Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: Dictionary on June 26, 2012, 03:43:47 pm
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because its been asked so many times but i can't find the answer to my exact question.
gonna try my first attempt at a board bow. Got a 72 inch red oak board. Cut it down to like 65 inches. gonna use the extra 7 inches as a handle. The board has somewhat straight grain but im going to go to hobby lobby and try and get some linen,cotton, or silk to back it with. How do i back it though? Do i have to cover every part of the back of the bow or just like a narrow line on the back? Sorry to have to ask this but i couldnt find the answer to save my life.
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When you say somewhat straight grain do you mean the board has some run offs? Red oak will not tolerat run offs very well and the backing will not likely save it but it will help, you need to cover the whole back, saturate fabric with glue and rub onto wood squishing out as much glue as you can. Or just put the glue on the back of the bow and rub till it comes out through the fabric.
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i like to size the back, thin some glue and brush it on, soak the cloth in the thined glue, another coat of unthined glue on bow back and place cloth, stretch it tight, that's just how i do it though, Bub
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As in cover the entire back so that there is absolutely no spots without some thread on them? That's going to take a hell of a lot of thread, right? I'm thinking i probably won't be able to get thread with much thickness to it so it will probably be fine strands im guessing.
And the grain is straight on the back and belly of the board but on the sides of it, it is moderately straight grained.
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I think you want to go with fabric, not individual threads.
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You're going to want fabric. Thread would take all weekend!
You can try goodwill or other thrift stores for old silk ties. They're usually super cheap.
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if you go to hobby lobby you can buy camo fabric if you want to add something diffrent to your bow badger is right though if you have a lot of run offs the backing wont mater red oak really likes to split along the grain i also like to size the back and do it almost exactly like bubby
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Try to avoid the cotton; linen or silk would be better.
Apply a thin coat of woodglue over the entire back of the bow. Also apply a thin coat of glue onto the fabric (one side only). Stretch the fabric a bit. Lay down the glue side on top of the glue side. Press it down firmly and rub out all the air bubbles and as much of the glue as possible. Leave to dry for at least two days before you start tillering.
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You CAN do threads. It does take a while.
(http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g124/rossfactor/redoak5.jpg)
(http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g124/rossfactor/redoak2.jpg)
Thats a hemp thread backed red oak board bow from the way back machine :). I think that pic is seven years old.
I agree with DarkSouls description of how to glue on fabric, although on thin fabric like silk or fine linen I think you can skip the glue on the fabric. The fabric will saturate from the glue on the back.
Gabe
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If you have a JoAnn's Fabrics nearby, they had linen cloth last time I was looking for some. I got enough to back more bows than I'd know what to do with for twenty or thirty bucks, if I remember correctly.
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If you have a JoAnn's Fabrics nearby, they had linen cloth last time I was looking for some. I got enough to back more bows than I'd know what to do with for twenty or thirty bucks, if I remember correctly.
I think my local Joanns people know me by name by now- my wife makes clothing, and we're always there buying more fabric. They have some good silk fabrics too, usually. Get on their mailing list, and you get 40 and 50% off coupons. I have enough silk for bows for the rest of my life at this point, I think.
Mike
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I like linen , personally. applied with titebond II. Easy ,good results.Remarkable material. Good substrate for a paint job as well.
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You guys are great. This completely cleared a lot up for me. I saw a fabric store here in Birmingham yesterday after i got off work. I think i'll head over there today. Also when we refer to grain are we referring to the very thin lines on the board or the darker thicker brown lines on the board? Because the brown thicker lines are not entirely straight on the side(edge) of this board i have.
Edit* Went out and got a board with straighter grain. Went to fabric shop, that linen was waaayy to expensive. I think i got like 10 bucks total in my own name right now :laugh:. Need to earn some cash. Anyways i'm wondering if i could back the bow with some old jeans i got. Jeans are usually 100% cotton and i was wondering if this would work.
Thanks guys
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go to a thrift store, silk tie or dress probablly cost ya a dollar, good place for leather as well, purses and coats, Bub
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Cotton stretches a lot. I don't know if would add much protection to the back of the bow, and the additional mass would definitely slow it down.
If your grain is pretty straight along the back of the bow (e.g. you can follow each growth ring from one end to the other, or the run offs occur at a very oblique angle), you really don't need to back a red oak board.
Gabe
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i like to size the back, thin some glue and brush it on, soak the cloth in the thined glue, another coat of unthined glue on bow back and place cloth, stretch it tight, that's just how i do it though, Bub
Same here pretty much.
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and i can cut the fabric up in individual peices right and add them on because i wouldn't be able to find a continuous length of 60-70 inches. So it would still protect the back if i add them in like 10 inch increments and wrap over the fabric peices?
I went to a place called Vapors Thrift and couldnt find hardly any linen. Found like one pair of pants that was like 56% linen and the rest was something like argon or something spelled like that. Maybe i can find a goodwill and look there. idk.
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you should be able to get a long enough piece to just splice at the handle, Bub
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I've backed with silk, linen and camo tape(the kind for gun wrapping). I just do like they say and saturate it with tb3. And splice it at the handle if need be.
Good luck with your bow!
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All the time and money you're spending on finding a fabric, you could spend on proper board selection instead! A STRAIGHT grained board of red oak (/maple/ash/hickory/elm) really doesn't need a backing. And if it does need a backing, a cotton jeans will work to some extend but is inferior to linen or silk. You can overlap fabric in the handle, but the length must be one whole limb at least.
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i found a 1/2 yard of linen at hobby lobby for 6 dollars. my thoughts were, "This is only 3 feet" lol. Forgot i'm cutting it so i can cut around the fabric until i have a length i want.
Cut the board to 60 inches. I decided i'd make a bendy handle short bow backed with linen.Roughly 1 1/4 inches wide, pulling roughly 45#@28. I say roughly because i have no tillering device available and don't use measurements and therefore will have to tiller this one by feel and eye. Maybe using a mirror if i can. All i got is an axe, rasp, and knife. Only thing bothering me is how to get rid of the sharp edges without touching the back of the bow.
Going to start the backing after i get the width of the bow the way i want it. Will post pictures of the process in a day or two.
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Once you have it roughly to where you want it you can use a scraper to round the corners. You could use your knife to do that also. Don't cut, scrape. If you do a search you'll find that a lot of things can be used as a scraper. I saw one of the guys on here uses a half of a pair of scissors. I use my pocket knife sometimes but I prefer a good cabinet scraper. Just keep that sharp and it works amazingly well. I think I picked up a set of scrapers on Amazon for $10. Use them all the time. Look in the How-To/Build Along section. I know there is a thread on scrapers and i think there is one that explains how to sharpen your scraper.
You can round the edges of the back. Matter of fact that is recommended. Not a lot, just to take the sharp edge away so the transition is smooth. So maybe around 1/8th of an inch. Keep it smooth, use some sandpaper on the edge if you gouge it any. That'll help keep a splinter from lifting. I think someone already told you too but don't cut your nocks across the back unless you glue on tip overlays.