Author Topic: How do you guys set up a tru oiled bow to dry without getting smudges?  (Read 7205 times)

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Offline toomanyknots

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I know it seems I have to post a dumb question at least once a day, (I apologize,  ;D). I was just wondering though, how do you guys who use tru oil on your bows coat a bow and set it up to dry without getting smudges or finger prints in the coat? I have seen Gordon I think clamp it at the handle, but wouldn't that smudge the handle? I'm kinda flabbergasted, this is the first time I used tru oil, and got the bow I just did sitting on my bow rack drying for an hour or so before I go at it again. I wiped it down with a paper towel in each hand, not sure if I am gonna have smudges or not, it seems like it's kinda hard not to. Is there a good way or method of doing this?
"The way of heaven is like the bending of a bow-
 the upper part is pressed down,
 the lower part is raised up,
 the part that has too much is reduced,
 the part that has too little is increased."

- Tao Te Ching, 77, A new translation by Victor H. Mair

Offline Josh B

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I only coat one half of the bow at a time.  Once that half has semi cured out, I steel wool it with OOOO steel wool and coat the other half. By steel wooling like that, I can keep track of which limb I just did.  Josh

Offline TRACY

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I do everything except the handle for 4-6 coats and then do just the handle that many times. It dries fast enough and steel wool between coats like GD said.

Tracy
It is what it is - make the most of it!    PN500956

Offline Badly Bent

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TMK, I'll either spring clamp the handle and rotate the clamp from side to side to front to back on the bow between coats so all surfaces get oil. This is when I intend to wrap the handle after finishing is done.
If I want a bow with no handle wrap I'll hang the bow by the string nocks with some fishing line and flip it end to end
from coat to coat so both nock grooves get plenty of oil.
I ain't broke but I'm badly bent.

Offline razorbak

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I clamp at handle and worry about that till the end. I use a small lint free. Cloth and dab it and go in 1 direction and let dry then lightly wool it then wipe off with cloth and repeat and after I get all the coats I needed I do handle then

Offline George Tsoukalas

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I put a shingle or roofing nail in the handle and suspend it from my workshop ceiling with a stout string. I spray or coat with whatever I am using while holding the handle as needed. Let it go and do the handle. The nail also releases pressure in the handle area to prevent hand shock. :) Jawge
Set Happens!
If you ain't breakin' you ain't makin!

Offline toomanyknots

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Thanks guys for the quick replys! I just put coat number two on it, by using a paper towel in each hand, and than setting it on my bow rack to dry. Which obviously ain't the best way I see now, :). Probably gonna get smudges where the limbs are setting on the rack I am thinking... So I guess it would be smart to do the limbs first and then the handle, or the half the bow, than the other half? And George, that is crazy genius using a nail, lol :).
"The way of heaven is like the bending of a bow-
 the upper part is pressed down,
 the lower part is raised up,
 the part that has too much is reduced,
 the part that has too little is increased."

- Tao Te Ching, 77, A new translation by Victor H. Mair

Offline RBLusthaus

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The nail also releases pressure in the handle area to prevent hand shock. :) Jawge

I know this thread was about finishing techniques, but I am curious about this statement, as I don't follow your train of thought.  Please explain. 

Russ 

Offline Buckeye Guy

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Toomanyknots
The first couple of coats don't matter much if it smudges , cause I steel wool it anyway !
The last 2 coats I rub till its very near dry before I set it down , and then its on the end where it gets scuffed up any way !
After a year or two when the scuffs start bothering me I steel wool it and give it another coat !
That is one of the great advantages to using True Oil easy so fix it up later !
Guy Dasher
The Marshall Primitive Archery Rendezvous
Primitive Archery Society
Having  fun
To God be the glory !

Offline George Tsoukalas

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Russ, I was kidding about the pressure release. Sorry. Sometimes I get in these moods. It's 110 F outside and I can't go out and shoot. Jawge
Set Happens!
If you ain't breakin' you ain't makin!

Offline George Tsoukalas

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But I do hang the bow from the middle of the handle when finishing. I really do. Jawge
Set Happens!
If you ain't breakin' you ain't makin!

Offline PEARL DRUMS

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I wipe each limb down while grabbing the center, then the handle being sure to leave any smudges under the grip. Then I sit it on a 1" tube to dry. If it leaves a few marks I don't worry as the grip covers it up.
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 DavidV

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I have a loop of copper wire hanging from the ceiling that I can quickly wrap around the top nock of a bow, then just wipe the bow from top to bottom.
Springfield, MO

Offline RBLusthaus

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George

Ok - - ya got me.  I did think for a moment there that I was missing something.  LOL.  I hear ya about the heat.  I am in AC and I am still hot, I can only imagine what it would feel like if I worked in the great outdoors. 

Tru oil is so easy to apply and fix, I just wipe mine down and set it across two points (one at each mid limb).  I find that any marks (usually none to speak of) will sand out with the steel wool rub that happens every other coat.  I guess it works since each coat I put on is super light.  Light coat = light marks.  No rush in building up the finish.  Takes almost as long to finish the  bow and add the bling as it takes to tiller it out. 

Russ

blackhawk

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I suspend mine from the nock and wipe the whole thing down vigorously rub it in with my fingers n don't go too thick with the oil cus it'll wanna run....I tried paper towels n didn't like the subtle streaks they could leave..."rubbing" it in with the fingers has worked best for me...