Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: Pat O on January 07, 2008, 11:16:42 pm
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I'm looking for a good bamboo supplier and would like to know where some of you get your bamboo from and what species you are using ? I have been using moso bamboo from franksupply for years but the latest batch I got from them I had bad luck with it pulling up splinters on the backs of the bows. I wanted to try some tonkin bamboo and did buy some 6" poles from ACE THACT in Florida and it was all dry wroughted and brittle. It was useless for bow making and they wouldn't take it back or refund me in any way.I need to get some more bamboo and would like to know from where and what species you have had good luck with. thanks for your help Pat
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I think you mean dry rotted. :P
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You have good timing PatO. I was just about to order some from Franks, I think Ill wait and see what everybody says now. Justin
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Here's where I got mine - I'm pretty happy with their product and service.
http://www.calibamboo.com/index.html?gclid=CNiugsTm5ZACFQUngwodWT41XA
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Gordon,when you order your bamboo from the place you listed,do you order the slats?And do they ship in quanities less than 100?Thanks tradrick
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Yes to both questions. I believe their minimum order is 25 slats.
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I got a batch from Franks Rush and Cane, its worked well for me. I bought a lot of 25 planks to save money. I've heard other say their product is more prone to failure, as a result of being a certain type of bamboo. This is from commercial guys who really can't afford to have a failure. But I've had good luck so far, no failures.
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Can't help you there,I cut mine.
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I got some from a garden centre her ein the UK as raw poles and it ws OK.
I got some large diameter poles from an importer of bamboo poles and that was even better.
Personally (because I have no choice here in the UK and have to prepare my own) I think there is little to be gained from buying prepared slats when it is so easy to get whole poles. split them cut them roughly to width and depth on a bandsaw and leave them to dry. cost is very low done this way.
Mark in England
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I saw ' 6" bamboo ' on the above post---is this about the right size for making backing?
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Lennie, Pat (my brother) has always goten his bamboo from franks supply and never had a problem with it until the last batch. The bows he made with the bad batch of boo failed after many hundreds of shots with no warning at all.
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Thanks everyone for the input. Gordon I have look at that site before and they only carry 1 3/4" wide slats. How is the crown on this bamboo ? I was a little worry that they may have been using smaller poles to cut the slats out of. has anyone had problems with moso bamboo pulling up splinters on higher poundage bows ?
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I have never had a problem with Franks bamboo lifting splinters. In the last 15+ years of buying their bamboo I only had one black bamboo pole which is smaller than I ordered with a couple cracks. I had another one at the front door the next day..
100#+ bows at a hair over an inch wide strain enough? ;)
Usually the bowyers who had trouble with Franks, order a lot, and they live 1000's of miles away. I can't imagine having to use that shipment of bamboo for bows after its been getting cooked in a box car getting to 140 degrees or more as it sits in AZ. for a spell. Then encountering intense humidity in the Midwest to compound the effect. Even if it flies, it may be subject to conditions which you don't want bamboo subjected to..
.Your bamboo may look great when you get it, and it was probably fine when it left, but its bamboo and it cant really take these extremes. None of the local bowyers, and there are many ever have any problem with Franks bamboo. This topic pops up every now and then with the same basic conclusion..
It's always going to be a crapshoot..Unless the stuff grows where you live..
Rich-surrounded by the stuff
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Pat, the slats may only be 1 3/4" wide, but they were cut from poles that were clearly much larger diameter than that - there is very little crown. So far I have only made one bow from this batch, but it seems to be holding up fine.
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Rich, we're talking about a well tillered bow pulling up a splinter a year or so later for seemingly no reason at all. My brother builds quite a few bows a year and they are 99% bamboo backed, he has bought quite a bit of boo from frank's suppy over the last few years and only had trouble with the last batch he got. I dont think were dealing with dry checking or anything like that here. Also these bows are pulling up splinters in between the nodes, so I dont think it is human error.
