Primitive Archer

Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: bradsmith2010 on October 09, 2020, 04:54:53 pm

Title: 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,60 ish@ 32" more photos
Post by: bradsmith2010 on October 09, 2020, 04:54:53 pm
  ok I tillered it out to 32 inches on tree,,, but I can only draw it to 30,, its shoots good,,bout 56# 
will send more pics after I get the handle on it, and will add braced and full draw photos,,
I had been reading some post on long draw shorter bows so tried one to see if it would shoot hard,, it did,,
it follows the sting a bit even with the sinew on it,, will add more asap,,
I didnt induce reflex, just to see what it would do even,, but will next time to see how that improves it,,
the handle has a bad curve ,, so I had to shoot it right in the middle, so really the top limb is longer,,sort of,, but it gets good arrow flight with a 55 60  spruce shaft,, 569 grains,,the bow weighs 21 1/2 oz  ,
   one limb is more narrow and roller coaster and the other limb a bit wider with some reflex so it was a little difficult to tiller, once I got it to 32 inches of draw, and it not shift or change the unbraced profile, I called it good,, it shot so well I feel its pretty close,, it has better cast than I was expecting for no reflex,, I think the long draw is helping that,,
   working on handle now,, and gonna paint the back to protect the sinew,,
   im almost to 30 mark in photo,, the last mark is 32, I did draw it to that on tree,,
   i have a hand scale just couldnt pull it to 32,,for exact weight at that draw,,
Title: Re: long draw 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,,56.5#@30inches,,60 ish at 32
Post by: bradsmith2010 on October 09, 2020, 05:43:45 pm
rawhide handle,, the arrow will pass where it curves in a bit,,had some issues on the handle and used the rawhide to cover the sinew wrap,,
Title: Re: long draw 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,,56.5#@30inches,,60 ish at 32
Post by: bradsmith2010 on October 09, 2020, 06:11:36 pm
starting to paint the back,,
Title: Re: long draw 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,,56.5#@30inches,,60 ish at 32
Post by: bradsmith2010 on October 09, 2020, 06:20:02 pm
unbraced
Title: Re: long draw 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,,56.5#@30inches,,60 ish at 32
Post by: Allyn T on October 09, 2020, 07:03:38 pm
That's a long bow for you  ;D looks good dude! I've never seen a painted sinew bow I dig it. How long did it take you to make this one?
Title: Re: long draw 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,,56.5#@30inches,,60 ish at 32
Post by: George Tsoukalas on October 09, 2020, 07:10:32 pm
Wow, Brad. Very impressive. Jawge
Title: Re: long draw 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,,56.5#@30inches,,60 ish at 32
Post by: bradsmith2010 on October 09, 2020, 07:29:02 pm
   the bow was roughed out, to brace  I was making a self bow,, but decided to see if I could make a 32 inch draw,,,, I put the sinew on, and finished it in about 10 days,,
I wanted to see if I could get it to shoot hard,, being a longer sinew bow than I usually or ever have made,, it was interesting,, at about 27 inches of draw it started shooting good,,
at 27 ,,,it was 53# at 27 and shooting 167fps with 527 grain arrow,,with b55 string,,
that was better than I expected,, so I kept tillering it out,, and just left the weight a bit heavy,,,but it would be a good hunting bow for someone with a long draw, it shoots hard,,and not too long as well,,
it will shoot a 569 grain arrow 174 fps at 31 inches of draw,, estimate it to be close to 58# at 31,, I think it woud be a little faster with fast flight, but dont have any string right now, and Im happy with that,,anytime I get a bow to shoot hard enough to kill a deer I am happy,,
    Thank you Jawge,, you know we like to make our bows,, :)
    I will show full draw tomorrow, its not pretty,, but its not broke and shoots good,, las time I photoed myself at full draw the bow expoded,, so Im a bit gun shy,,
Title: Re: long draw 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,,56.5#@30inches,,60 ish at 32
Post by: Allyn T on October 09, 2020, 08:06:21 pm
That's awesome, so do you like the longer draw or still prefer your shorter draw?
