Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: dantolin on August 17, 2015, 05:15:37 pm
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Hi all.
I' haven't posted bows for a long time (too busy usually ;) )
But last week I did and finished a bow. It comes from a laurel branch that I cut (with permission) 5 years ago while I was volunteer helping at a bio/strawbale building week in Catalonian mountains, here in Spain.
The branch was very straight, pointing to the sky, in a umbra.
It is (and was) only 26 mm at handle (1"), going to a bit less than 1/2" (11mm). It's 66"ntn and pulls 35#at my 26".
It had 1cm reflex before tillering and it still has it before :)
I hope you like it.
:)
Cheers,
David
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The rest of pictures :)
Thanks again,
David
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Nice I have laurel here but I'm in Florida I've always wondered about using it for bows because there is alot. Wonder if it's similar to yours. How thick are your growth rings? Nice work
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Excellent job holding the profile! This will make a great shooter.
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I'm in florida as well and have wondered the same. Great lookin bow though, I always love bows with a high crown.
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Nice and clean. Good bends as well.
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Very cool. I really like simple bows like this. They really appeal to me.
Looks like a nice bow!
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Very nice bow made from what is (for us north americans) an oddball wood. I Googled "laurel" and there are more kinds than you can shake a bent stick at and they are shotgunned all over the map as to what family they belong to. Some are Rhodos, some are cherries.
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I'm in Florida too and we have cherry laurel every where seems pretty good from small test but haven't done a bow yet.
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A fine example of making the best out of what you have to work with.....simple......functional.....well done.
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Love it sweet looking bow.
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Thank you all for your replies! :D
I'm not sure either what kind of laurel was it (I took it 5 years ago, and I didn't have time to search the tree. (I was there working.))
But I would try with those Florida and California laurel (Florida and California were Spanish once, so maybe it's the same kind of it, brought by Spanish people).
Regards :)
David
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Very cool, tiller looks great. :)
Pappy
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Cool bow, clean and simple...
Del
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I like it. You worked that branch into a perfect looking shape for a small diameter bow, very nice.
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Nice to see you here again dantolin ... and of course a bow of you.
Incredible how little wood it takes to make a serious bow. Cool work man!
I was this year in Madeira for holidays and saw a lot of laurel woods there ... too bad I couldn't it take with me.
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Very nice, I love the simplicity.
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I love little branch and sapling bows. There's just something neat about em. The just look like stick to me. Great job on this one :)
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Apparently the California Bay Laurel is a 'cousin' of the Mediterranean Laurel, ...but alas has a wood noted for being rather weak, though beautiful and excellent for building guitars (...called 'tonewood' by luthiers).
Average Dried Weight: 40 lbs/ft3 (635 kg/m3)
Specific Gravity (Basic, 12% MC): .51, .63
Janka Hardness: 1,270 lbf (5,650 N)
Modulus of Rupture: 9,700 lbf/in2 (66.9 MPa)
Elastic Modulus: 1,225,000 lbf/in2 (8.45 GPa)
Crushing Strength: 5,640 lbf/in2 (38.9 MPa)
The Florida version is actually in the Cherry or Prunus family, and not related to the Mediterranean one - but it may make a decent bow. ...though I cannot find good data on the wood's properties. :(
Edited to add - I've never built a bow out of any of these so feel free to ignore me completely on the above statements. :) I'm going purely off of internet based research...
OneBow
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nice bow. Like it plain and simple. well done.
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Thanks all of you, really :)
Simson, it's a shame you didn't take some Madeira's laurel ;) ... next time?!
And thank you for the information, Onebowonder.
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I like this simple type primitive style bow. Great job!