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Ryan, I understand that and this is just what I mean by getting a little to dry does to bamboo during shipping. The failure isn't immediate.A couple points; Franks doesn't cater to bowyers, and they say basically that in their catalog, nor does any bamboo vendor I have seen. Slats are far more susceptible to dryness than enclosed poles, and combine that with untypical dryness for our region can cause this problem.. Remember all the fires in our area recently? This is why..
I know its not bowyer error in these cases, but you must realize that it's a risk to ship these slats cross country without problems on occasion...Also the yellow,or moso doesn't have the density to handle the extremes like a lot of other bamboos I have used, and ordering poles may improve the chances of getting bamboo which isn't overdried. Also order in small quantities so if it does go south it may not be so problematic.
Also finding other sources for bamboo closer to where you live, even private residences is a good idea even if they are hundreds of miles, or more south. I'm suprised there is only two vendors mentioned in this thread..I may have to start a side gig ;)..
The best bamboos I have used come from the neighborhood, but Franks has always provided me with some fine bamboo when I ran out of the local stuff.
Rich
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I buy it from the local hardware stores in the lumber section next to the bicycles. ;D jk I believe the bamboo I'm getting is coming straight from mainland Japan and these are of great quality, 72" long, 1 3/4" wide and 1/4-1/2" thick. Never had a failure with it and doubt I ever will. I believe its madake but not 100% sure. Just recently I found some bamboo up in the mountains that I'm trying to dry..... If I could, I ship some to you lads, but it would be pretty expensive since I'm on the other side of the world :-\
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Rich, the bamboo I am talking about didn't have any visible damage or discolor. It was my 4th batch of 25 I got from franks and I had 4 failure out of the the last batch I got. It was not a tiller problem. I'm very particular about the tiller on all my bows and always make sure that the complete limb is working. Most of the bows that I had problems with had been shot well over 1000 time and the tiller was still good even after the splinters pulled up if you stopped shooting it. I am not saying that frank sells junk bamboo I am just looking for some where els to try that others have had good luck with.
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I have had a couple of bamboo backings lifts splinters for no aparent reasons also. I got mine from master garden products in a bundle of ten. I was just looking at Dean Torges site and basically he claims that Maso is better than Moso. He gets his from a place called "Bamboo and Rattan works". May be worth a shot. I think i may try some out sometime. Btw, this place has a website, just didn't know if I could post a link to it or not. Good luck.
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Can't beat Pine Hollow's bamboo...best i've found~
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Pat O, I know its not the craftsmanship. You asked if anyone had had any problems with splinters lifting on heavy bows..and I had recently made a couple slender heavy bows using the yellow on the back..so I was just answering your question.. Check my previous posts.
Sabanim, Funny I didn't know Pine Hollow grew bamboo ;D, bet I can guess where he got it ;)
Rich
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Pat I know some people use an East Coast supplier. I think it might be Bamboo and Rattan Works but I'm not sure. I'll poke around a bit and see if I can find a link, if you dont' beat me to it.
I can see where less than optimal drying might negatively affect an entire batch of boo, or maybe it was harvested in an area with deficient soil. I know, were there panda bear teeth marks? That was probably it.
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Well, I think its a crapshoot. All you can do is what Rich said to try to improve our odds, then hope for the best. Long shipping and time of year you get it shipped is probably something we should consider more than who it came from. I got some from 3Rivers (and they only cater to bowyers) and had it lift a splinter in between two nodes after several thousand shots. Justin
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Bamboo and Rattan works is in New Jersey..you could practically drive there and pick out what you want ;)
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Justin, where do you think three rivers gets there's from......I'd be willing to bet franks supply. Its way cheaper to buy it directly from the supplier.
Rich, new jersey isnt that close to us....lol.
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Here's another one not far from my house. The last time I was there they sold 2" wide slats for $7. This place is 3 large warehouses and the stuff comes from China ,I think.
Bamboo Supply 3912 Holden Rd. Lakeland, Fl. 863 648-4445
Eastern Star Trading Co. (same address) 863 646-6965