Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Around the Campfire => Topic started by: bjrogg on January 04, 2018, 05:14:04 am
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In the bow section an old post from Badger was brought back to daylight. I was titled something like another crazy Badger idea. I liked it. He wanted to start a book to have bowyers give tips tricks and different ways of building bows. It was perhaps ambitious and never saw print. I thought maybe we could just start a post and people could just and little tricks they discovered and share them. Maybe it could go to a sticky on top if it caught on.
I've learned a lot of tricks from people on this site. Here are two I just kinda stumbled on myself that I would like to share. Hopefully others will pick the ball up and keep it going.
My tip #1 is something I've shared before on this site. You search removing winter Bark and cambium with a power washer. I had about 20 HHB staves that I had harvested during the winter and a Elm stave that was gifted to me that had the Bark dried on for several years. I removed the Bark from the Elm but trying to remove the cambium and still have a pristine back was proving difficult. I'd head about steam or leaving in shower. I decided to try something out of the box. We have a power washer that heats hot water. I removed the Bark and cambium from the approx 20 HHB staves and the Elm in something like a hour if I remember right. The backs were pristine on some very ungulating HHB. It would have been nearly impossible to do this with a scrapper. For more information and pictures search for my original thread.
Trick #2 is a simple one I just stumbled on one night while trying to scrape and rasp tip end of limb. It always seems hard to hold in vice to secure good enough to work on. I noticed a floor squeegee with a hollow handle leaning against the wall. I took it and put the tip of my bow in the end of the hollow handle with the squeegee straight down to the floor. I can strattel the handle and really put some down pressure on my rasp or scapper.
Hope these tips help someone and others share theirs
Bjrogg
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I like the idea of this post. Good call Bjrogg
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Good post BJ.
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Well, I probably won't have much to contribute to this thread, but it's a great idea! Kind of like those TBB chapters with miscellaneous tips.
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Definitely a great idea BJ. Let me ponder this a bit and see if I've got anything worth sharing...
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Steaming in a plastic bag. I use this method all the time. I usually use bread bags but I'm doing most of a limb in this case so I used poly tube. Close the ends with a length of sewing elastic and cut a small hole in the bottom for drainage. Enlarge the hole to increase the steam flow. The bag should just inflate slightly.
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I like that DC. Thanks for sharing your tip. I'll remember it and try it for sure.
Bjrogg
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DC, what's that white contraption that's producing the steam?
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It's a clothes steamer. I found it at the thrift store for $5. A couple of weeks later I found another at a different store for $7. I think they are one of those things that get a big push on TV and everyone buys one. Then they find out they ain't that much use and off to the thrift store they go. It provides about an hour of steam. You can also use wallpaper strippers. Just look for anything that makes steam. You can fit a hose to an electric kettle. It doesn't have to take any pressure. Actually if the pressure builds up it probably means you're not getting enough flow to keep the temperature up.
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I got a used wallpaper steamer a while back and it works great. I'll never go back to the pan of water and tin foil
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I like that trick with the steamer. I usually use a wet rag wrapped in foil then heated with a heat gun. It’ll boil the water and the foil will hold in te steam and heat. Sometimes I’ll bend the wood with te foil still on if it’s a slight move of a thick selection. Like a lateral bend or bending a stiff handle.
Kyle
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Tip #1. Scissors make great detail scrapers for working around knots. I picked up this idea from someone on here when I first started. I ground one side into a slightly rounded shape and left the other one a sharp point. You can do some precise scraping around pin or larger knots.
(https://i.imgur.com/TnVRj6m.jpg)
Tip #2. Take care of your tools! If you throw all of your rasps and scrapers in a bucket or tool bag they can clank around and dull over time. I use bike inner tubes for rasp and file covers. I slide a larger tube over my draw knife before I put it in my tool box. I made leather pouches for my scrapers. I am very particular about my tools. The cutting edges never come in contact with metal.
