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Author Topic: "Twisted Sister's" stumble along....I mean build along  (Read 16642 times)

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Offline PEARL DRUMS

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"Twisted Sister's" stumble along....I mean build along
« on: December 08, 2011, 08:23:46 pm »
62 1/2" ttt osage - no backing or overlays
1 1/8 wide
3/8 tips
47@ 27"

I grabbed the ugliest billet I could find last summer and split sister's out of it. My goal was simple. Try to make a bow that would basically involve ALMOST every common challenge a bow building person (Im not a bowyer) can stumble upon. I wanted checks, twists, undulations, horrible tip alignment and of course snakes. I got what I wanted and more. I am going to attempt a stumble along. Its my first attempt doing so, and of course our trusty 1/2 mega pixel camera in tow. Please bare with me as I get these posts together and sorted out. Thanks for looking and feel free to ask any questins I know answers to! ;)

Below are pictures of the billets after roughing them out and getting the splice cut in. I used all hand tools on this bow except the splice cut. The splice is a simple "v" splice 4" deep. That gave me 16" of glue surface in the joint. Good enough for me. I had to warm up the splice and get my fit closer to where I wanted it. My heat gun did the trick nicely.
« Last Edit: December 09, 2011, 10:46:53 am by PEARL DRUMS »
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Offline PEARL DRUMS

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Re: "Twisted Sister's" stumble along....I mean build along
« Reply #1 on: December 08, 2011, 08:37:36 pm »
I like URAC for high stress glueing, but TBIII will work done properly. The handle area was tore up bad by the chainsaw so I used URAC to fill in the blanks! I use my dual work lights to cure my URAC in a few hours. I had an old handle section I cut off a broken bow that I kept around for too long so it was used up on this bow. I use URAC to glue it down as well. Its just starting to look like a bow. This is where I start getting anxious and excited. I am naturally high strung and its hard to let glue cure! But I did for 12-15 hours. The pics below show what kind of a twisted, undulated mess I took on. What a blast!
 
« Last Edit: December 08, 2011, 10:14:52 pm by PEARL DRUMS »
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Offline PEARL DRUMS

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Re: "Twisted Sister's" stumble along....I mean build along
« Reply #2 on: December 08, 2011, 08:44:12 pm »
After my 12-15 hour wait I set out roughing the handle in and cleaning up the rest of the bow to get it ready for heat. I didnt want to take out anymore character than I needed to make a durable bow. This billet came right from the base of the trunk. Thats where the funky riser profile came from. I m mentioned earlier the riser was chainsaw beat. I mixed up a concoction of TBIII and hedge dust to fill in the gaps. I push it in as good as I can and tightly wrap electrical tape around it for 12 hrs, then unwrap it and let it cure hard for another 12 hours. The finish product is very sandable and takes a finish well.
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Only when the last tree has died and the last river has been poisoned and the last fish has been caught will we realize we cannot eat money.

Offline Postman

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Re: "Twisted Sister's" stumble along....I mean build along
« Reply #3 on: December 08, 2011, 08:47:43 pm »
wow- that does look tricky. Lots of obstacles to overcome, and a lot of manipulation to do.  It might not want to, but I think twisted sisters is gonna take it and make a fine bow.
good luck!
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Offline PEARL DRUMS

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Re: "Twisted Sister's" stumble along....I mean build along
« Reply #4 on: December 08, 2011, 09:16:42 pm »
As you could see in earlier pics I have my share of twisting. I will tolerate plenty of twist in a relatively straight proflied bow. I feel Snakey bows need to be as flat as I can get them. I used a wrench, rag and half full bucket of paint to hold the limb down during heating and cooling. The tip/handle alignment was off a good inch,  so I made that correction simultaneously. I leave my gun on low and hold it 6-8" away until the limb starts to level off, I let it go past level and shut the gun off. I turned the tips up slightly due to the shortness and narrowness of this bow, plus its sexy as hell I think. ;) The form is just the bottom of a five gallon bucket traced unto a 1 x 8 maple board, nothing too fancy. 1" paddle drill holes will accept most small/medium clamp jaws. I set my heat gun on low and hold it about 6-8" from the bow for about 8 to10 minutes prior to bending. I have found flipped tips dont require allot of heat to move and stay put. The last pic is hot off the press 12 hours after correcting the twist. She kept about 80-90% of the correction I made. Good enough me.
« Last Edit: December 09, 2011, 10:49:51 am by PEARL DRUMS »
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Offline PEARL DRUMS

