rawhide (chuck) bowstring

[IsaacW]

I twisted up some woodchuck rawhide (hair on) and made a couple strings yesterday.  Currently they are drying.  What do you all do after it is dry??  Do you work it a little less stiff?  Grease it with anything?  Wax??

Thanks

[George Tsoukalas]

I never made on but that is pretty neat. Jawge

[sharpend60]

Waxing it seem logical.
Would water proof it some as well.

One of the TBBs has a bit on rawhide string, volume 3 maybe?

[mullet]

Maybe some Mink foot oil or good leather oil would help?

[anasazi]

This may not be to primitive but saddle soap or any glyseryn  soap is suppose to work

[IsaacW]

Not thick enough of plys, not enough plys, or too poor of woodchuck rawhide.  I snapped both strings with just initial stringing and barely pulling back on the bow     The bow pulls #60 at 25"... a bit of a beast but still... poor construction on my strings.

IW

[spyder1958]

Have you tried squirrel hide with hair on? tuff stuff.

[H Rhodes]

I had good luck with a bow that pulled in the low forties with squirrel rawhide.  I don't know about a 60lb bow and rawhide.  I think it is possible, but your string would be huge!  I used three plies of fox squirrel rawhide on mine, I don't remember the measurement, but I think I cut them about 1/4" and stretched them pretty good while wet.  Made a pretty durable string.  I never put any type of preservative, wax, oil or anything on it,  and it has been on the bow a year or so with no bad effects.  Mine shot pretty good, maybe a little on the slow side.  I left the hair on it and it looks cool even if the performance isn't top of the line.