(https://i.imgur.com/DJ3ODQG.jpg)
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Wow Clint, now I gotta go make something to protect my drawknife, it's one of a kind and was made right here in Rochester like 70 years ago.
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i like the inner tube idea (A) looks way easier and more likely to happen then wrapping them in rags
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I rip through more sapwood than I care to keep track of. I have never had to sharpen my draw knife. I think keeping your tools protected significantly increases their useful lifespan.
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Here's a tip for beginners that I picked up as a beginner.
Filing, Scraping, Sanding... always works better when the object is placed on a surface rather than just held up in your hand.
Obviously, right?
And the same goes for using a file card to clean a file. I used to hold the file out and brush, brush, brush, brush....on and on. Then one day I discovered that just putting the tip of the file down on a table while brushing it made one swipe clean it a great deal more efficiently than just holding it. I mean 10x better.
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i like the inner tube idea (A) looks way easier and more likely to happen then wrapping them in rags
+1 good one OO.
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One tip I have for beginners especially but for some more experienced bowyers...Patience! Without it you are in trouble. If you find yourself distracted, pissed off, or just not able to concentrate on the matter at hand, put down the tools and go find something else to do. I know it sounds simple but from someone that has been doing this wood bow building thing for a long time and from somebody that has been impatient in the past and disregarded my feelings at the time, it's just not worth loosing lots of good work to impatience.
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Thanks for adding your tips guys. I'm not going to fill up a bunch of pages thanking everyone but I do thank You all. This is the kinda stuff I'm hoping keeps getting added to this thread.
Bjrogg
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One of my favorite's "Pitch Shellac" )P( I learned this from PatB years ago...Take hard crystallized pitch, not sticky pitch, and use enough denatured alcohol to dissolve...I use a small paint brush to apply to sinew wraps and feather bases...When the alcohol evaporates you are left with a hard waterproof coating...Your sinew will never get wet again, never... (R
Don
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Willie if I understand you right I'm hoping that's what happens. Just a post that people can add their tips and tricks to. Something that you could just find in a sticky up top and always be able to look through or add to. I'm thinking thats up to the moderators and if this catches on or not.
Bjrogg
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I rip through more sapwood than I care to keep track of. I have never had to sharpen my draw knife. I think keeping your tools protected significantly increases their useful lifespan.
I know this guy is no BS, good tip OO..............
DBar
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Great post!
Im a stickler for sharp tools. Especially a draw knife and a scraper. I personally prefer my draw knife to be sharp enough to shave with. I actually teach draw knife and scraper sharpening at mojam every year. And to anyone else that wants to learn. Remember, these are presion craftsmans tools, not a 5 dollar hatchet. Never use a grinder!
I guess my tip is, always work with sharp tools. If you don't know how to sharpen a draw knife or a scraper properly then take the time to look it up or ask me at one of the many events I attend.
There is nothing like the look on someone face that is struggling making sawdust with a scraper. That is until you hand them one with a freshly rolled burr and now they are making long curls.
I would rather spend forever sharpening my tools to do 10 minutes worth of work than spend 10 min sharpening my tools and work forever.
Patrick
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One tip I have for beginners especially but for some more experienced bowyers...Patience! Without it you are in trouble. If you find yourself distracted, pissed off, or just not able to concentrate on the matter at hand, put down the tools and go find something else to do. I know it sounds simple but from someone that has been doing this wood bow building thing for a long time and from somebody that has been impatient in the past and disregarded my feelings at the time, it's just not worth loosing lots of good work to impatience.
+1 :OK
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This is an excellent thread. As it gets longer, a built-in index would be a great idea.
WA
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Patricks' quote........"I would rather spend forever sharpening my tools to do 10 minutes worth of work than spend 10 min sharpening my tools and work forever".
I read once that Lincoln when getting ready to cut down a tree with an ax that took 3 hours used 2 of those hours sharpening his ax first.
