52" osage follow along

[osage outlaw]

Bill the overlays were old golf clubs.  I think they are persimmon. 

[Danzn Bar]

That's right....persimmon is a very hard wood, would make good overlays.  that's what so cool about this hobby you can recycle things you would never think you could.
DBar

[toomanyknots]

Lookin really good! Very cool buildalong!

[osage outlaw]

Well, I couldn't wait until morning to put the backing on.  I think it looks pretty good so far.  I didn't get the pattern centered to well on the near limb.  It was sticking fast in the TB.

[bubby]

That don't look to bad at all Clint

[H Rhodes]

Looking great.  That backing looks awesome.

[IdahoMatt]

Looking good.  I saw some stuff similar online at Wally World.  I love the fact you tips are old golf clubs.

[dbb]

Looking great.  That backing looks awesome.

+1 i hope we get some closeups when you are done with the finish.

[Fred Arnold]

Fantastic job Clint. I hadn't checked in on this one for awhile. Looks to me like that baby could be shot rightsideup / upsidedown / righty / lefty, wouldn't matter.  Excellent tiller!! Makes me want to try my hand with some of the short staves.

[osage outlaw]

I'll get some close ups of the back once I get it all finished up.  I think Jon from Twin Oaks posted a bow with walmart fabric backing a while back.  It was more of a Boa pattern. 

I' curious as to how well the sides clean up.  With a real snake skin I use a fine file or sandpaper on the edge of the limb to make a clean line.  I hope this doesn't fray.  I glued up a test piece out of scraps to see what works the best before I mess up the bow.

[IdahoMatt]

Good call Clint.  The fabric backing I have used I just used a moderately fin file and used down strokes at an angle.  Seemed to work fine just don't go up,  that's when I had fraying

[osage outlaw]

I removed the excess on the sides and there was just s little bit of fraying.  It wasn't bad but I didn't like it.  I put some thin superglue on the back and rubbed it into the fabric and on the edges.  It darkened the pattern slightly.  I think it looks better darker. 

The closest limb is soaked in superglue.  The color difference didn't show up very well in the picture.

[dbb]

To fix fraying you could just use open flame,like a cigarettelighter or small torch,just have to be careful and find the angle/distance.

[dwardo]

I found the best way to get a nice clean edge on material backings is to apply a coat of finish like true-oil or which ever you will use and let it dry. This sets the material too the wood. Then i use fine sandpaper around a cylinder and sand from back to belly constantly rotating the paper so its always cutting clean. Much better results this way as the material cannot fray due to the finish sealing the backing.

Nice bow too

[osage outlaw]

I found the best way to get a nice clean edge on material backings is to apply a coat of finish like true-oil or which ever you will use and let it dry. This sets the material too the wood. Then i use fine sandpaper around a cylinder and sand from back to belly constantly rotating the paper so its always cutting clean. Much better results this way as the material cannot fray due to the finish sealing the backing.

Nice bow too

Now you tell me       Thanks for the tips guys.  This was my first attempt at fabric backing. I'm learning as I go.