Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: osage outlaw on January 04, 2012, 08:03:56 pm
-
Does anyone have any knowledge they would like to share about coloring the back of a sinewed bow? I have a hickory bow I sinewed last spring and I would like to color the back. I am thinking black and red, but open to any ideas. I was thinking of using charred wood scrapings mixed with hide glue for the black. Would this also work to color the wood? Thanks for any help.
-
Any dyes or stains will do the trick...if ya wanna go paleo you can use any of those methods I imagine. I dyed the sinew on a sinewed HHB...remember this one
(http://i1181.photobucket.com/albums/x436/blackhawk28/2011-09-02_20-18-23_863.jpg)
-
I just had an idea. It's not very primitive, but will it work? What about using koolaid powder as the pigment? I have used that to dye feathers and it worked great.
-
Grab some n test it out..im sure it will....if you want a pink,blue,red,green,purple rainbow bow :laugh:
-
I don't know. If I use koolaid, my bow might end up with a name like Cherry sparkleberry ;D
-
Powdered Skittles.
Shoot the rainbow! >:D
-
I've used a shellac & pigment paint on sinew-backed bows. Hide glue will work, of course, but you'll have to seal it with something waterproof. Shellac is a good paint binder and a good sealer at the same time.
With that said, hide glue has been used as a binder for paints for thousands of years. If you want something truly primitive, go with the hide glue. The only thing I would suggest is to use pigments or dyes that are not gritty. Crushed charcoal is gritty but soot (lamp black) works much better. You can also dye the glue with a natural, water based dye like beet juice, grape juice, cool-aid, etc.