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I agree guys learn how to sharpen tools how to clean files and rasp and how to store them. They will last a long time. Ed that Lincoln quote was exactly what I was thinking when I read Patrick's post.
Bjrogg
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Well I wasn't thinking that till now but that is something my grandpa always told me when he was alive.
The meaning of working smarter not harder.
Patrick
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"Ed that Lincoln quote was exactly what I was thinking when I read Patrick's post."
^ me too :OK
I thought of a tip that may be helpful to beginners...
ALWAYS CONSIDER THE ORDER IN WHICH YOU'RE GONNA DO THINGS.
For example, if you use dry heat to correct string alignment and then steam in recurves, you may loose those initial corrections.
Or, you may want to leave width in the handle and towards the tips so you can cut those sections to nail the alignment later on.
I'm sure there are plenty more examples of why the order of things is important, I'm just too tired to think of anymore.
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Following up on suggestions above. This might be a way to catalogue the suggestions. They could be arranged alphabetically as the list grows.
Tips - Helpful suggestions from this site
How to mark nocks using cardboard
------http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,62279.30.html, pg. 3
Steaming: in a plastic bag and sources of steam
http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,62279.0.html
Pg1
Scrapers: old scissors for scrapers
http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,62279.0.html
Pg1How to cover tools to keep them sharp
http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,62279.0.html
Pg1
Shaping bow limbs: file, scrape, sand with bow on solid surface
http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,62279.0.html
Pg. 2
------How to hold a bow to scrape or rasp the tip of a limb
http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,62279.0.html
Pg. 1
------use hacksaw blade as straight edge when marking out center line of limbs. It is flexible and forms to fit the curves.
------http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,62279.30.html, pg. 3
------using marks to lay out centerline
------http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,62279.30.html, pg. 3
------How to contour limb thickness to keep edges equal and avoid hinging
------http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,62279.30.html, pg. 3
Straightening side ways bends using dry heat and clamps
------http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,62279.30.html, pg. 3
Tool care:
------Clean files and rasps with file card
http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,62279.0.html
pg2
------keep sharp by keeping covers on them
http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,62279.0.html
pg2
Be patient, work smart, not hard
http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,62279.0.html
pg2
Sinew
------seal with waterproof pitch shellac
http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,62279.0.html
pg2
Plan the order of your work, can prevent problems such as misalignments
http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,62279.0.html
pg2
Staves
------preparation, storage, finishing
------http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,62279.30.html, pg. 3
------Removing bark, especially winter bark, use pressure washer
http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,62279.0.html
Pg3
Super glue stuck hand, release with vegetable oil
------http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,62279.45.html, pg. 4
Tiller test, are the limbs bending evenly
------http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,62279.45.html, pg. 4
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Looks good.
WA
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This thread is at the "Top".
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Bring on the tips folks. You know a book full, from choosing bow trees, to cutting and making staves, to curing, to all the wood working to make the bow and tiller it, to making string, to making and straightening arrows and many many more things. Come on with it.
WA
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+1 I see they moved this to the top that's great. I'm not sure if it needs reorganization or not. I know for myself I typically go to the last page of these type threads and see what's new. If I want to rehash something I go through them till I find it. It would be nice to have the links to a more in depth thread you could look up. I'm just really hoping people add their big or little tips and tricks.
Bjrogg
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Another tip.....Take some time to rough out a years worth of bow blanks. Leave them wide and long enough that you can make any type of bow from them. Take the limbs to an inch thick or so. Stash them inside the house where the humidity stays constant and mark the date on them. Give them a few months to dry out. When you start to use up these blanks replace them with new ones. Your bows will hold their reflex better and take less set. The humidity in your workshop or garage fluctuates with the weather a lot more than it does inside a heated and air conditioned house.
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Thats great advice Clint! I just wish I could follow that myself. I never seam to feel like roughing out that many staves at a time. Maybe a couple 3.
