Here is an osage bow I made recently. Its 61" 50@29. Milk snake back.15 stand dacron B50 string. Its 1.45" at the fades and 1/2" at the tips.
It started out to be a 68" bow but I had trouble with the tiller and ran out of room in draw length and had to pike it ( a first for me). I'm not sure I stuck the tiller but its pretty close and it shoots better than any bow I've made so far. I heat treated it and flipped the tips ( also a first ).I had originally intended it for my future son in law but he's a pretty big kid ( 6'4 210lbs )and I think the 50is too light for him. I think he needs a 55 or 60 to get started, so I'm making him another one. The stave had a few small knots on the back and the rings were about 1/8" or less. It had a little twist and some side to side aligmnment that I needed to correct. I origiinally tried to correct it over the campfire and the crook of a tree ala Al Herrin or Jim Hamm but that only got me half way to where I wanted to be. I then put the heat gun to it with some left over peanut oil from last years catfish fry and it liked that treatment very well.t I wrestled this stave for over a month and I think we have finally come to an agreement.
For the record, when I killed the milk snake I did'nt know what it was. I looked it up and found out it was a benefical snake that kills rodents and other snakes so I have decided to let all the other milk snakes that I run across live but the copperheads are still fair game. I just need to find another onel ong enough to cover a limb.
The skin looked all black until I skinned it and dried it out. The under neath side of the skin had some nice orangish red in it so I decided that dying the bow back red would help bring out the color and texture and looks really good. I maybe over did it on the finnish. I put on 6 coats of tung oil on the bow and then 2 coats of shellac and two coats of spar urathane in a satin. I liked the shellac but it was too shinny and the satin on the spar was just about right.
