Primitive Archer

Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: Kegan on August 09, 2010, 06:23:46 pm

Title: Black Betty went BAM-A-LAM
Post by: Kegan on August 09, 2010, 06:23:46 pm
Well, this is a new one. I've had breaks like this when first bending a tempered bow with a really small handle, but I've been shooting Betty for a month or two now. I've no clue about this one. I dunno if it got knocked around in the back of my truck or if the club we were at is just cursed (we've lost and broken a number of arrows at that place, and my buddy Art had his compound blow up there too :o).

What a bummer. No injury was sustained, except to my ego :'(.

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Title: Re: Black Betty went BAM-A-LAM
Post by: Josh on August 09, 2010, 06:26:09 pm
That sucks Kegan, I really liked that bow.  :'(
Title: Re: Black Betty went BAM-A-LAM
Post by: Lombard on August 09, 2010, 06:36:49 pm
I've had that happen once. Had a celebration of fire honoring the the dead bow in the fire ring. Come to think of it, over the last couple of years, I've had several celebrations of fire concerning my experiments with wooden bows. Bummer though because that one was a beauty.
Title: Re: Black Betty went BAM-A-LAM
Post by: bowkee on August 09, 2010, 07:22:39 pm
looks like a fixer ???
Title: Re: Black Betty went BAM-A-LAM
Post by: Kegan on August 09, 2010, 07:26:48 pm
Thanks guys. I'm going to try and fix'er up, but I'm not certain how far to go. I'm thinking some epoxy in that crack and a heavy twine wrap for a new grip. Maybe screws too?

Any help would be apprciated. I'm doing finish on a few bows and my brother is painting my uncle's truck, so no making shavings on a new one just yet.
Title: Re: Black Betty went BAM-A-LAM
Post by: walkabout on August 09, 2010, 08:18:30 pm
thats a tough call whether it could be repaired or not. epoxy might work, but it depends on how far into the limb the split went. i dont think i would use screws, maybe just some good hardwood dowels punched into it tight , then a wrap of either sinew or hemp set in epoxy or a massey finish. be sure to pull it from afar with a rope at first, theres no guarantee itll even hold up after being repaired. good luck.
Title: Re: Black Betty went BAM-A-LAM
Post by: George Tsoukalas on August 09, 2010, 08:24:21 pm
It happens. I broke 2 or 3  this year. If you ain't breakin' you ain't makin'! Jawge
Title: Re: Black Betty went BAM-A-LAM
Post by: mullet on August 09, 2010, 10:51:40 pm
 I'd heat it and then run some Loc-Tite super glue down in the crack. Then clamp it till it squeezes out.
Title: Re: Black Betty went BAM-A-LAM
Post by: RyanY on August 09, 2010, 11:07:37 pm
 :'(
Title: Re: Black Betty went BAM-A-LAM
Post by: aero86 on August 09, 2010, 11:25:22 pm
i dont remember the post on it, but was it a stave bow?  thats a new break to me..
Title: Re: Black Betty went BAM-A-LAM
Post by: ken75 on August 09, 2010, 11:33:32 pm
damn nice bow hope you save it
Title: Re: Black Betty went BAM-A-LAM
Post by: half eye on August 09, 2010, 11:48:15 pm
Kegan,
     I see where you are thinking of wrapping the grip and thought ya might not have heard of this "old school" way to do that. so here goes ....for what it might be worth to ya>
     Take about 18-20 feet of your hemp cord and tie one end off to an eye screw on the shop wall. Take the bow and the other end away till the string is taught. Start two wraps (going over the starting end. Use BOTH hands on the bow and wind yourself up toward the wall. You will not believ how tight you can wrap that way. Fact is ya can wrap so tight the string will actually emboss into the wood.
      Added to that ya can spread some glue under the wraps every now and again  or constantly (either way) and baby will not move. even if this wont fix this bow it is a really good way to make wraps especially for repairs.

Hope ya sve it bud, it's a nice one
rich
Title: Re: Black Betty went BAM-A-LAM
Post by: rileyconcrete on August 10, 2010, 12:29:09 am
Cut the handle off along the break, clean it up, then glue up a new handle area, retiller,  maybe this would work? Just throwing and Idea out there.  good luck.