Patrick
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Good advice Clint and keep replacing those staves to.
This tip seems so simple that probably some of you already use it but her it is anyway. When trying to mark out the rough shape of my bows it can be difficult use a straight edge. Especially for tips if you bend in some recurve. I always have a couple hacksaw blades with my bow tools. I use them for lots of things from making initial cut for tip notches to scoreing surfaces for gluing. One of the things I use them for is a pliable straight edge for marking my bow.
Bjrogg
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Well in staves where straight is not the norm for edge thickness I make marks every 6-8" then using the back of the stave I hold the marker on the mark and take off connecting the dots. On the back profile find the centerline then take a piece of leather the width ya want and make a small notch in the center of it. Then just get the notch on the centerline mark and mark both edges. Then connect the dots
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How do we decide what should go in "Tips and tricks" and what should go in "How to's and Build-a-longs"?
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Tips and tricks is for those little time and work savers. The How To is for everything else. ;)
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One of the best things I learned how to do was use my fingers like calipers. Cody (AKA missile master / married man / no time for us) started beating it in my head. if you take your hands on both sides of the limb and pinch together your index and thumb and run them all the way down the limb you can feel every High spot and low spot and whether the limbs is thicker on one side or the other. When you take your time you'll be amazed at how close you are on first brace right away. Almost impossible to develop a hinge
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Well in staves where straight is not the norm for edge thickness I make marks every 6-8" then using the back of the stave I hold the marker on the mark and take off connecting the dots. On the back profile find the centerline then take a piece of leather the width ya want and make a small notch in the center of it. Then just get the notch on the centerline mark and mark both edges. Then connect the dots
+1.It's the way I learned myself to do.
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Use all your senses most of my bows I can tell blindfolded.
When I have a reall nasty abrupt sideways bend to straighten. I clamp a 1x3 standing straight up along side my caul in the vice, slightly before where the bend starts. I start heating at end of caul get a couple good clamps on then as I heat bend I lightly pull sideways bend out by bending it against 1x3. Then just continue on down the limb.
Hopefully I explained that so you can understand. Here's a few pictures to help.
Bjrogg
PS wish I had pictures before
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Just tried this idea for marking bow nocks. It works pretty slick. Cut a piece of cardboard(doesn't have to be Frosted Flakes :D) in a "V" like the first picture. Wrap it around the tip, centering the "V" on the belly. make sure the legs of the "V" are lined up and mark with a pencil. You're on your own when it comes to sawing or filing ;)
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Just tried this idea for marking bow nocks. It works pretty slick.
8) Awesome!
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Yet another way of checking your tiller. This is an easy way of telling if your limbs are even. Take a picture of the bow on the tree. Print a low res copy of the picture. Carefully cut out along the back of the bow(this is where those kindergarten skills come in) turn half of the picture over and compare. This won't tell if your limbs are bending in the right spot but it will tell you if they're even. I would have swore that one limb of this bow was bent more but the pic doesn't lie.
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Another tip, when, not if you get your fingers or entire hand glued to your bow with superglue. It can be easly removed by applying cooking oil to said hand.
Just recently remembered that one....
Patrick
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You'd have fun getting into a hospital like that, especially if you'd glued an arrow to the other hand :D :D
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Great tips DC and Patrick
DC better going with bow and arrow stuck to your hand than toilet seat stuck to your butt.
Bjrogg
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Less chance of getting shot with the toilet seat. ;)
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Well mine was a deer antler tip overlay!
Another tip, after flatening a antler tip overlay always fill the pith with superglue and let it dry. Then a little bit of sanding on a flat surface and your ready to glue it on.
That is if its not covered with cooking oil like mine was!
