Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: Lighterknot on February 08, 2017, 01:39:51 am
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Here in Okinawa it seems that decent trees for making bows may be few and far between. For those of you that have to order staves and have them shipped to you, what are some good places to order from?
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Give Carson a call at Echo Archery. He goes above and beyond.
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Give Carson a call at Echo Archery. He goes above and beyond.
+1. Carson is a great guy to deal with.
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Does Okinawa have bamboo?
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+1 to what asharrow said. Japanese used bamboo I believe for there bows.
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just check out Kamil's bows in the 'my bow from Poland' thread - bamboo bows are pretty high on my to-do list
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+1 Carson is super guy ! Very helpfull !
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You could also send a PM to forum member limbit or look thru his past posts. He has written some about woods local to him on Taiwan.
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Thanks for the recommendations I will give Echo Archery a look. All of the Bamboo I have found so far has been pretty small but I will keep looking. I have been in contact with Limbit and he has been a huge help with identifying potential trees to search for.
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If you want to use bamboo, you'll probably need to order it from an island further north. They have a lot of Moso and Tonkin bamboo, both of which are excellent for both bow making and arrow making ad were used traditionally by the Japanese. Bamboo is tricky though since there are so many species, many of which are total crap. With bamboo, it is important it is grown at elevation and given plenty of cold. The stuff you'll find at sea level tends to be a serious hassle to cure (even when cut in winter) and makes weak bows that take a lot of set. If you can locate a bamboo dealer (should be easy there) you'll have a cheep supply of bow material. Just laminate two pieces together inside to inside with the ridges facing outward on both sides. You should laminate with Tight Bond 3. I'll send you some if you can't locate some there. Just be sure both sides of the lamination are completely smooth with no gaps. Roast the belly lamination good and well before laminating together with a heat gun for around 45 mins or more till it gradually darkens. Some guys go all the way to black for the belly lamination. Either way, just take your time roasting it and do it slowly and evenly. I really prefer the feel of a wood bow, but a boo bow made this way is still something really nice to shoot and is hard as hell to break. Could be a good option for you.
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Great info on the bamboo thanks. As of right now I'm definitely leaning towards using wood and I'm not ruling out trying some more local species but just in case if I can't find anything it's nice to have other options.