2019 Bow Trade - Sign up closed

[bushboy]

Well heres a look at plan B,white elm stave,zigzag handle,Molly thingy .

[stuckinthemud]

Finally made a start on plan B - got the bark stripped and started shaping. This blackthorn is tough stuff, and the stave is narrower than I'd like at 5cm width at centre, its gonnna be really high crowned. I did want a leaf-shaped hollow limb but might end up with a D-bow, we'll have to see what happens

[M2A]

Things seem to have been going slow for me as of late but making some progress on some stuff.

1st things first. A few weeks ago after thinking about the locust bow I determined that it needed to be in a set and anything short of that just wasn't going to be proper. Sorry but sometimes I go off in a different direction like this. Was debating on sharing that now or wait till the end but in the "spirit" of the trade figure I'd share a little about that now. So, locust bendy....I figured a nice basket quiver would be just the thing. Lots of good examples out there and some good build alongs. Cane would make things easier and will need to try sometime but I wanted a different look for this. Things were not working well for me, for one reason or another until I came across a weeping willow branch that came down in a recent storm. The stuff bends well and is a nice fit for what I was looking for. Almost have the weaving done. Not sure what i can get or come up with for the sling but will start thinking on that next. Pretty darn pleased with this bow/quiver project. Its not what I had in mind when I started but coming together well. That said any criticism is welcome. Still have to dress this set up a bit just gonna take my time and tinker at it.

Also got back to work on the Osage piece. It was a large stave but some problem areas left me with what i got. Plenty to make a good bow if I can do it is another question lol. It has natural deflex in the handle. I was not pleased with my 1st attempt at reflexing limbs and just set it aside. Seeing the Simson's most recent bow made me rethink things and he was kind enough to answer some questions. So i steamed limbs to put reflex in tips. Dont' think its too dramatic but it will be a challenge for sure. My steam tube is a piece of old irrigation pipe so the wood got dirty but does give the appearance of being over done with dry heat. I'll need to clean that up.

That's what I got for now.

Mike
IMG_2681 (2) by Mike Allridge, on Flickr

IMG_2682 (2) by Mike Allridge, on Flickr     

               

[burchett.donald]

 Mike,
           The Weeping Willow was a brilliant idea, they are so flexible...My aunt had one in Ohio and I would break them off and crack them like a whip...I think it is better than cane when it comes to weaving a basket...That basket quiver and locust bow kit is going to be sweet when you finish buddy...Kind'a stuff I like to see on PA...
          That piece of Osage looks really nice...

           I dug a couple hides out, Otter and a Coon which both could be cut into quarters along the length and make a beautiful strap for that basket...If your interested PM me your address and I will ship them...Won't cost you a thing Mike...
                                                                                                                                                                       Don
                                                                   

[M2A]

Thanks Don.  Thought I had some local elm bark lined up for that quiver but have not been able to make that happen yet. Some of the local  willow i tested was to brittle(black willow maybe??). I really lucked out to find that on a burn pile, could not have been better timing. I took all that was good.

Those skins look great. I'll send you a Pm if not tonight, in the next day or 2. Thanks!
Mike       

[Mo_coon-catcher]

These short, wide Osage sticks sure don’t like to lose weight. It’s just creeping it’s way down. 46” between the nocks and 2 5/8” wide. Just now hitting a 20” draw, with a hopeful goal of 25-26”. I may need to flip the tips a smidge more to keep the string on by that point. Btw that flat looking spot in the outer third of the right limb is a reflex spot in the stave.

Kyle

[Swampman]

 That is looking good Kyle.

[Mafort]

My main Osage bow broke. turns out I cut into the ring a bit and went to draw it on the filleting board and it blew up. Sooo on to my next bow. 66in long smooth leaf elm. Wide and thin flat bow. Swampman I’ll send you some pictures if you still don’t mind posting them on here.

[Swampman]

Mafort, you can go ahead and send me your pictures. 

[Bayou Ben]

Off and on I've been working the live oak stave down to floor tiller.  Last night I used the heat gun to straighten out the propeller twist and add a little reflex.  To my surprise it responded well to dry heat and I was able to take almost all of the twist out in this one session. 
This morning I pulled it off the form and it retained almost all of the corrections, but when I flipped it over I saw these deep cracks that developed on the back.  I'm not sure if there was excess moisture in this piece, but I think I need to get working on plan B 

[jeffp51]

start on plan B for sure, but also fill those cracks with CA glue, and see what happens--it looks like the cracks are longitudinal, and might be fine.

For my part, I am in Germany right now, and haven't been able to work on my bow, but I am still alive and should still be in good shape.

[burchett.donald]

Ben,
       That looks like a moisture problem...When was it cut? I seen a couple small separations on the "belly" of one of my Live Oak bows, but not to that degree...This may be a characteristic of Live Oak? Mine were 2 years old sitting in the corner before I tried them...They were kept inside also, so moisture was very low...Your second picture looks like moisture stains as it escaped? I'm only guessing here...I get those stains when I steam sometimes also...I was looking forward to your build and hate this has happened...
                       Don
       

[Bayou Ben]

It was more than likely a moisture problem Don, I agree.  This was cut 1.5 years ago and it has sat in my unconditioned workshop since then.  The humidity gets pretty high here, averaging 70% in the summer months.
I haven't checked the MC on this piece as I normally don't worry about that until I am ready to start bending it.  I bet it was high. 
The stains were where I initially boiled the end.  It was a test to see if it responded better to boiling.  I found it responded better to dry heat though (maybe because the MC was high). 
It's not a big deal.  I have a couple staves like this one and now I have a better understanding of the wood and at what dimensions it starts to bend, so I'll get started on another one.  I'll just make sure it's dry before I heat it. 
 
   

[burchett.donald]

Ben,
       We can learn together about this wood...Glad you posted your findings...As said, it may be a characteristic of this wood...On a side note, if it were mine, I would size that back 2 times with some hide glue allowing it to gel and fill the gaps and lay some sinew down...You done a fine job following the grain...Real hide glue is some super stuff, I use it for cracks instead of super glue...It will pull the wood fibers away before breaking under tension...I found knox to be a little brittle because it is so refined...Don't want to start an argument here about hide glue vs knox, some will say it's the same, but it's not...Please keep me posted on your findings with this Live Oak...
                                                                                                                                                                           Don

[M2A]

That's too bad Ben. 

Still been working on my victims set. Mr. Burchett was kind enough to send me out the hides above. Thanks a ton Don! Had a good bit of time to think about things and come up with a game plan. Had things lined up and ready so when I got home from work was able to get right on it. Cut some raw hide lacing and laced up the coon hide into a tube shape. The hide was a few inches too short to do what I wanted so I stitched a raw hide flap on the bottom and have that tied to the bottom of the quiver with a piece of dogbane I already had laying around. The extra rawhide should better protect the bottom of the quiver. All the visable rwhide is stained with walnut hulls and used a little of that stain around the eyes on the hide to darken the very edges of the leather.  Hope to start on the strap this weekend. Know how I want that to look just will need to problem solve as i go. I will be sending out the locust bow and this quiver to my guy. Still going to work on the osage piece but think he's really going to like this set. Still work to do tho.   
Mike

IMG_2717 by Mike Allridge, on Flickr