Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: BrokenArrow on January 05, 2015, 04:04:45 pm
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I am wondering whether a straight blade spokeshave is worth it or not to have to make bows?
Pros and cons?
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I've never like a spoke shave for bow building. I'm sure it my ignorance but all I get is chatter. I was able to use one on a few yew bows and ERC bows but not other woods. Give me a good rasp and a good scraper any day. ;)
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Personally I think that they are great, I always use mine. I comes in handy when doing shaving where a draw knife would take off too much. Make sure its a good one with a sharp blade though ;) I like the antique ones, they look nice and get the job done well, just like our bows :)
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I like a spokeshave on white woods but not osage, yew I occasionaly use a spokeshave as well. Spokeshave is a handy tool but you will find it will not work smoothly on all pieces of wood and grain configurations. I go through stages where I have a love affair with it and then go back to my draw knife.
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No use for one myself.
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They are a pleasure to use (the sound of the wood being curled off is a very nice) but I only use mine on perfectly grained wood- i.e. seldom. I've lifted too many splinters on lesser woods. Rasps, files, scrapers and sandpaper work just as well for me.
c.d.
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Very good on white woods and Yew.
It's a great step between drawknife and rasp.
DON'T get one with a curved sole....
Del
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I agree with Del spot on. Russ
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Would it be the best tool for the making the belly perfectly flat?
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A spokeshave can be a good tool for making the belly perfectly flat, I'm not sure I'd say it would be the best tool for that.
I personally don't own a spokeshave anymore. Like folks above said, it's great on yew and other conifers but not always on other woods. I finally traded mine away and replaced it with a sharp draw knife and a very light touch.
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I have used my spokeshave on oak, yew, maple and ipe. While i am no expert, I love using the spokeshave on oak and maple, however it chatters and tears out on ipe and on any yew that is not straight grained. I also find a sharp blade and proper tuning critical for most effective use. The spokeshave is a useful tool in my inventory, but it is only one tool. I have found it is important to find tools that work well with the wood you are using. Harder woods or woods with irregular or interlocking grain seem to tiller better when approached with rasps and files whereas softer or more straight-grained woods seem to tiller well with blades ( spokeshaves, drawknives, planes, etc.). Just my 2 cents.
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I've never used one. I've started tiller one with my farriers rasp( fine side) then scrape.
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I am a great fan of spokeshaves, especially if I can take the time to tune 'em up. Many of the Stanley's do not have a flat sole or a flat toolbed. A little work with a good mill file will fix the sole, but truing the tool bed is tougher. I finally started using fiberglass bedding compound that you would use in riflestocks in order to get a good flat bed where the blade can clamp tight and true.
Next, you have to put the blade in the spokeshave BEVEL SIDE DOWN. While there is room to argue that with draw knives, and both options work fine, a spokeshave must have bevel side down or all you get is chatter!
And lastly, there is no option on sharpness. Learn to keep to keep it sharp, and hone it every few sessions in the shop for best results.
My favorite spokeshave is the Veritas from Lee Valley Tools. Extremely well made, and the rosewood custom handles are dead sexy!
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I use a cheap spokeshave very often with bows and it's a great tool when used correctly. I may be the only one to say it but I think it works very well on osage. I find that osage works very well with bladed tools. ;D
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Hate 'Em. Tried one that was "supposedly" all set up - wasn't impressed. Seen a lot of tear outs on Student staves that were experimenting with them. Give Me My Buck 105 any day. Bob
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one of the best tools especially for Ipe and Elm. If you know how to work with them they are just great! No rasp needed in some cases
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one of the best tools especially for Ipe and Elm. If you know how to work with them they are just great! No rasp needed in some cases
Im with Adam here....if you know how to set/adjust them, and sharpen them they become indispensable.
But there are spokeshaves and there are spokeshaves....I have 6 and of those only two sees regular use (I use em alot however), the remaining 4 have too little space between the blade and the frame and gets clogged up fast (which can only be cleared by removing the blade). I prefer those with flat plane btw.
If I had to chose (gun to my head) between a good ferriers rasp and my favorite spokeshave, I would probably chose the latter.
Cheers
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I have one and used it on one bow. I did not take to the spokeshave much. Jawge
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one of the best tools especially for Ipe and Elm. If you know how to work with them they are just great! No rasp needed in some cases
Im with Adam here....if you know how to set/adjust them, and sharpen them they become indispensable.
But there are spokeshaves and there are spokeshaves....I have 6 and of those only two sees regular use (I use em alot however), the remaining 4 have too little space between the blade and the frame and gets clogged up fast (which can only be cleared by removing the blade). I prefer those with flat plane btw.
If I had to chose (gun to my head) between a good ferriers rasp and my favorite spokeshave, I would probably chose the latter.
Cheers
It's soft cast iron, take out the blade and use a small file to open up the mouth. Stanley's are known for clogging badly.
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Yeah there is some good stuff on the web about tuning up spokeshaves.
Mine's just a cheapo one which I've fiddled and fettled with.
Del
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It depends a lot on the wood as well. Elderberry, maple and Hazel love the spokeshave. Yew and locust tend to tear out.
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I have a vintage Stanley, never really took to it. Although it was probably just me not taking the time to tune it properly and practice with it.
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In the end, it is only just a tool. Like any other tool, it has it's purposes and will operate for what it was designed to do, with the caveat that like other tools needs to be in condition to work.
And so is a rasp, or a saw, or a hammer. I use all of those, and more, for making bows. It's when you try to use a hammer to fell a tree that a hammer appears useless in your hands. If you were to throw that hammer away just because you couldn't fell the tree, what would you reach for when you needed to bang away on the wedges to split the tree? Your rasp? yeah, pound the wedge with a rasp....monumental waste of time, throw that away, too. In the end, you have an empty tool box and a field littered with good tools turning to rust.
Right tool for the right job. And I happen to like a toolbox full of good tools. That gives me more options to resolve more problems.
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I can't seem to find any wood that mine likes. Could be a user error. I really like my draw knife and farriers rasp.