Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: Dane on February 14, 2009, 08:41:05 pm
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Hi folks, and happy St. Valentines Day (appropriate as Cupid loves bows, and so do we).
These are just a few quick photos of a new bow. I am taking it to the range tomorrow to try it out, and then provide more details. This is the first sapling bow I have made, with tons of knots, so it was especially challenging throughout the process. I cut it down last August near my home. Funny how staves sometimes magically have more knots and flaws when you start working them then you remember seeing when you selected a tree.
This is far from a perfect sapling bow, but taught me a lot. I'll give specs and more info tomorrow, but for now, it is about 68" long, maple, pin nocks, pulls about 30 lbs, as is tiller more or less bending through the handle. A lot of small knots and a few huge ones really had me paying attention as I worked.
Pardon the horrid color in the photos. I have a new digital camera, and am still learning white balance mode, so the colors are not true.
Dane
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Hey thats a really cool lookin' bow ya made!! Great job! -Matt
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Dane
That is a gnarly looking piece of wood. I like the way it came out. It makes me want to try a sapling bow. What kind of Maple is it made from?
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WOW i mean WOW. i think i could probably make a few dozen toothpicks with a stave as gnarled as that. great job.
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i'm impressed!
f.
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Well done Dane, the tough staves will definately make ya slow down and think eh :)
Pugarita eh ::) :D
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Good job on a challenging piece of wood. God Bless
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Sometimes knots seem to appear in the wood while you are hauling it home.Very interesting little bow let us know how it shoots.Ron
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I'm grateful for the comments, guys. I'm about to head out, more details later today.
Pugarita, Dana. It is a limited edition poster to benefit pug rescue.
Dane
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Nice work......
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Great bow and PRIMITIVE! which is what this site is all about. Nicely done and bookmarked for Feb Self Bow of the Month!
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Hey, Dane
Wow... nice job! You've done very well with a difficult stave. Those character staves really seperate the boys from the men! Excellent work around the knots. I know, for me, working character staves really brought my bow making skills up to the next level. Your tiller looks spot on, as well.
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Justin, OldBow, ADB, thanks. The rest of you, thanks again. Frank, knowing the caliber of your work, your words have much weight.
Here is some more info. It came out to 68" tip to tip, and is 1 3/8" at the widest point of the stave. One tip is 5/8" wide, the other is 3/4" wide. Those big knots are about 10" from each tip.
I shot it today, and it is sweet. No hand shock, not a fireball, but a nice shooter I will enjoy taking out again. It shot much better with one limb in particular up, so that is the one that will be the top limb.
The sapling was about 2" in diameter. I cut it near my club in Deerfield, and as I said before, it looked a lot staighter than it ended up once I split it and began working on it. I split it with a little bearded hatchet and a carving mallet, a process that was very simple and quick for such a small piece of wood.
Rick, I am not sure what kind of maple it is. Either hard maple or sugar maple, I think. Those are the two kind that mostly grow around here, I belive.
Here are some shots. Quite a few, so I am posting a few times. I had a lot of fun with this bow. It did make me slow down and think, and I fully expected it to blow each time I put it on the tillering tree. Same with when I first shot it, but it seems to be holding together nicely. The TrueOil worked nicely too, so I am sold on it as a bow finish, even if it is modern. I dont think I am going to even make a bow handle.
There was very little set in one limb, but quite a bit in the other. That is a good lesson to learn for the next sapling bow I start. One of the things I appreciate is how much easier it is to find and process a smaller tree.
And now, some shots.
Dane
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Some more shots.
Dane
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I like it ! Primitive,kinky,holds together.Theres a good bow.Congratulations: Frank
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Very simple and cool bow,very well done. :)
Pappy
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Thanks, Frank and Pappy. I appreciate it.
You know, this was probably the most fun bow I've attempted to date. Maybe I had less expectations with so many challenges in that sapling, and as the bow formed, it became really exciting.
Time to start a new bow!
Dane
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Now that had to be a challenge! Great looking bow, very nice work! :)
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Very cool bow. I never would have seen a bow in a piece of wood like that. very impressive.
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Very nice! That camera makes it look like osage in the 2nd pic ;D
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Congratulations on an outstanding bow! Jawge
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Thats a neat bow, you really got a nice tiller out of it considering the knots and snakey nature of it.
VB
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A very nice bow out of a challenging piece of wood. Always wanted to make a bow out of a maple sapliing. Have inlaws in NH so may get a chance to one day.
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Thanks Greg, Jawge, Tracy, Cheapshot, VB, and xin. I do feel like I reached a milestone with this bow. Tracy, it is magical, how it became Osage for that one shot! :) I wonder if I can make it yew next time?
Dane
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damn nice bow man! and a real challenging looking stave too, congrats!
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Finnish, thanks man. I appreciate that. It will be a good day thanks to you.
Dane