Patrick
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When steaming recurve in tips it's always nice to have another set of hands. I've tried several different methods of holding tip and metal backer strip on caul. This is what I finally settled on and I love it. It's like another set of hands when you really need them. It's also very fast which is extremely important. I'll let the pictures tell the story
Bjrogg
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A product here that is very useful for glueing purposes.An A+++ product.It's called Tear Mender.Instructions are on the back of bottle but basically it's a white latex type glue used to repair canvas.Actually will hold better than stitching.The liquid is massaged into the surface of each item then pressed together.Instant bond as contact cement.I've used it bonding many things here permanently.I used it to make trade wool lined canvas bow cases.It basically made the bow case waterproof also.You can google it.
(https://i.imgur.com/StCA80F.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/8wxXtqX.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/MsCsBlh.jpg)
I've also used the product to repair many canvas items as I have a wall tent/teepee/and squaw cooler awnings.Repaired deer blinds also.It stands the test of time.Good product.
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Looks like good stuff. I have a few pairs on jeans that I could use that on. ;)
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I like that.Thinking practicality first.Should work too.
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I can think of a few things right now I'd like to use it on. Never seen it before where do you buy it?
Bjrogg
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I thought I would offer a few safety tips from my own experiences.
Wear safety glasses while splitting staves. I had a very close call when a piece of the hammer head chipped off and hit me very hard right between the eyes. An inch either way and I would have lost an eye.
When splitting staves don't put your fingers in the split. The wedge can pop out and your fingers will be pinched.
Take someone with you when cutting trees. Accidents can happen quickly when operating a chainsaw and felling large trees.
Remember hearing protection while operating power equipment and splitting staves. You want to be able to hear those deer sneaking up behind you in the fall.
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I discovered something today about sandpaper. I normally just fold a sheet in half and then in half again. I noticed that the inside surfaces were not sharp when I went to use them. I googled it and found this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oePuXbMPMzw The surfaces that rub against each other wear themselves smooth before you get a chance to use them. This method of folding solves that. This is probably old news for some but it took me 70 years to sort it out ;D ;D
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I thought I would offer a few safety tips from my own experiences.
Wear safety glasses while splitting staves. I had a very close call when a piece of the hammer head chipped off and hit me very hard right between the eyes. An inch either way and I would have lost an eye.
When splitting staves don't put your fingers in the split. The wedge can pop out and your fingers will be pinched.
Take someone with you when cutting trees. Accidents can happen quickly when operating a chainsaw and felling large trees.
Remember hearing protection while operating power equipment and splitting staves. You want to be able to hear those deer sneaking up behind you in the fall.
I agree 100% and have had all those things happen to me. The ear muffs are HUGE. That ringing doesn't go away when you get older.
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Might seem insignificant, but until I did it always had trouble removing cap from tru oil bottle. Even though my hands are always a mess. I always wipe off bottle, especially top and threads for cap before putting cap back on bottle. Keep it clean and oil free and child safety cap will still be able to be removed.
Bjrogg
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Store the Tru-Oil up side down, resting on it's cap to keep it from skinning over in the bottle.
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To add a bit more. I've been told storing it in the fridge will make it last longer. I haven't tried that. I only poke a small hole in the cap seal rather than tearing the whole thing off, helps control flow. I also store it upside down as Pat mentioned.
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Thanks Pat and Chris. I'll have to give that a try.
Bjrogg
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BJ you're making so many bows you wont ever have to worry about it turning to gel!
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I have found that a vacuum sealer works great. When im done with my tru oil I just tighter the lid, drop it in a vacuum bag and let the ol food saver do the rest.
I found a bottle the other day that I didn't remember having from over a year ago. It was still like new.
Patrick
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The refrigerator helps to prolong super glue too.Actually in the freezer really.
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https://photos.app.goo.gl/7A7Ihiii2kP9cE9D3
This is a quick little video I made showing how with the use of a hot glue gun you can save your paws when sanding down overlays and things like a golf tee for an arrow rest
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Like that one bubby. Always hard to hold those skinny little ones.
