Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: Staver on April 01, 2009, 07:31:25 pm
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I'm finishing up my first recurve bow made of osage. It has fairly thin rings and the back's ring is less than 1/8". I was just wondering... Do snake skins offer any protection to the bows back?? ??? ??? ??? Joe H
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No!! ;D But they sure are nice to look at!!
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Thought so :-[ ;D
Thanks knightd
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What are trying to protect, a splinter from lifting? If you had sinew it would protect that from moisture.
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Whitewoodshunter: The bows back seems a little thin. There's no splinters or anything to make me think that there is a potential problem. I know snake skins look cool and provide good camo, but I wasn't so sure that adding snake skins would give the bow added protection. I realize sinew and things like rawhide, silk, or bamboo provide tension strength, but it didn't seem to me that snake skin would add anything because they're soo thin. I was just wondering if I was right in thinkin that. Thanks ;D ;D Joe H
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Rattler...Water Moc...or Rat Snakes don't help....but Python sure does....don't let anyone tell you any different either...... ;D
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python thats gotta be like raw hide if its from a decent sized snake
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yeah but with pythons you should be able to get 2-3 bows from one skin instead of 2-3 skins per bow ;D.
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Pythons, Boas, Anaconda and Big Eastern Diamondback Rattlers. They are all tough.
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staver,
if you have some snake skins and you have enough to back the bow your working on but want to also have some kind of backing protection then you could do something like put a bunch of coats of Tightbond III or even an epoxy glue coats and then put the skins over that... i dont know by experiance but i think that should give some kind of protection... or even do something like a Tightbond III and lining and then a couple more TB coats and then the skins and you should have some good protection then... dont know how it would work but thats probably how i would attempt to do that... ;)
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Add rawhide first for protection then the skins over that. TBIII will work fine for both.
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Titebond will work great for adhering the Rawhide or the Snake Skin...but to just put coat after coat of the Glue for a Backing....this is recipe for disaster....the Glue will just crack ...not having anything to Bond to but itself....either do like Pat said...or use Linen or silk ....then the Skins...JMO
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Thanks for all the great advise everyone! ;D
I'm pretty confident that the ring I chased is good with no violations. So here's what I'm gonna do: size the back up with some tight bond hide glue. Let it dry overnight. Put another thin layer of hide glue then put the skins on. Put on several coats of True Oil.... Go out and have some fun... and see what happens!! ;) I'll let you all know how it goes ;D What do ya think?? ??? ??? Joe H
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That sounds like a Good Plan Joe....have fun....... ;D
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Sizing coats on fresh liquid hide glue (bottled variety) tack up in minutes, not hours. Soak the skins while you size the bow. Then dry the skins and size them. When the glue begins to tack, you can add another coat to the bow and glue the skins on. I like using liquid hide glue for snakeskin jobs better than Titebond. Being the glue and skins are protiens, it grabs and bonds the skins much better initially which makes the process easier. With Titebond, you have a slippery mess until the glue finally begins to set up. The only problem with liquid hide glue is finding and having on hand FRESH liquid hide glue. Check the expiration date printed somewhere on the bottle. I've seen bottles on store shelves already that were past the expiration date. If it doesn't tack between your fingers and begin making hairlike strings when you pull your fingers together and apart, it's old and won't set up or dry so well. The shelf life is less than a year, I believe.
On the topic of strength, thin skins like copperheads offer virtually no protection. I can't help but to think that tough, thick skins on the other hand have to provide some protection. Less than rawhide certainly, but perhaps enough to keep a pin knot from popping a splinter or the like.
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Thanks Adam ;D I put the skins on and everything that you mentioned was happening. The bottled hide glue was expired but of course I didn't even notice that there was a date on the bottle until I read your entry :-[ So I'm glad you mentioned that. The glue however, was setting up in minutes and the strands of "hair" that were spinning off were definitely forming so that gives me confidence. It's a little humid right now and raining outside but the glue seems to be curing and hardening enough to sand it down. 8) We'll see what happens! ;D I'll be posting my new bow as soon as it's completely finished!! ;D ;D ;D Joe H