Hemp Backing?

[half-eye]

bushman,
      I backed the bow with the exact string you see on the handle. I have a really esy way for you to that and will post it up this afternoon....this morning is shot with mother-in-law honey do's. As far as the hemp handle...what I do is start the wrap with one or two wraps, then put a thick coat of titebond for about 2" and wrap the twine in real tight right on top of the glue...repeat till your 4 wraps short of the end of the grip and lay down a string loop, and finish the wrap. Cut off the hemp string and put the end through the loop and pull it under the last 4 wraps and trim the tag end.  Let dry for a day, then go back and coat the outside of the wrap with a good heavy coat of titebond and work that in (I use my fingers cause I got no class) well, let it dry for a day or two. any "lifted hair ends can be readily trimmed with scissors. The hemp will absorb most all the glue and will seem to be really sealed up, but it will accept stain (rubbed in oil-based) and that's when it gets that "barky" look....course you may not want that on the grip.
     Got to run....them honey do's is callin. (Don't ya think a guy my age would have run out of them by now?)
half eye

[rossfactor]

Here's a couple hemp backed bows.  The first one is cord backed red oak. #40 @29 in. 





This one is backed with hemp-silk,  a blended fabric.  Hemp fabric comes in a huge array of styles and can be very fine and soft.  This bow is Jatoba, 68in D bow.  #44 @30 inches







Gabe

[bushman]

Half eye that’s a nice lookin bow you got there, what type of wood is it made from?
Rossfactor you got some nice bows there too. Where did you find that hemp-silk fabric and how much was it?

[half-eye]

Bushman,
     The bow was made from fully quartersawn ash (white ash). It was an experiment, I made it as close to 35# @ 28 as I could then I backed it with hemp twine to see what the effect would be. I did not induce any reflex (you could if so desired). The bow jumped to 45# (44.?) and had about 1/2 the expected limb set. I take a flat scrap board (1&1/2 the length of the bow) cover it with wax paper and tie a knot in the twine. Staple that knot about 6" longer than the bow and run the twine down to the other end (6"longer) and staple that down. Now just go back and forth with the strings touching each other (staple both ends of each one) until you have the width of the limb plus a little more (about one to two strands). Coat the whole thing with titebond (fairly heavy) and let it soak in and dry throughly. Once it's dry simply cut the twine loose from the staples and you have your twine backing ready to go, and the glued surface will be seized for gluing to the bows back. After you glue the backing to the bow and it's dry, trim to shape. That leaves an uncoated surface for you to first stain and then glue with another coat of titebond...finish anyway you wish....
      Medicinewheel, As far as I can tell the Vikings, Franks, and Normans all decorated their bows with paint, carvings, and metal as well, with copper and silver being the favorites. This would be especially true for their combat weapons, it suited there individuality and "in your face" style of fighting.

[rossfactor]

Got it at a fabric store in the town I live.  it was something like $6 for 1/3 yard, which would back maybe 4 bows. (with two strips per bow overlapped at the handle).

[El Destructo]

Hemp Cloth on eBay works great...it is true Hemp...made from Male Plants... ....but it is as tough as Nails....Jute is Jute...whether it be Twine or Burlap...it's no where near as Strong as Hemp is