Title: Re: long draw 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,,56.5#@30inches,,60 ish at 32
Post by: bradsmith2010 on October 09, 2020, 08:13:17 pm
  I enjoyed shooting the longer draw,, but my comfort zone is about 24 or 25,, I can face more forward ,, and like the way I can look over the arrow,, its something I have done for 20 plus years, the longer draw is fun,, but the shorter draw bows feel more natural to me, as I am sure some prefer the longer draws,,, for me when I would get out to 30 inches, the string started to hit the front of me,, I think I am just not used to it,,
Title: Re: long draw 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,,56.5#@30inches,,60 ish at 32
Post by: bradsmith2010 on October 09, 2020, 08:39:44 pm
 top limb art work,,,, on a side note, a bow with slight string follow can still shoot really well,,I prefer my sinew bows to be reflexed,,
and have made some short draw bows with little reflex and they dont shoot that great,, on a short bow to get good cast i think you pretty much have to have a reflexed unbraced profile,,
   but on this longer bow with longer power stroke,,,, it shot fine with no reflex( the sinew keeping it from following the string too much),,, that being said, if I had put more reflex in the bow,, I have a feeling it would be even more effecient,,but like I said,, it was a nice experiement and it shoots fine as is,, (SH)
Title: Re: long draw 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,,56.5#@30inches,,60 ish at 32
Post by: bradsmith2010 on October 09, 2020, 10:03:54 pm
64 inch osage sinew backed bow about 60# at 32 inches of draw,
art work on the back,,,,painted with acrylic,,
Title: Re: 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,60 ish@ 32" full draw added
Post by: bradsmith2010 on October 10, 2020, 11:34:49 am
art work in the sun,, :)
Title: Re: 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,60 ish@ 32" full draw added
Post by: Will B on October 10, 2020, 11:35:47 am
Great looking bow Brad!  That’s a fast, hard hitting bow. I really like your paint job. I’m gonna try to build one similar to that for a shorter, sinew backed, hunting bow. Most of mine are 66”-68” selfbows for my 29” draw. Thanks for sharing!
Title: Re: 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,60 ish@ 32" full draw added
Post by: bradsmith2010 on October 10, 2020, 11:40:11 am
thanks Will,, it was fun to make and shoot,, I think the 64 inches gives you some stability,,but still shoots well,,you could go shorter for your 29 inch draw,,like I said it started shooting pretty good at 27,, 29 would work great at that length I think,,I just put two layers of sinew on so it would dry faster,, cause I am not very patient,,
Title: Re: 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,60 ish@ 32" full draw added
Post by: Will B on October 11, 2020, 12:00:56 pm
I think your full draw looks really nice!  Plus it’s still in one piece😉. Great looking bow you have there.
Title: Re: 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,60 ish@ 32" full draw added
Post by: DC on October 11, 2020, 12:08:44 pm
Very cool bow. I wish I could pull off art work like that :)
Title: Re: 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,60 ish@ 32" full draw added
Post by: bradsmith2010 on October 11, 2020, 12:13:12 pm
thank you DC,, you can,, just give it a try,, keep it simple,,,
if you have a design you like, I can draw out a version that is simple,, that would make it easier to go on a bow,, I especially like the art on character bows,, but any bow is fun to paint,,keep in mind,,if you dont like it,, you can just take it off,,no harm done,,
Title: Re: 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,60 ish@ 32" full draw added
Post by: Fox on October 11, 2020, 12:24:41 pm
That’s beautiful! Love the aesthetic, really reminds me of a ancient weapon (in a good way) ;)
That’s a pretty darn long draw! Nicely done.