Tell
Title: Re: Black Betty went BAM-A-LAM
Post by: walkabout on August 10, 2010, 01:04:07 am
i feel your pain, my selfbow just blew on me tonight. hopefully with the combined ideas here you can resurrect this one.
Title: Re: Black Betty went BAM-A-LAM
Post by: straightarrow on August 10, 2010, 04:23:46 am
Hope you get it fixed.......I would use any of the Titebonds and shoot down in the cracks with a syringe then get several clamps and clamp for a day or two. Then I would do what half eye said about the wrapping....sounds like a great idea for getting it real tight. Last i would swear some clear epoxy over the hemp. Put a leather grip on and see what happens....? I think its fixable....The titebond is stronger then the actual wood....good luck!!!!

Jon
Title: Re: Black Betty went BAM-A-LAM
Post by: Del the cat on August 10, 2010, 04:29:31 am
It's just mother natures way of slappin' us down (It gives the women folk a day off :-* )
Have a man hug and get back in the saddle ;D
Del
Title: Re: Black Betty went BAM-A-LAM
Post by: Kegan on August 10, 2010, 12:13:04 pm
Thanks everyone. This is a stave bow, and the split isn't in the limbs, just the riser popping off. Under the split end on the belly you can see the deep brown from the tempering. I guess from now on I'll just make my handles a little wider, no worries. Should make them a little heavier in the hand, more stable.

I have some Smooth-On from a couple glass bows we built for my friend and brother, should be a little stronger than TB III, but more than that there's plenty left. Half Eye, that's brilliant! I'm sure between that and the glue it can be saved. I'm not letting it go without a fight ;). It has some work to do!
Title: Re: Black Betty went BAM-A-LAM
Post by: otis.drum on August 10, 2010, 01:17:08 pm
it looks fixable, and i like your attitude.., 'not letting it go without a fight'  :)

i had a handle (glued on) start to split much like yours has this morning. i glued it and then smeared the handle with glue and wrapped it tightly with para cord. it's drying now so i haven't tested it, but i doubt it will give me any more lip.

you could screw or daol it, but i wouldn't bother. i think the hemp/glue wrap will do it and then you wont have to hide the ugly signs of screwing or dowling.

i used techniglue, which i use for my glass bows and is something similar to smooth or the like. it is far stronger than the timber it is being used to hold together. mine lifted because the bow was a slight bend through the handle design, and was trying to pop the handle off. i have seen this a couple of times with glued on handles and surpose the pressures and ideas are the same for the stave bow.

good luck, i hope it can be resurrected!
Title: Re: Black Betty went BAM-A-LAM
Post by: Postman on August 10, 2010, 04:37:09 pm
Dang...that was a nice bow - good luck with the repair!

Love that idea, BTW, half eye!
Title: Re: Black Betty went BAM-A-LAM
Post by: half eye on August 10, 2010, 11:43:59 pm
Fellas,
    that wrappin idea weren't mine....it's from a article in Popular Mechanics (1940) about building english long bows from lemonwood and american flat bows from boards. It works real slick though.
rich
Title: Re: Black Betty went BAM-A-LAM
Post by: sailordad on August 11, 2010, 12:50:12 am
Fellas,
    that wrappin idea weren't mine....it's from a article in Popular Mechanics (1940) about building english long bows from lemonwood and american flat bows from boards. It works real slick though.
rich

i knew i heard that somewhere before
i used to have that saved on mhy computer(untill my drive crashed  :'( ) that was one of the very very first things i found on line on making my own bow
Title: Re: Black Betty went BAM-A-LAM
Post by: 1ahBprimitive on August 12, 2010, 02:56:59 pm
it's hard to tell from the pics but it seems you could cut it in the middle of the handle and put a take down sleeve on it ??? not like i know what i'm talkin about  ;D
Title: Re: Black Betty went BAM-A-LAM
Post by: Cacatch on August 12, 2010, 03:09:35 pm
What wood was it Kegan?
Title: Re: Black Betty went BAM-A-LAM
Post by: Kegan on August 12, 2010, 03:53:09 pm
1ahBprimitive- I have a takedown I just finished that might actually fall vicitim to this very fate. How's that for irony :D?

Cacatch- it was hickory