Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: organic_archer on January 14, 2022, 08:07:26 pm
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Happy Friday everyone! Finished this one up recently. It seems like I've sold my favorite bow dozens of times at this point, but I suppose that's the nature of the game. I've been saving this stave for some time. It was really clean with thick rings, red streaks throughout, and a little snake in the lower limb. It started at 72" long but just couldn't bring myself to leave the extra length. It was fine, but even 70" is plenty overbuilt for a 27" draw. I rarely go over 66-68" for my personal bows and have always wanted something in the 70" range.
I told myself before starting the build that no matter how tempting it was to let it go, I'd keep it. I typically hunt with hackberry longbows. There have been a few osage bows that stuck around for a while, but they always ended up with someone else. After shooting this one for the first time, I knew it would be my "forever bow". It just has that special feel and extra special cast. Creeping up on a decade of building this year, and excited to finally having an osage to call my own.
The other two osage bows (brown handle wraps) have rawhide backings. They were custom orders pulling 47# and 62# and have since arrived at their new homes. The quivers are hand-stitched bison hide. The arrows are Surewood Premiums with wild turkey tail feathers.
Stats for the selfbow:
Osage Orange
Pyramid Profile
63# at 27" draw
70" overall length
2" fades straight tapered to 3/4" diamond nocks
Aqua colored buckskin handle
50/50 tallow and beeswax finish
(https://i.imgur.com/9e3Cq6u.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/rqtbdhI.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/iBpSAvt.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/hAuul0b.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/pqjjJfz.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/hgP1OVx.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/Kx3L3kd.jpg)
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Beautiful job and great story!
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Great looking bow. I would want to keep that one too.
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Sharp-looking bow there.
Did you start with any reflex in those limbs? It looks like the final side profiles have dead straight limbs...which is nice...just wondering how that Osage treated you during tillering...
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There was a small amount of reflex in one limb. Maybe 0.5” or so. Only thing I did was heated the bow blank and clamped it to a straight form to correct a little bit of D/R in the other limb. There’s still a touch of the D/R in the unbraced profile.
It tillered out fine. No issues. It had a little thump in the hand at 72”. Trimmed it, brought the tapers back to 3/4”, touched up the tiller and it shoots great. The pyramid profile can make a real ripper.
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Gotcha.
All of those bows posted you posted are just plain gorgeous.
After building a handful of static recurves, I am going back to straighter bows. My latest was going to be an Osage reflexed flatbow...but for the 1st time I noticed that the particular piece of Osage I was working was of a poorer quality than my previous. I first noticed it when my hand tools were sliding through the limb wood while tapering...and the blade was taking long, deep slivers - longer and deeper than they should have...or longer & deeper than they ever had in the past with Osage.
Needless to say, that bow lost all of its heat-induced reflex at near-full tiller...and one limb gained 3/4” of string follow (the other sits dead straight). The bow’s cast is also not what it should be...at least based on previous bows of mine of similar materials & design.
As for pyramid bows, I have only heard good things...it’s just that I cannot bring myself to build one just yet! Maybe once I get reflex-deflexes & static recurves outta my system I will go to a pyramid...maybe.
Anyway...great work. I have admired your bows & arrows from afar before. Your website & photo gallery are beautiful.
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You got to love a pyramid.
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I can see details are important to you.Excellent even bend on your bow.Good profile with the poundage.Fine looking self nock arrows too.
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Beautiful bow, tiller is spot on.... great work
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Thanks for the kind words everyone. I really appreciate it!
Timmy - that happens from time to time! Osage is hit or miss and can vary a lot between trees. The less-than-stellar stuff can still make a good bow, but definitely not as good as the primo. I hope you get around to trying a pyramid someday! Simple, and effective (SH)
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Nice work what do you use to wrap your fletches with? It looks like sinew or artificial sinew, can’t tell. Love those wraps on your bow handles, what kind of leather do you use? I’d like to try something similar since I don’t care to glue my handles
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Beautiful bows, all of them. :)
Pappy
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very nice bow indeed! love the beauty in simplicity. well done
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Very nice bows. That bend is beautiful. Excellent work.
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It’s always a pleasure to see your work. Beautiful bows and perfect tiller
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Really nice stuff! Top notch all around. Thanks for posting.
Mike
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You just keep banging out one great bow after another! Great tiller, clean work man.
Jaap
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The simplicity is enjoyable. Beautiful tiller.
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Your bows are really special. Love the bend and finish work. Thanks for posting!
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Nice work what do you use to wrap your fletches with? It looks like sinew or artificial sinew, can’t tell. Love those wraps on your bow handles, what kind of leather do you use? I’d like to try something similar since I don’t care to glue my handles
Kenneth… the arrows are wrapped in artificial sinew, and the handles are buckskin wrapped without glue, and coated in a 50/50 mix of beeswax and tallow (SH)
Can’t thank you all enough for the accolades!