Author Topic: new girl from Pennsylvania  (Read 13664 times)

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Offline Chicknlady

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new girl from Pennsylvania
« on: May 29, 2012, 08:22:23 pm »
Hello all, just thought I'd say "hi"!  :)  I've always been a closet archery-enthusiast, but never got really serious until recently.  I started at the age of ten making arrows, and didn't realize dead goldenrod stems with cardboard feathers just wouldn't do it until I tried to shoot one...  you can imagine!  ;D  On and off over the years I did a little shooting here and there, not much, still didn't know what I was doing.  It took an 11-yo son with a passion to try archery after he read the series "Ranger's Apprentice" to get me back in the archery.

I still have a nice Martin 40# recurve from years back, but it was always just a few pounds too heavy and wasn't much fun to shoot. So early this spring, I got my son a Walmart Bear fiberglass bow, and made myself a survival self-bow after I read Douglas Spotted Eagle's book, and we were off!   His Walmart bow ended up way too light, and so I caved and got him a nice little 30# Samick Shadow youth bow, which shoots great for him.  My bow is about 30# also, and although kinda ugly and rough it actually can shoot pretty nice when I'm in the zone!  It's 48", from a 2" black birch sapling, finished with just Lindseed oil, has a pretty good string-follow, and has just a shoe-lace for a string.  I'm shooting old aluminum 55# Easton arrows that came from who-knows-where (I think they were an old boyfriends arrows) and although they should be too heavy they seem to shoot better than my son's lighter arrows.  Attempting to work now on rose-arrows and an ash bow that's a little bit longer.

I'm glad to have found this forum, and hopefully you folks won't be too hysterical about my soon-to-be-coming crazy questions!  Thanks in advance...   :laugh:






Offline Bevan R.

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Re: new girl from Pennsylvania
« Reply #1 on: May 29, 2012, 08:27:43 pm »
Always glad to welcome new people to the group. Sounds like you have a good start. Of course you have to post pics of your bow. It's required. ::)
Bowmakers are a little bent, but knappers are just plain flaky.

Offline gstoneberg

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Re: new girl from Pennsylvania
« Reply #2 on: May 29, 2012, 10:11:37 pm »
Welcome!  Why don't you post pictures of both of you and your bows?  Even though your son's bow isn't primitive we like to see kids shooting.  Once he sees how much fun you're having building bows he'll be right in there with you building his next one.

George
St Paul, TX

Offline mullet

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Re: new girl from Pennsylvania
« Reply #3 on: May 29, 2012, 10:47:36 pm »
Welcome, glad to see you here. Too many old guys here already. ::) Let's see some pictures of your suvivalist bow and start slinging the questions, none is silly.
Lakeland, Florida
 If you have to pull the trigger, is it really archery?

Offline Bevan R.

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Re: new girl from Pennsylvania
« Reply #4 on: May 29, 2012, 10:53:26 pm »
Too many old guys here already.

Hey, I resemble that remark!! :'(
Bowmakers are a little bent, but knappers are just plain flaky.

Offline Parnell

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Re: new girl from Pennsylvania
« Reply #5 on: May 30, 2012, 12:00:48 pm »
Awesome, welcome to the board.  It so nice to see women involved!  Gotta post some pictures, for sure!
1’—>1’

Offline Chicknlady

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Re: new girl from Pennsylvania
« Reply #6 on: May 30, 2012, 12:09:27 pm »
Thanks for the welcome everyone!  Here's some pictures of my survival bow...  I took me about 2 hours over the course of a few weeks, mostly used a draw-knife to shape it.  I think it took longer to find a semi-straight sapling than to actually make the bow!


strung bow


some of the knots and bark in little indentations on the back that I was afraid to mess with


unstrung bow, doesn't look much different with a string on it!  But I cut and worked it green, so it is what it is...


Me, like the bow not quite a thing of beauty...     ;D ;D ;D

Offline Bevan R.

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Re: new girl from Pennsylvania
« Reply #7 on: May 30, 2012, 01:10:38 pm »
Nice looking stick! I wish my first bow had only that much set. Well done!
Bowmakers are a little bent, but knappers are just plain flaky.

Offline SA

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Re: new girl from Pennsylvania
« Reply #8 on: May 30, 2012, 09:14:28 pm »
good job the tiller looks good, the first bow i attempted was green wood and it broke in the handle i've been hooked ever since.
 welcome to pa.
Shawn Acker

Offline gstoneberg

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Re: new girl from Pennsylvania
« Reply #9 on: May 30, 2012, 09:23:49 pm »
Looks pretty good to me.  Nothing wrong with that bow at all.

Does the handle mean you raise fancy chickens?  Years ago, back in Nebraska, I raised some interesting chickens.

George
St Paul, TX

Offline mullet

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Re: new girl from Pennsylvania
« Reply #10 on: May 30, 2012, 09:55:17 pm »
The tiller looks real good, especially from green wood. You'd fit right in with all the Florida boys on here with those Flip-flops.
Lakeland, Florida
 If you have to pull the trigger, is it really archery?

Offline Chicknlady

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Re: new girl from Pennsylvania
« Reply #11 on: May 30, 2012, 10:42:55 pm »
lol, Mullet, I live in flip-flops in the summer!  As far as the bow, I think I got lucky with it, didn't really spend alot of time agonizing over it as I lopped it down to size. Now, I have an ash stave down close to start tillering, and it's going alot slower... trying to make a fancier bow this time... the wood is nearly seasoned and very hard to cut, it's going slow and I'm agonizing more!  ::)

gstoneberg, my chickens aren't very fancy, but they're alot of fun and I could live on eggs.  I have six older hens that don't lay much anymore, so I got 12 new chicks back in March.  Couldn't resist some off-topic pictures, sorry!


new birds


Aracauna


New Hampshire & 4 Blue Andalusians



Offline JW_Halverson

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Re: new girl from Pennsylvania
« Reply #12 on: May 30, 2012, 11:08:46 pm »
Nice work on the bow!

I like those Samick bows, too.  They have a pretty good reputation for being good shooters. 

Welcome to the addiction!
Guns have triggers. Bicycles have wheels. Trees and bows have wooden limbs.

Offline gstoneberg

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Re: new girl from Pennsylvania
« Reply #13 on: May 30, 2012, 11:14:49 pm »
Nice, does your aracauna lay blue or green eggs?  It sure has a nice beard.   Mine were hybrids and had tails.  I also had turkens and silkies and played around for a few years trying to cross them.  Good times.  My egg layers were RIRs for the most part.  Gathering eggs was always a treat with the different colors.  Also raised turkeys.

My go-to glass bow is a Samick.  Good shooter.

George
St Paul, TX

Offline criveraville

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Re: new girl from Pennsylvania
« Reply #14 on: May 31, 2012, 02:08:36 am »
Welcome.. Nice bow ;) Seeing your pictures reminded me how much I miss having chickens. I live in "town" and we have had them, but Serena (my bride) doesn't like the flies they attract. Nothing like a roster crowing in the morning to get the nostalgia going.

I have some nice crepe myrtle staves if your ever clined to make your son a CM bow. Just PM me.

I think you will enjoy it here :)

Cipriano
I was HECHO EN MEXICO, but assembled in Texas and I'm Texican as the day is long...  Psalm 127:4 As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth.