Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => HowTo's and Build-a-longs => Topic started by: econner on August 04, 2007, 05:27:02 pm
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Is there an easier way to shred leg sinew than the typical pound and pull method? That gets pretty old pretty quick. I know that is the point of primitive archery versus hunting with a rifle, but there has to be a happy medium.
I am sure that there isn't any way to do this, but with all of the knowledge flying around on this board, some ingenious soul could figure something out.
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The easier way to do it is to pay someone else to do it for you. However, if you are looking for a better way than pounding, I don't think it exists. If you get a florist frog to help separate the sinew it will probably make it a little easier. Justin
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;D..........bob
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It's easier if you at least start to shred it (like remove it from it's sheath) while still green, right off the leg.
Ralph
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the easer way for me is to use back sinew its longer and can easily be serrated with a florets frog I did 10 or 12 in one evening.
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Some say to shred it when wet,but i dont like handlein wet gooey slippery sinew n try to strip it.I see and read many accounts,where they try n pull it apart,from end to end.I find it much easier to pound it,then start pullin it apart from the center out.I get less waste,longer strings,and generally do it with my hands,after the initial pounding.You can have that 2 pliers method.LOL
Other than that,i dont really think there is any real EASY way to process sinew,other than buyin or tradein it Processed.If workin sinew,really aint yer thing,there is always selfbows,and other materials fer lashin fletches.
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I agree with Trax. The little amounts of sinew I have processed, I feel that pulling from the center to the ends is the best. You get less run out than if you start at the ends. I have never tried the florist frog, just read a lot about how people love using it. That is why I said probably easier. The process with the frog also pulls it apart from the middle, not the ends. Justin
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Seems everyone has their preference but for me, the easiest is to soak a tendon for several hrs starting with warm water then shred by hand. As long as it's soaked long enough, it comes apart extremely easy compared to pounding...especially if the sheath was stripped from the tendon upon removal from the animal. The water does the work for me and there is rarely a need for pliers or a hammer. I also believe, depending on the tendon and animal it came from, that there is less waste and there are more full length pieces (same length as the original tendon).
An advantage to doing this...at least from what I have read and according to my mentor who was taught this from a native...is that shredding sinew like this makes stronger strings being that the fibers aren't broken/pulverized. I personally would not know one way or another though. All my strings to date have been made this way (coincidently, all my sinew backed bows have been backed with pounded sinew).
Have fun!
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Just checkin. Thanks
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i smash it till the membrane loosens up then use my teeth to pull it apart from the center.peace
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OK, call me stupid but what's a florist frog? google can't find it.
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Dang Marius, I though if anybody would know flowers, it would be you. ;D Actually the first time I heard the term I searched and searched but could not find out what it was. I finally read a book by a NA that had a picture. This is a picture that I found on the internet. Justin
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isn't that thing used for wool as well?
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Your hands are the best tool for this application. sorry there is no easier way without loosing a bunch of sinew, Some people just dont have the right patience for this kind of stuff and you could be one of them , If I were you and didnt like doin it , pay someone to do it for you.Trap
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When I do it I usually pound some of it.Then sit back and watch TV or a movie and separate it,laying it in bundles along my leg.rdb,How do you keep it from getting tangled together when doing it wet?If it's as easy as you make it sound ,I'm going to have to try it.
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I do what Mullet does, sit and watch TV, I use a needle nose pliers and a set of pliers, that way it's not too hard on the fingers, I can do enough for a bow in a short time.
VB
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Eddie, you just keep the different bundles seperated while you soak them sometimes if I have alot too soak I tie the bundles with a little peice of the sinew , I just half hitch it, then soak, the half hitch can be cut or pulled out after your bundles are soaked, I ussually make my bundles big enough so that when you flatten them, it will go all the way across the bow back. Trapper
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When I do it I usually pound some of it.Then sit back and watch TV or a movie and separate it,laying it in bundles along my leg.rdb,How do you keep it from getting tangled together when doing it wet?If it's as easy as you make it sound ,I'm going to have to try it.
To date, I have just been laying each individual piece separately straight and on a towel. Then, once they dry a little (doesn't take long) and stiffen, I bundle them together with a twist tie (I like Trappers idea of using sinew too). Of course, this has just been for strings which doesn't take that much sinew. Any way, once dry, the pieces are a lot different then when pounded....kinda wirey but they soften nicely when reconstituted in warm water for a few minutes. It doesn't always work out but I like to get each piece about the size of 1-2 strands of dental floss.
The pliers will still need to come out if the sheath is around the tendon, otherwise, it seems pretty easy.