Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: benp on March 19, 2017, 01:20:48 pm
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Well first off I'm Ben from Northeast NC and I've been browsing the site for a few days, stumbled on it by cutting up a dogwood tree a few days ago with plans to make some turkey box calls and started searching other uses for it since I have several other logs in the woods to go get. As a kid we would find hickory saplings and make bows but nothing impressive so now that I found this place it's really get me stoked to make one or two.
My woodworking experience goes to duck decoy carving. And am a member at workingdecoys.net but the terminology for ducks and that part of tree is different.
So my first question, and I'm sure the info is here since I found a couple threads that talk about it, but the terminology used for bows is quite overwhelming for someone that is very green to this sport.
So if there is a thread that has please post it and if not could someone make a list of words and definitions because talking about tilling and reflex/deflx and other words has me scratching my head.
Thank you for tolerating the newbie question and look forward to learning a new thing here.
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Ha! Then you have come to just the right spot at just the right time! If you can make a box call for turkey hunting, you can make a bow. And the arrows. And any of the hundred other things that we fool with around here! You got this, mac!
To start with, tillering is another word for frustrating yourself by chasing away the flat spots in the curve of the limbs as they are being bent. Once you have your stave (as soon as the log has been split it becomes a stave and stays a stave until such time as it can throw an arrow...then it is a bow) split/sawn/chopped/hacked down to the basic dimensions of the bow you want, you begin to "tiller" the limbs. You push and pull on the limbs, looking at how it curves and bends. If there is a spot that is bending too much, you leave it alone! Any part that doesn't bend gets scraped on until such time as its bend matches the rest of the limb and both limbs have similar "tiller" or curve.
Reflex is the limb bending outward and away from you (as you hold it in your hand) and deflex is the opposite, where it bends inward and toward you. The inside of the curved limb is the belly and the outside is the back. Think of it as your torso bending, got it?
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Welcome here on board!
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Welcome .....and that is a good point about the terminology. I don't remember one specific thread, good idea, start one with some terms/words you need to know.
DBar
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I found a glossary of terms back in the archives. Some of the terms may or may not have evolved, but here's a good start if you can stand dry reading in this format! Click or copy and paste the link below.
http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,978.0.html
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I think Two things most important are that the "back" of bow is the side that face the direction of arrow flight. When bow is drawn it is under tension stress(it's trying to pull fibers apart) "back" of bow should have the same growth ring unviolated from tip to tip. This really helps it tension capacity.
The "belly" of bow is side that faces your belly. It is under compression stress when the bow is drawn. You carefully remove wood from belly to make the stave bend in a nice even arch. spreading out all the stress as evenly as you can. This is called "tillering" the bow and is a true art form requires a good eye to see what's bending and what's not. Those are absolutely a must to know terms the others you'll pick up. I think I saw a Glossary somewhere here that Marc. Posted. Good Luck and welcome to PA
Bjrogg
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Welcome from a fellow North Carolinian, benp. I live on the other end of the state.
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Welcome benp.Your curiosity will be solved.Many helpful people on here.
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Welcome. By the way it gets addictive, lol!
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Welcome I just did a quick google search for bow building terminology & found a lot of glossaries but I can not post a direct link per our rules , If you feel comfterble enough to post your questions you will get a lot of answers here.
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Thanks everyone. Nice warm welcome, and seems to be a very active forum so I'm sure any questions I have will be answered
Okay here is one I didn't see right off hand in that link posted.
What is a dog leg?
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Welcome to PA
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Welcome! You say you want to make a bow or two, but I bet the first time you shoot an arrow from a bow that you brought to life from the log it was born from, you will be hooked. Be warned, building a bow can be very frustrating and At some point you will fail, but it is a very rewarding feeling when you succeed, more so than any other pastime I have had.
A dog leg as I know it is a crook in the limb, or center of the bow or stave that resembles the shape of a dogs leg. Like a snakey bow resembles a snake.
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Welcome to the PA!
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Welcome Ben. Make your way to the Tennessee Classic in a few weeks and you will get all the information and hands on training you can handle. :-D
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I wish I could but don't have enough time to make it across the state right now. Already got a trip planned for August for the eclipse and fly fishing (I mentioned I had a lot of hobbies already, right?)
Okay so the dogwood I worked on tonight and got it split and debarked and put sealer on the ends. It's about 66" long so should make a good length from my understanding but just have to wait for it to dry.
The hickory I have should be about dry enough to use. It is probably about 5 inches in diameter and at least 72 inches long with the bark still on it. I don't believe it had any noticeable knots but I haven't looked at it in months.
What is the next step for making it into a bow, and from what I gather there are several types of bows so what is a good one to start with and a little brief explanation to what it is like.
Thank y'all
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Be careful debarking. The first layer of wood under the bark is your back unless you chase a growth ring. Hickory likes to hold onto moisture like crazy. For your first, with the hickory, id say a pyramid bow bout as long as you are tall. I don't like more than 1 3/4" wide but I'll let others chime in with the width. The length makes it more forgiving, and with a long pyramid design of clean hickory your chances of success on first go is increased.
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You may find this thread useful as well http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,45923.0.html
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Welcome Ben! Morgan's right about a pyramid design being a good one to start with. You're probably wondering what that means. Well, it's just about the simplest design for a bow with a static (not bending) handle.
A D-bow (bends through the handle giving it a D shape when braced and drawn) would be another option. The reason why a pyramid bow would be a good bet it cause it tapers in width rather than thickness.
This means the width from handle to tip progressively decreases. You just draw straight lines on either side from the end of the fades (area out of the static handle where the bow starts to bend) to the tips.
Since it's tapering in width, it does not taper in thickness. So it stays at the same thickness from the end of the fades to the tip. Tapering thickness takes a bit more skill and experience.
Do a search for pyramid bow on this site and you'll see many great examples. Good luck and don't get discouraged. I've broken WAY more bows than I've made. :)
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Everything you need to know is right here, these guys are the best, welcome, I look forward to seeing your work! Bob
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Glad you're here Ben. If you search on here you'll find a lot of info but careful, you may get waaaay off topic before you get to what you were looking for ;)
Read a lot of neat stuff that way ;D
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Ben if I understand you correctly you remove Bark from green Dogwood stave and sealed ends. If you removed Bark you have to seal that surface to. It'll be where the back of your bow comes from and once you remove the bark it can get drying cracks (checks) in it. We want the stave to dry out from the belly side to avoid this. Put some shellac or some type of sealer on that back as soon as you can. Might need more than one coat even I'm not sure about Dogwood. The only Dogwood I have is Red Osier that I use for arrows. It will check really easy
Bjrogg
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Welcome, Ben, looks like you are getting good advice.