Recovering sinew

[DC]

I'm in the process of soaking the sinew off my horn bow. I now have a bunch of sinew fibers floating around in the tub of water. Any time I have put wet sinew on anything it has stuck quite firmly. Do I lay each strand out on a piece of waxed paper or is there a simple method of doing this I haven't thought of?

[PatM]

Just lay them on paper towels or newspaper to dry.  Pull them off the paper and any stuck bits can just be rinsed off with warm water when you start working with them again.

  I usually just rinse them really well and then wring them out in a ball of fibers and just pull the bundle apart a bit and let it dry as a loose ball of fibers.   I'll spread it out a bit as it dries.

 Then I just drop the dried mass back in warm water when ready to use and pull out fibers from that as I apply the glue again.

[loefflerchuck]

Been there. Not a fun or easy job but can't waist the sinew . I take a few days to get the fibers to seperate and pull them into same size bundles and comb them out to dry. I dry them on tile and put the dried combed bundles away for the next bow.

[bownarra]

Been there. Not a fun or easy job but can't waist the sinew . I take a few days to get the fibers to seperate and pull them into same size bundles and comb them out to dry. I dry them on tile and put the dried combed bundles away for the next bow.

Me too. I use a slab of marble.
Parchment paper can also be used. Nothing will stick to it.

[BowEd]

Same way I retrieve any sinew.It won't stick even on formica.

[DC]

It just occurred to me that this sinew has been soaking for 5 days now. It could be rotting. The water is very cold so that's a good thing but it seems to be slowing down the process. I discovered yesterday that warm water just makes the bundles of sinew separate easily so I will do that today. But I'm concerned that the sinew might be useless. I don't think the water got any warmer than 45°f(fridge temp) What do you think? Sometimes you forget that this stuff is biodegradable.

[bradsmith2010]

Its probably ok

[PatM]

It definitely goes faster with almost hot water.   I always work to get the sinew off in one day.    When it starts to loosen work a screwdriver between the edges and the wood and lever it off.   Then  keep the water temp up and  work the strands apart.

 The glue isn't going to dissolve unless it's warm.

[Pat B]

I made a sinew backed yew paddle bow a few years ago that broke at the handle. I peeled the sinew off of each limb in sheets and soaked them to separate the strands.

[DC]

I just threw the bow in a baby bath of water and left it. It didn't seem to be coming off. After a few days of that I decided that I should try warm water. It just fell apart in the warm water. I guess in the cold it stayed gelled and wasn't about to separate. We've just finished our shopping for the next two weeks so I'll get it sorted today. Thanks

[DC]

I just sorted it down to bundles that will re-wet reasonably quick. The short pieces that were too much trouble(in the plastic container) will go in the glue pot. Thanks for the help