Bjrogg
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For those people not owning the TBB series new to bow making here's a way to access density on unfamiliar wood for bows.A person can feel in the hand also but this is a little more accurate.I cut some nice bow worthy honeysuckle the other day and always wanted to try this wood as it is abundant here.I dried [a must] a symmetrical 1/2" dowel 5" long.Made markings on it every 1/2" for a total of 10 increments marked.Took a plastic tube sealed on one end.Filled it with water.Dropped dried dowel into it.Whatever stays below the water is your density.
This honeysuckle is close to .80 density by only having two 1/2" sections of the ten stay above the water.
(https://i.imgur.com/5txppsR.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/eQsoGnP.jpg)
This local honeysuckle sapling stave at 1.75" wide will do well for bow wood of 50#'s or more for sure at 62" long or more and 1.5" wide with a stiff handled bow.Even below 62" long in a bendy handy style.Small pith in center of sapling.Well behaved wood while drying when roughed out to 3/4" thick limbs mostly full rounded handle and just shellacked on the ends and back.Debarked easily and clean right after cutting.There are other things to find out about the wood yet.Whether it likes heat treatment.It's tension and compression qualities.More than likely it's good bow wood.To give a it a reasonable first test a flat belly design is in order.
(https://i.imgur.com/DQwr9TG.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/2Buj3VI.jpg)
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Great trick Ed. Let us know how that honeysuckle turns out. (-P
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Cutting Bamboo backing.
I just figured this out and it made cutting the boo on the bandsaw much easier. I clamped a piece of wood to the table of the saw so that it just covered the blade.(first picture) It needs to be thin for the last cut, that's why there is different pieces of wood in the pictures. Draw a line down the edge of the boo about 1/16" from the back.(you can see the line in the second picture) Run the boo through the saw following the line on top and holding the bottom against the piece of wood. This means you only have to pay attention to the line and not top and bottom at the same time. Turn the boo over and draw another line 1/16" from the back on the other side. Run it through the saw again. Now you have a thin strip that just needs a few passes through the belt sander. I did two sets of cuts. One with the boo full 2" width and then again after I had trimmed it to width profile. Last picture boo is about 1/8"+ thick
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I do the same thing free hand and tilt the bamboo into the blade for each cut. I use the rind as a guide instead of drawing a line and cut as close to it as I can.
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I just found that the piece of wood clamped to the table gave me one less thing to think about. Doing it freehand with my lack of dexterity every time I checked to make sure I wasn't getting too close at the bottom of the cut I would lose track of the top of the cut.
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I just cut one side at a time, I tried to cut top to bottom on my first BBO, it was a disaster.
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Pay attention and figure out which way the grain is running off on your first couple strokes with the draw knife. A lot of time I will stroke down the limb to remove wood on one side, and stroke up the limb on the other to prevent the knife from digging to deep.
If the grain is being especially difficult to work with a draw knife, use a sureform rasp and make long even strokes at a 45* angle to the limb instead.
I've lost a few bows to grain tearing, hopefully these will help new bowyers.
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Pay attention and figure out which way the grain is running off on your first couple strokes with the draw knife. A lot of time I will stroke down the limb to remove wood on one side, and stroke up the limb on the other to prevent the knife from digging to deep.
If the grain is being especially difficult to work with a draw knife, use a sureform rasp and make long even strokes at a 45* angle to the limb instead.
I've lost a few bows to grain tearing, hopefully these will help new bowyers.
Yup and some wood you just have to use a rasp. Elm is one that comes to mind. Also knots are best reduced with rasp.
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If you have a press on field point, glued with the melt stuff, and the shaft break right at the field point so you cant grab the shaft with pliers or your fingers. Use a wood screw, screw it in to the busted piece of shaft, heat the field point to melt the glue, then pull the old shaft piece out using the wood screw to grab on.
Learned that one tonight :OK
Hopefully the description is clear enough.
