Author Topic: Lesson Learned  (Read 3500 times)

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Offline aznboi3644

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Lesson Learned
« on: February 07, 2011, 12:50:22 pm »
Never let friends draw your bows...had a scary moment last night I was showing my hickory d bow to some friends.  One of them decided to just yank her back to 30"

my 57" bow i've only drawn to 28" a FEW times...scared the scat outta me.  I heard a few ticks but I think it was just the hemp backing stretching some.  Took only a 1/4" more set.

I was about to cry if my baby snapped in half.

Lesson learned...dont let friends draw your bow....your favorite one to boot.
« Last Edit: February 07, 2011, 11:43:51 pm by mullet »

Offline John K

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Re: Lesson Learned
« Reply #1 on: February 07, 2011, 01:21:19 pm »
Good thing it was Hickory !
The only way to fail is to never start !

Offline aznboi3644

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Re: Lesson Learned
« Reply #2 on: February 07, 2011, 01:33:36 pm »
I'm quite impressed with hickory so far.

I mean this board bow had some pretty major violations...about 8-10 different growth rings on the top limb.  I think the hemp backing has helped some with keeping it together.

Thumbs up for hickory.

Offline Easternarcher

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Re: Lesson Learned
« Reply #3 on: February 07, 2011, 01:39:02 pm »
If you wanna show someone your bow, make sure to unstring it first, then hand it over.

My sister-iin-law asked to see the first bow I ever built...happened to be hick backed boo-floo R/D. Lightweight but all the same...I saw her start to draw and I told her not to draw the bow...she said "oh, I had a friend who taught me how to shoot" just as she grabbed the string in a deathgrip and drew it back to her ear. :o

THAT was the LAST time I ever let anyone I did not trust hold a strung bow....amazingly the bow was no worse for wear. Lucky...

Cacatch

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Re: Lesson Learned
« Reply #4 on: February 07, 2011, 02:32:51 pm »
Easternarcher is right, but I'll do him one better - unstring the bow and completely remove the string from both knocks. Just hand them the bow itself and that's all. I've had people - stay with me now, this one is a little out there - actually try to draw a loose and hanging string, and in the process hit themselves or someone else with the bow and/or drop the bow on rocks or cement...Wait now, I'm not done - then they looked at me like my bow was faulty because the string didn't stay on - Hold on now, one more and I promise I'm done - they told me a good string would not break and come off, but rather...IT WOULD STRECH LIKE A GOOD BOW STRING IS SUPPOSED TO - in order to FLING THE ARROW!!!    :o    And no I am not kidding nor am I making it up. There are all kinds out there.

CP 

Offline Bevan R.

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Re: Lesson Learned
« Reply #5 on: February 07, 2011, 03:20:10 pm »
Learned my lesson with a black walnut pyramid bow. sorry to day it did not make it. :'(
Bowmakers are a little bent, but knappers are just plain flaky.

Offline JonW

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Re: Lesson Learned
« Reply #6 on: February 07, 2011, 06:19:09 pm »
sometimes without a string isn't good enough. I showed a guy a hickory bow I made once and he bent it BACKWARDS with his hands on the tips. He was only familiar with recurves and thought that was the way it was supposed to bend! Another story of the durability of Hickory....

Offline Kegan

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Re: Lesson Learned
« Reply #7 on: February 07, 2011, 06:19:52 pm »
Simple solution: get new friends ;) ;D

Offline denny

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Re: Lesson Learned
« Reply #8 on: February 07, 2011, 08:58:45 pm »
I have had many of the same experiences. I sell bows. Boy there are a bunch of dummies out there. I have had them pull the bows upside down backwards unstrung and off course there is always some strapping giant willing to test draw your new bow.I had a Mogul giant pull back one of my bamboo horse bows, I had just tilled to 27 inches. man it shot like a rocket, till this J-Bird pulled it reverse grip 32 inches. It didn't break. I was talking to another guy when this happened. I yelled sir please don't do that, He said you mean this and did it again. Then He said you make a really fine bow and said would you build me 10 . I thought this guy is nuts. He gave the big spill How he and his cronies are from the orient and really enjoy shooting asian bows. I never got money or an order, just a over stretch bow. So, I don't string them unless they are in hands reach. Denny

Offline crooketarrow

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Re: Lesson Learned
« Reply #9 on: February 07, 2011, 09:33:26 pm »
   I can't tell you the # of people thats came over with friends and see a bow and yank it back locking there elbo thinking theres a compound in there some where. I learned a long time ago to never hand someone a bow with a string on it. Think of the hundards of times someone picks the bow up with out a string and hold it up backwards,upside down or upside down and backwards. And say yea thats nice. Then there next words is how many bucks they kill every year with there bow.
DEAD IS DEAD NO MATTER HOW FAST YOUR ARROW GETS THERE
20 YEARS OF DOING 20 YEARS OF LEARNING 20 YEARS OF TEACHING

Offline adb

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Re: Lesson Learned
« Reply #10 on: February 07, 2011, 11:21:25 pm »
Absolutely god d@%n right... never get off the boat, unless you're going all the way.

Offline sailordad

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Re: Lesson Learned
« Reply #11 on: February 07, 2011, 11:31:39 pm »
i dont see what the big deal is with letting friends draw your bows back
i dont think i would be afraid of letting any of you draw one of mine  ;D


now all these other yahoos i know
i will let them hold it,i will string it and draw it for them so they can "see the tiller"
thats what i tell them,then i explain to them as i draw the bow repeatidly what the tiller is and what they should be seeing
i always wanted a harley,untill it became the "thing to ride"
i ride because i love to,not to be part of the crowd

Offline mullet

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Re: Lesson Learned
« Reply #12 on: February 07, 2011, 11:46:49 pm »
 COOL, Tim. I pull around 30". ;D Bring them to the Classic. ;)
Lakeland, Florida
 If you have to pull the trigger, is it really archery?

Offline Elktracker

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Re: Lesson Learned
« Reply #13 on: February 08, 2011, 01:14:28 am »
When I made my first bow a Apple bow a couple nice nots in the back I didnt know any better and let my friend draw the bow and the back splintered out, ooops. Now if someone wants to draw my bow its with a arrow pointed at a target and the arrow is short enough they cant over draw the bow without sticking a field point through there hand lol ;D I mean really whats the fun in building these great bows and not being able to share it with your friends big and small guys. Just remember to remind them before they shoot if they draw the bow to far the point of the arrow will fall off the shelf or there hand and stab them lol it works great!
my friends think my shops a mess, my wife thinks I have too much bow wood, my neighbors think im redneck white trash and they may all be right on the money!!

Josh Vance  Netarts OR. (Tillamook)

Offline Postman

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Re: Lesson Learned
« Reply #14 on: February 08, 2011, 02:28:35 pm »
you are right, cacatch, my high school students try that a lot :D
"Leave the gun....Take the cannoli"

John Poster -  Western VA