White Oak Bow? Need Advice? Pictures Added of the Staves

[carbinecasey]

Greetings All

I have fell in love with Primitive Archery and after reading what I can and going through this wonderful web site I'm wanting to try making my own bow and have it ready by Turkey season 2010. (My biggest goal for next year)

Here is what I got:

I have acquired a White Oak 6" in diameter. It has dried all summer and when I split it I guess it followed the grain and twisted. It is 3" wide and almost 2 1/2" thick. It is exactly 5' 8" long. Is it worth keeping and trying to make a useable bow? I started working on the belly, just a little with a draw knife not much, just wanting to get a taste of using one and getting my hands a little wet so to speak. I'll take any advice given since this is a project I have wanted to do for a while. If this one works I have the other side and I really would like to try a Cedar next. In other words good folks........HELP

Carbinecasey

[Pat B]

Casey, will you post pics of the stave so we can see the twist. Generally, unless extreme, twists aren't detrimental to wood bows but a pic would help to confirm this.

[Josh]

yeah, what Pat said... Pics would be helpful.  I hope you can get a bow going by turkey season.  If all else fails with your log you can always get a straight-grained board from Lowes or Home Depot and make a bow to hunt with.  Since you have a deadline and all if the white oak log doesn't pan out that is always an option.  Most of the time you can find a pretty straight grained piece of red oak at one of those stores and have a shooting bow in less than a week of diligent work with a scraper.  I made my first bow from red oak 1 by 2 using nothing but a hand planer.  Took like a week but that first shot into the hay bale with my first bow got me hooked.  Good luck to you and I hope you get a good bow by turkey season.      -josh

[sailordad]

ya lets see a pic or two
remember a deadline will only make you feel rushed
beinf rushed and making a bow never go hand in hand
take your time,even if it means not having this one done for buzzard season
youll get it in due time

[carbinecasey]

Thanks guys, I will grab a picture tomorrow and post it. And thanks for the advice. I love primitive archery, this is fun!!

CC

[radius]

i made 6 bows out of white oak this year, four of which survived.  the 2 that broke were too short (54" recurve) and too narrow (1.5").  Make the limbs 1.75" minimum and your bow should turn out fine.  This wood takes well to heat treating and bending with dry heat. 

[Canoe]

Howdy Casey,

"It has dried all summer..."  Has it been drying indoors?  Or, has it been sitting outside by the wood pile? ==>(Not good.)  And, did you seal the ends?  (Covered the ends with glue or paint or somethin' to prevent end cracks?)

What is your draw length?  This will determine the approximate length for the bow.

With a heat gun, I've seen where some folks have done some amazing bending (or unbending, or untwisting).  But, if there are knots or an abrupt twist, then you might have a real problem.  So, let's see the pic.s.

In a recent post, TRONMAN said, "I made a flat bow out of maple board from Home Depot. I backed with linen and is 66 inches long. It has a  4.5 inch handle with 1-3/4 inch long fades. The bow is 2 inches wide at the fades and it remains 2 inches wide until the last 11 inches where it taper to 3/8 of an inch at the tips."
I think these are pretty good dimensions for your bow as well.  (For a 28" draw length.)  And, I think, your target draw weight should be about 40 to 45 pounds for turkey huntin'.

Best of Luck,
Canoe

[carbinecasey]

Hello Canoe

Thanks for the information. I had it inside all summer and sealed the ends with glue. My draw length is 28 inches. Don't have a heat gun, but that might be a good Christmas present from my brother to me. Posted a couple of pics of the staves. I also have a Hickory and a Hawthorne that need spliting and working. Thanks everyone for all your help, this is a wonderful and the information is just priceless.

CC

[Canoe]

Howdy CC,

Oh Yah!!  There's a couple of bows in those staves!!

And, I bet you're off to a good start.  Keep asking plenty of questions.

Here's a link to Jawge's site, it's loaded with good info.
http://georgeandjoni.home.comcast.net/~georgeandjoni/

And remember, just remove all the wood that doesn't look like a bow! 

All the Best,
Canoe

[Pat B]

There is not enough twist in that stave to worry about.   Build your bow! You can "untwist" the stave  by reducing the stronger side of each limb as you tiller. You will be able to tell where to remove wood after you get to the short string and a low(3" to 4") brace. Until then leave the handle unshaped and the tips wide. When you get to that point come back with pics and we will walk you through the rest of the tiller.
   With wood bows a little twist will not effect the shootablilty of your bow. Get it to low brace and we will go from there. In the mean time, if you have any questions or concerns, all you have to do is ask.

[radius]

Pat's right...also, you could cut it shorter.  My best white oak bow is 60" long.  fast, light, accurate, short.  To increase speed and influence the twist,  recurve the tips over a form:  this straightens out the back and also gives you a faster-shooting bow

[Pat B]

I would suggest if you are new to wood bow building to take it easy and learn proper tillering before you add reflex, recurved limbs or heat treat the limbs. I'd also keep the bow on the long side. This will make it easier to see and achieve good tiller. Later after you are comfortable with the processes, you can experiment with all the "extras" to increase performance. For now, learn how to properly build a wood  bow.

[George Tsoukalas]

I would not worry about the twist. There's not much there. As for the length double your draw and add at least  20-25%+ an inch or 2 for the added crown and inch or 2 because this is your first. If you draw 26 in., that's 63  in +1 for the crown +1 +1  for your experience. I'd go 66 in nock to nock. More on my site. Jawge
http://georgeandjoni.home.comcast.net/~georgeandjoni/

[carbinecasey]

Thank you all very much!! This is some great information!! I'll ask a lot of questions and takem my time.

CC

[carbinecasey]

Started working on my staves today, feels good to try making my own hunting bow!!