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2 quick ones. Use a 5/16" tap inside your field points. Put the field point in a vise and screw the tap into the point back and forth a little at a time until it bottoms out. Glue the point on with your favorite glue. No more pulled off field points in targets.
Several have mentioned ways to cover your bow making tools. Go to your local fire station and ask for discarded fire hose. It comes in many sizes and works perfectly for covering files, rasps, and all your other cutting tools. I made a carrying board out of 1/4" plywood with fire hose stapled to it to hold each of my tools separately and make it much easier to carry from place to place with a handle cut out at the top of the board.
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Well, I tried the tap solution years ago, it was better than a non tapped point but didn't work all that well overall. A better solution is to wrap a piece of sandpaper around an old shaft with a point taper, insert in the point and spin the shaft around a few times, this will clean the inside of the point to bare metal. Tap out the dust and glue the point on with two ton epoxy, it isn't coming off and can still be removed with heat but will need a bit more than one would use with hot melt.
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On board bows, it's tempting to do some pre-shaping on the block of wood that you plan to glue on to make the handle thicker. But just leaving that block square gives you better surfaces to clamp down on for glueup, especially on the ends where the fades will meet the bow limbs.
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Here is an easy way to mount a belt sander upside down on a saw horse.
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A crescent wrench can help mark string grooves precisely on both sides of the limb.
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I'm stealing that one, txdm. Simply brilliant.
Kyle
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That is clever, good one!
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I had trouble outlining (width) on a gnarly, crowned staves. Here's what I discovered today:
1) draw a straight line by joining many short lines one-by-one, aligning the ruler with already drawn lines. The line will follow the grain this way;
2) from drawn line, measure desired width and mark it with a dot. Do this every half an inch or so;
3) connect the dots.
Now you have an outlined width that follows the grain precisely and is constant along its length. Perhaps everyone already know this.
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A five gallon bucket lid works really well for checking the tiller when the bow is on the tillering tree. Just stand back maybe 10ft from the bow, hold the five gallon bucket lid at arms length in between your vision and the bow limbs. You now have a perfect circle you can compare the tiller of the bow against. :OK
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put two together for eliptical tiller?! like del does with his red and yellow circles?
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Long pheasant and turkey tail feathers wrapped around your string the same way you would hackle a fishing fly makes a good light weight string silencer.
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I chuck up my arrow shafts in a drill and spin them against to belt sander. I've always had a problem with the chuck crushing the shaft or letting go and firing the arrow across the room. I can only get to the "belt travelling away" side of the sander. I tried a couple of things and finally come up with something that seems to work. I got a brass nipple that is just the right ID to take a 1/8" pipe thread. I threaded the inside with the pipe thread. The taper of the thread covers most arrow sizes that I use. I taper the end of the arrow a bit by running it though a pencil sharpener. Then spin the gadget on the arrow. As the drill is rotating it the tapered treads tighten on the shaft. Seems to hold well.
PS This worked well until I stared barreling my arrows. Now the ends are too small(1/4") for the pipe thread to grab. Apparently 1/8"PT is the smallest their is. I need a Plan "B"
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Holy crap... an actual use for a crescent wrench!
But seriously, that's brilliant.
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Use a draw knife bevel side down to get real precise controlled cuts. Works really well on winter cut wood when your shaving off cambium
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Some awesome tips and tricks here.
Don’t mind the messy shop in the pic but here’s a couple of not so clear pics of my inverted tiller set up and scrape set up. Essentially it’s a tiller tree turned upside down with couple pulleys at the top and one at the bottom to speed up tillering for the initial stage. It speeds things up a bit between scraping and checking for tiller without moving the bow.
Cheers
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For those aggravated by scorching marks on the backs of bows from heat treating on forms wider than their bow......
I have an especially wide form to accomodate snaky bows.I tried a 5 yard sample of aluminum foil heat duct tape on the back of a bow once.
(https://i.imgur.com/RqSJ8j2.jpg)
It worked great so I've bought 55 yards of the stuff.