Primitive Archer

Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: maatus on January 25, 2016, 09:58:43 am

Title: Hello from Finland!
Post by: maatus on January 25, 2016, 09:58:43 am
Hello all! I'm 23 years old and I live in Finland. My family is from Lapland but I do live in southern part of Finland.

I've been making bows for one year now, mostly selfbows, from rowan and hazel woods.

This is my last made bow, my first laminated one, and I wanted to try out birch-juniper combination. Siyahs are made from pine deadwood, also known as "kelo" in Finnish. It's the first "known" birch-juniper bow in Finland!

Now I'm planning to make a sinew backed compression pine/juniper/spruce bow, depends on what I could find in the woods. Maybe I could use birch on back and then cover it with sinew, let's see what happens.. If any of you readers have some spare sinew, send me PM! Sadly I do not have anything to trade except money. Anyway I will open a new topic under the Trading Post.

Greetings,

Markus
Title: Re: Hello from Finland!
Post by: Pat B on January 25, 2016, 04:11:01 pm
Welcome to PA Markus.   I'm going to move this post to "BOWS" so everyone can see your beautiful bow.
Title: Re: Hello from Finland!
Post by: loon on January 25, 2016, 04:30:15 pm
Niice

Maybe you could trade staves for sinew?.. that you could get from the woods? Or arrows?

Would like to see a sinew backed compression softwood bow
Title: Re: Hello from Finland!
Post by: willie on January 25, 2016, 04:38:15 pm
Marcus-
welcome, and any more info (specs) about your verrrrry nice bow would be appreciated

can you tell us a little more about kelo?
Title: Re: Hello from Finland!
Post by: Steve Milbocker on January 25, 2016, 05:34:44 pm
Welcome Marcus, nice bow!
Title: Re: Hello from Finland!
Post by: Red Tailed Hawk on January 25, 2016, 06:54:04 pm
Very nice!!
Title: Re: Hello from Finland!
Post by: Hrothgar on January 25, 2016, 07:59:10 pm
Good looking bow, has a lot of personality!
Title: Re: Hello from Finland!
Post by: DuBois on January 25, 2016, 08:17:54 pm
Very nice and Welcome! How about a close up of the siyah/tips?
Title: Re: Hello from Finland!
Post by: PlanB on January 25, 2016, 08:23:32 pm
Great bow, and I'm very interested in the birch/compression conifer bows. I've been using birch for bows, and have been thinking of trying eastern hemlock compression wood bellies with black birch backing.

I've been doing a lot of reading about Finnish bows lately!.
Title: Re: Hello from Finland!
Post by: ---GUTSHOT---> on January 25, 2016, 08:33:21 pm
Welcome and very nice bow
Title: Re: Hello from Finland!
Post by: Badly Bent on January 25, 2016, 08:36:10 pm
I'm liking your bow, has a sweet looking style to it and excellent tiller. Welcome to the forum Markus and keep posting your work.
Title: Re: Hello from Finland!
Post by: mullet on January 25, 2016, 09:40:26 pm
Welcome to PA, Marcus. That's a nice, simple bow with a lot of character.
Title: Re: Hello from Finland!
Post by: Drewster on January 25, 2016, 10:46:42 pm
Cool bow.  Looks like you're doing some nice work after only one year's experience.  Welcome to PA Marcus.  Looking forward to seeing more of your bows.
Title: Re: Hello from Finland!
Post by: dragonman on January 26, 2016, 05:02:20 am
very nice looking bow, I like how you are working with your native materials , to get the best out of them instead of using imported wood. like your ancestors would have done.....the tiller looks great too , what kind of poundage  and length is the bow?....and welcome, looks like your bows will fit in well on the PA

Dave  (wales UK )
Title: Re: Hello from Finland!
Post by: maatus on January 26, 2016, 10:04:13 am
I totally forgot the specs... So here it comes:

Lenght 133cm (I like more shortbows than longer ones..), width 38mm, thickness about 20mm, weight 430g. It pulls 51# @ 22", could draw at least an inch longer so I guess it's somewhere around 55-58 at full draw. It's pretty new bow, finished it just few days ago and yet I haven't had time to build arrows for it. I only have arrows for 22" draw lenght, for my shorter bows.

Quote
can you tell us a little more about kelo?

It's up dried old dead tree (mostly pine) which has dropped it's bark. In Lapland, the tree stops growing when it's around 400 years old and then it takes few decades to turn kelo. The process won't happen in southern part because it could not get dry and will rot. Sapwood of it (if can use that word) is grey coloured and heartwood is reddish-brownish.

On that picture, there is some kelo's heartwood at the end of the tip (reddish-brownish color)



Title: Re: Hello from Finland!
Post by: Otter on January 26, 2016, 12:12:06 pm
Very nice looking bow .. I like your tips ... Alot of character.... Welcome to PA
Title: Re: Hello from Finland!
Post by: Badger on January 26, 2016, 12:18:00 pm
  Markus, very nice work! You will fit right in here. I was looking the the grain orientation on your syhas, that could be a problem as the rings are layered flat where they can most easily seperate under very low stress.
Title: Re: Hello from Finland!
Post by: loon on January 27, 2016, 02:24:51 am
if you can make a 53"/135cm string length bow from compression softwood backed with sinew or cable that draws 33-34" relatively smooth you will be my hero  :o :o hopefully I can beat you to it...

Would steam bending kelo for having grain aligned siyahs work? But hey, if they don't break..
Title: Re: Hello from Finland!
Post by: maatus on January 27, 2016, 04:52:38 am
  Markus, very nice work! You will fit right in here. I was looking the the grain orientation on your syhas, that could be a problem as the rings are layered flat where they can most easily seperate under very low stress.

I took care of it with glue. It's pretty hard wood, even the string won't make any pits to them. Almost 300 hundred shots fired now and still okay.

Would steam bending kelo for having grain aligned siyahs work? But hey, if they don't break..

I'm not sure what you mean but I did cut the tips with jigsaw from kelo board, didn't bent anything.
Title: Re: Hello from Finland!
Post by: hunterbob on January 27, 2016, 06:55:25 am
Welcome to PA . Nice looking bow.