Primitive Archer

Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: upstatenybowyer on January 20, 2017, 10:28:56 pm

Title: Sinew-backed Mulberry Bow with lower limb problem revealed
Post by: upstatenybowyer on January 20, 2017, 10:28:56 pm
Hey guys. here's one that was worth the wait. I cut the stave, roughed it out, chased a ring and floor tillered all within about 2 hours. Then I bent it into a wood-block r/d form and waited about 4 months for it to dry out enough that it would hold it's profile for the most part, which it did. Then I applied 2 courses of sinew and waited another 2 months, tillered, and finished. It came out pulling 51# at 27". It's incredibly light and man does it shoot fast! I'm really happy with this one.  :)

52" ntn
Sinew backing is covered w/ birch bark
cow horn tip overlays
seagrass handle wrap

I know I post a lot of bows, so thank you all for looking... again.
Title: Re: Sinew-backed Mulberry Bow
Post by: upstatenybowyer on January 20, 2017, 10:29:39 pm
and three more
Title: Re: Sinew-backed Mulberry Bow
Post by: tattoo dave on January 20, 2017, 10:37:27 pm
That's a great looking bow! I love it. Nice work

Tattoo Dave
Title: Re: Sinew-backed Mulberry Bow
Post by: upstatenybowyer on January 20, 2017, 11:08:09 pm
here's the f/d from another angle
Title: Re: Sinew-backed Mulberry Bow
Post by: Bob W. on January 20, 2017, 11:14:00 pm
Nice tiller, I bet she's a shooter!
Title: Re: Sinew-backed Mulberry Bow
Post by: Philipp A on January 20, 2017, 11:44:33 pm
great looking bow! did you Chrony it to see how fast it shoots?

Title: Re: Sinew-backed Mulberry Bow
Post by: Green Mountain Man on January 21, 2017, 02:16:02 am
Wow!
Came out great
Ya do nice work
Title: Re: Sinew-backed Mulberry Bow
Post by: mikekeswick on January 21, 2017, 03:46:15 am
The lower limb tip looks like it is about to hinge on you. Especially as it is reflexed in the unbraced picture?
Title: Re: Sinew-backed Mulberry Bow
Post by: loon on January 21, 2017, 03:59:10 am
the more bows you post, the better!
Title: Re: Sinew-backed Mulberry Bow
Post by: MulchMaker on January 21, 2017, 06:19:46 am
Wow upstate!!! You've outdone yourself! And don't worry about posting to many, for me, a beginner looking at your bows helps me keep motivated. I'm sure the entire board has gone through it. You wake up and your like I wanna build a bow! And then you find out you have to wait for wood to dry. So for at least a month if not longer to build there first. I'd go crazy if it wasn't for you and other members posting bows. You have helped me and probably countless others keep with it just by the drool factor alone! I do often wonder how you keep up the pace you've been going at...I'll end this long winded post with....thank you and please don't stop posting
Title: Re: Sinew-backed Mulberry Bow
Post by: upstatenybowyer on January 21, 2017, 08:43:40 am
Thanks everyone for looking. Phillip, I wish I had a chrony. It's definitely a priority for me to get one. Mike, I saw that lower limb thing as soon as I posted the first f/d pic so I had the wife take one from a different angle. To me the second one looks much less like it's about to hinge. I'd be very curious to hear what others think about this. Loon and mulch, I'm glad you don't mind all the posts.  :)
Title: Re: Sinew-backed Mulberry Bow
Post by: RyanY on January 21, 2017, 09:40:01 am
I agree with Mike. Its visible at brace as well. Love the birch bark backing!
Title: Re: Sinew-backed Mulberry Bow
Post by: BowEd on January 21, 2017, 10:20:25 am
Yes ditto on the lower tip there but still nice to see a mulberry on the forum.Especially with the nice birch bark cover on it.
Title: Re: Sinew-backed Mulberry Bow
Post by: Springbuck on January 21, 2017, 11:02:52 am
Right on, you did it! And you did it good.
Title: Re: Sinew-backed Mulberry Bow
Post by: upstatenybowyer on January 21, 2017, 11:35:36 am
So I've been racking my brain to figure out what happened on the lower limb because I took pics close to full draw just prior to finishing and that hingey spot wasn't there and then it hit me. Just before sanding I noticed that the string alignment was just a tad off so I decided to correct it with some dry heat. I think what happened is that the heat and slight bending weakened the wood in that spot cause that's precisely where the hingey spot is. The picture below shows the bow just before the heat correction and I removed no wood after it was taken. It had to be the heat.  :(
Title: Re: Sinew-backed Mulberry Bow with lower limb problem revealed
Post by: tattoo dave on January 21, 2017, 12:07:01 pm
I could be wrong, but mid limb on the bottom could bend just a touch more.

Tattoo Dave
Title: Re: Sinew-backed Mulberry Bow with lower limb problem revealed
Post by: RyanY on January 21, 2017, 01:01:35 pm
How is the thickness transition in that limb? Is it nice and uniform or does it get noticeably thinner in that area? Just as discussed in that other thread its possible that the wood took a while to respond. I was working on a hickory warbow that had a stiff outer limb I wanted to tiller out. I was pulling the bow at about 100# to exercise it and it wasn't till it was noticeably thinner that it finally came around and hinged.

http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,59356.0.html
Title: Re: Sinew-backed Mulberry Bow with lower limb problem revealed
Post by: upstatenybowyer on January 21, 2017, 01:10:15 pm
How is the thickness transition in that limb? Is it nice and uniform or does it get noticeably thinner in that area? Just as discussed in that other thread its possible that the wood took a while to respond. I was working on a hickory warbow that had a stiff outer limb I wanted to tiller out. I was pulling the bow at about 100# to exercise it and it wasn't till it was noticeably thinner that it finally came around and hinged.

http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,59356.0.html

The thickness taper is pretty uniform. I'm pretty sure it's the heat that caused it. I'm sure glad it's sinewed, otherwise I think the problem would be much worse
Title: Re: Sinew-backed Mulberry Bow with lower limb problem revealed
Post by: DuBois on January 21, 2017, 02:12:24 pm
Did you give the sinew time to firm up again after the heat. I wouldn't think the wood would get weakened by the heat but I could imagine the sinew softening up from heat and if you bent it too soon afterwards, it may have let been more stretchy than the rest of the bow in that spot.

Just thinkin out loud here.

Still a fine bow in my opinion. Thanks for posting it.
Title: Re: Sinew-backed Mulberry Bow with lower limb problem revealed
Post by: selfbow joe on January 21, 2017, 02:23:01 pm
Very nice!
Title: Re: Sinew-backed Mulberry Bow with lower limb problem revealed
Post by: upstatenybowyer on January 21, 2017, 05:13:31 pm
Did you give the sinew time to firm up again after the heat. I wouldn't think the wood would get weakened by the heat but I could imagine the sinew softening up from heat and if you bent it too soon afterwards, it may have let been more stretchy than the rest of the bow in that spot.

Just thinkin out loud here.

Still a fine bow in my opinion. Thanks for posting it.

huh, I suppose that is indeed possible. just goes to show how many subtleties there are in primitive bow making. it's amazing so many come out as well as they do!

Thanks to all  :)