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Re: "Twisted Sister's" stumble along....I mean build along
« Reply #5 on: December 08, 2011, 09:27:10 pm »
Now the work. Its time to get her floor tillered and on a short string. The first pic is the first "pull" on this bow. Flat spots are quite obvious on both limbs and need correction, the right side really needs work. I was faced with some challenging tillering on this bow one limb reflexed and one limb deflexed right off the handle. The last pic is at a 3" brace. The riser/handle area was very deceiving to my eyes because it wasnt parallel to the string like Im used to seeing while I tiller. I had to take pics of this bow and turn them 180 degrees to get a good visual of my progress. 
« Last Edit: December 08, 2011, 09:45:55 pm by PEARL DRUMS »
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Offline George Tsoukalas

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Re: "Twisted Sister's" stumble along....I mean build along
« Reply #6 on: December 08, 2011, 09:39:01 pm »
PD, great work! Jawge
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Offline osage outlaw

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Re: "Twisted Sister's" stumble along....I mean build along
« Reply #7 on: December 08, 2011, 09:39:59 pm »
That is going to be one sweet bow when you get her all finished up.  Your tiller might not look right to you because the handle isn't bending ;D ;D
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Offline PEARL DRUMS

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Re: "Twisted Sister's" stumble along....I mean build along
« Reply #8 on: December 08, 2011, 09:45:07 pm »
The back of this bow was wavy, snaky, twisty and solid a rock! It was the most challenging tiller job ever for me, but hey that what I wanted from the start right? I will spare you the boring tiller details and skip right to tillered pics and some finish shaping pics.
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Offline PEARL DRUMS

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Re: "Twisted Sister's" stumble along....I mean build along
« Reply #9 on: December 08, 2011, 09:58:37 pm »
Its time to sew up a new dress for the ball! One lucky lady is going out in style! I sanded the entire bow with 150 grit paper then worked down to 220 grit, then 400 grit then OOOO steel wool. I finished her off with four coats of hand rubbed Formby's. I really like what steel wool does for the grain. It sure makes it cover easy with less tung oil. The handle is just black leather from Wolverine Boot's. I use sticky Velcro dots for strike plates, simple and nonobtrusive, as well as easily replaced with no damage to my finish. The rest is stacked up leather from an old belt I had. I glued three one inch squares together with CA glue and shaped it with sandpaper and a mild rasp. The string is my favorite, a 9 strand D10 with muskrat silencers. I forgot to mention earlier, before I sanded the bow down I filled in the wind checks with CA glue......just in case ;)


This skinny little booger is probably my fastest bow yet. It loves the skinny string and skinny tips. It gives you a nice little "thump" upon release and spits that arrow out quickly with very little noticable hand shock.


This concludes my stumble along. If I missed anything you want to know, just ask and I will try to answer. Even a blind squirrel finds a nut on occasion hey!?! Enjoy and thanks for looking.
« Last Edit: December 08, 2011, 10:07:42 pm by PEARL DRUMS »
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Offline osage outlaw

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Re: "Twisted Sister's" stumble along....I mean build along
« Reply #10 on: December 08, 2011, 10:05:42 pm »
Nice build-a-long, but you forgot the most important thing.  Full Draw pics man!!
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Offline PEARL DRUMS

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Re: "Twisted Sister's" stumble along....I mean build along
« Reply #11 on: December 08, 2011, 10:12:30 pm »
You whiner Clint.........
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Offline Shaun

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Re: "Twisted Sister's" stumble along....I mean build along
« Reply #12 on: December 08, 2011, 10:32:23 pm »
Nice one PD! It comes alive in the full draw pic. Reminds me of an old Ferret saying, "Clear wood makes good bows, character wood make good bowyers."
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blackhawk

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Re: "Twisted Sister's" stumble along....I mean build along
« Reply #13 on: December 08, 2011, 11:13:53 pm »
I think I liked the silent film version better :P....just kidding. Good job posting all that and taking the time to explain most of it. See...that wasn't so bad/hard now was it.  8).....now next time try it in real time :laugh:....im sure more than one person will benefit from this...and yes including me.
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Offline osage outlaw

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Re: "Twisted Sister's" stumble along....I mean build along
« Reply #14 on: December 08, 2011, 11:34:19 pm »
Thanks.  That's better ;D  That's some fine work on that mess of a stave
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