01:10:42 pm »
Nice Job!  that yew sure is pretty!
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radius

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Re: decrowned heartwood yew bow
« Reply #11 on: August 05, 2009, 10:55:27 pm »
thanks for all the kind words, guys.

This one ain't finished.  I heat tempered it two nights ago, and it is now dead straight.  It had a ton of string follow which was disappointing, so i charred the belly while weighing it down on a 2x4...now it is dead straight and i can hardly believe how different it is!  I wish i had taken pics of the string follow...but at first, i didn't wanna show anybody!

As for making lots lately, yeah...my woman left town so i got a ton of juice to deal with...

Sinew back?  Definitely something i wanna try.  If i don't get a deer this year, i need to talk to some local processor and get the hind legs if i can...
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radius

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Re: decrowned heartwood yew bow
« Reply #12 on: August 05, 2009, 11:08:31 pm »
medicine wheel:

yeah, i felt kinda ill the other day, walking around after rasping at the thing for some hours...but i had also just gorfed 2 huge bowls of ice cream and i was hoping maybe that was the reason for my bad tummy!
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Offline D. Tiller

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Re: decrowned heartwood yew bow
« Reply #13 on: August 06, 2009, 06:47:25 pm »
The dust from Yew is a carcinogen = cancer! and can cause serious lung problems. Be carefull when working with this wood.
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Offline Dano

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Re: decrowned heartwood yew bow
« Reply #14 on: August 06, 2009, 07:54:05 pm »
Scott if your going to get some sinew from a processor, get some backstrap sinew too, much better stuff.
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