-Fox
Title: Re: 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,60 ish@ 32" full draw added
Post by: bradsmith2010 on October 11, 2020, 12:26:05 pm
more pics
Title: Re: 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,60 ish@ 32" full draw added
Post by: bradsmith2010 on October 11, 2020, 12:28:11 pm
thank you Fox, I am drawn to the primitive and primitive art work as well,I wanted to show some of the character,, or a nice way of saying twist and turns,, sometimes guys are so worried about a little twist,,but if you get you string to line up,, it usually does not hurt the bow at all,, this one has quite a bit, on a character bow its seems natural,, and beautiful to me,, and the string comes across the handle so the arrow clears easy and it shoots will getting good arrow flight,, of course my friend came to shoot it and said he had to adjust the way he holds the bow,, and yes with most wood bows there does come some adjustment to hold,, etc,, a loose grip will solve alot quickly,,and its great to see the arrow fly so nicely,, from a very twisted piece of wood,,
  the handle is a bit twisted,, and so I put a small piece of rest,,, to help with arrow placement,,,like I said earlier, I had to shoot this bow right in the middle,, I usually shoot a little above center but on this one could not,,
Title: Re: 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,60 ish@ 32" full draw added
Post by: bradsmith2010 on October 11, 2020, 12:29:12 pm
  thanks Will,,yes its shoots better  one piece :)
Title: Re: 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,60 ish@ 32" more photos
Post by: bradsmith2010 on October 11, 2020, 03:13:05 pm
putting on finish,,osage is so beautiful, I never cease to be amazed at its natural beauty,,I wanted to add a bit of my feeling about bow making after nearly 30 years,, I enjoy making the character bows the most or the ones that are not symmetrical at all,,
I enjoy the challenge of tillering when both limbs might not be even, and really have no desire to make them the same, the variation in line is what holds my interest,, leaving the reflex and deflex to snake up and down, brings beauty and interst to me in the finished full draw, and I am always amazed that the bow seems to even it self out at full draw,,anyway enjoy your bow making,,there really is no right or wrong if the arrow hits the mark,,and you enjoy the process,,, :)
Title: Re: 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,60 ish@ 32" more photos
Post by: Pappy on October 11, 2020, 05:12:41 pm
Nice job Brad, tiller looks dead on, love the paint job also. :)
 Pappy
Title: Re: 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,60 ish@ 32" more photos
Post by: Santanasaur on October 11, 2020, 05:45:02 pm
Sweet bow! Great tiller and artwork
Title: Re: 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,60 ish@ 32" more photos
Post by: bradsmith2010 on October 11, 2020, 06:17:43 pm
thank you Pappy, hope your deer hunting going good
thank you Santanasaur,,thank you guys for taking the time to look,,
Title: Re: 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,60 ish@ 32" more photos
Post by: Allyn T on October 11, 2020, 06:34:15 pm
It looks great at full draw, you did a bang up job
Title: Re: 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,60 ish@ 32" more photos
Post by: bradsmith2010 on October 11, 2020, 06:39:39 pm
thanks Allyn, you were the inspiration to try that,, hope your long draw bow is going well,,  :D
Title: Re: 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,60 ish@ 32" more photos
Post by: Allyn T on October 11, 2020, 07:07:08 pm
Man way to put the pressure on me! I hope mine turns out half as sweet as yours did. I plan on doing some rasping tomorrow so I'll keep you posted.
Title: Re: 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,60 ish@ 32" more photos
Post by: bentstick54 on October 11, 2020, 08:20:12 pm
Another great bow Brad. I’m like you, I like the natural character of the wood itself, the dips and dives, lumps and bumps that make them all individual. Always impressed with you work.
Title: Re: 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,60 ish@ 32" more photos
Post by: Marc St Louis on October 11, 2020, 08:44:02 pm
Looks really good Brad
Title: Re: 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,60 ish@ 32" more photos
Post by: bradsmith2010 on October 12, 2020, 04:42:01 pm
thank you bentstick and Mark for the positve input,,  :)
Title: Re: 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,60 ish@ 32" more photos
Post by: druid on October 15, 2020, 10:20:58 am
Interesting bow. Tiller seems correct spotted.
Title: Re: 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,60 ish@ 32" more photos
Post by: bradsmith2010 on October 24, 2020, 02:03:39 pm
final test shoot, and the bow past,, :)
Arrows by the late great Kim Brooks
Title: Re: 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,60 ish@ 32" more photos
Post by: Allyn T on October 24, 2020, 08:04:42 pm
It's a cool bow man, glad it passed the test lol
Title: Re: 64inch sinew backed osage character bow,60 ish@ 32" more photos
Post by: bradsmith2010 on October 24, 2020, 08:23:08 pm
yes me too, that made my day,, :)