First Stave - Elm (BROKEN)

[Crogacht]

Hi guys,

Well, I finally started on my first bow about a week ago, and I thought it was about time I posted a few photos.

I got TBB's 1-3 when I was 15, and I promptly went out and cut down a small elm by the creek near my parents home and put the whole log, unsealed, into the woodshed Then I went and did some study, got married, had a few children, moved towns a couple of times and eventually decided it was time to haul them back out 12 years later and see if I could build a bow.

The staves are not the best, but it would be cool to get a bow out of one of them if I could.

I have a few pictures of the first stave below, it will need some side to side straightening with the heatgun soon I think.

For anyone else who is just starting out, I am using the following tools: sharp hatchet, drawknife, pocketknife (I think I prefer this to a cabinet scraper), large nicholson rasp.

[Crogacht]

More...

[Crogacht]

Carried away with the photo taking 

[Crogacht]

Had a bit more spare time today, so I reduced the width on both limbs to near final width and started reducing the thickness on one of the limbs. That limb is still not bending, but I'm going to take a little more off, then do the same with the other side, and then straighten the lateral kink out with the heatgun.

I've learnt a lot so far, and the design is slowly changing as I uncover earlier mistakes. I was aiming for a stiff handle, but I don't have enough wood fades-midlimb for that so I need the handle to be doing some work too. A stiff handle on a 60inch bow at my non existant skill level with an average stave was probably asking a bit much, ohwell 

The drawknife is great, but I understand why everyone rates a nice big rasp so highly.... it's incredibly useful.

I have ordered some B50, and will try to get a tillering tree setup by this weekend ready for the long string.

In the pics, the limb at the top has not had the thickness reduced yet.

[Del the cat]

Looks like you are starting out the hard way with a tough stave.
On the other hand it looks like you know how to work wood.
My only criticism would be the two rings grooved round the bow, it's bad practice to cut across the back like like... ok the handle may not be flexing visibly, but it's still under strain. I've had stiff handled warbows with spliced grips explode because of slight defects at the grip... so take care of the back and it will take care of you!
Good to another victim, I mean member of this community
Del

[Crogacht]

I have easier staves in the rafters, but I cut these when I first got interested in bow making, so I felt like it was appropriate to attempt a bow... maybe it will kick me in the teeth and send me crying to the lumberyard, but we'll see

Not 100% sure which pic you're looking at Del, but if it's that last one, the top of the photo is the belly and there is definitely a ring or two cut through there by the tip the thickness still needs a lot of reduction there.

I'll see how it goes with the handle, I'm just worried that the limbs won't take the strain as I have to make them quite thin due to earlier mistakes while reducing with the hatchet  I think I'm only aiming for about 40" @ 26 or something though... so maybe I'll be alright. It's amazing how thin the limbs actually need to be before they start moving.

Hehe, thanks Del. It's good to finally get moving on a stave... sometimes there's not enough hours in the day.

[Pappy]

Looks like you are getting it under control,didn't know Elm came that crooked. Looking forward to seeing more.
 Pappy

[blackhawk]

If anything I can assure you that stave is gonna teach you being your first victim  good luck...focus on perfecting each step and doing the best ya can at each stage,and not the final outcome ...and be patient in tillering(hard to do for new folks)

[PatM]

Del was just having an elderly moment and confused the close-up of your drawknife handle with part of the bow. 

[Hrothgar]

I wondered the same thing for a minute Del (and sorry to say it has given me an idea).

You've got a challenge there, but looks like you're on the right path.

[Del the cat]

Del was just having an elderly moment and confused the close-up of your drawknife handle with part of the bow. 

I knew that   
Del

[adb]

Wow. That's a challenging stave for your first bow.

[Crogacht]

All the nice exotic trees are in the parks and reserves , elms like this one grow wild near streams or rivers close to the city where seeds have washed up and self sown. If you head out into the native forest there's plenty of nice straight trees, but the weather here is a bit wild, so they often have more propeller twist than a squadron of spitfires.

I think this one in particular dried into a bit of "sideways reflex" (new term from I learnt from another thread ), as I remember it being straighter when cut, but it WAS a long time ago.

I usually end up measuring everything repeatedly and being mechanical and precise, but with this bow building business I seem to be preferring other methods of working... like running your fingers over the limb to determine correct taper, and just using sight sometimes, instead of drawing hard lines and measuring... I still laid the bow out before I started, but the whole process is tending away from rules and measuring and more towards intuition... it's kind of nice. Intuition based on 0 experience may turn out to be wrong intuition, but it's pretty fun anyway I guess if the stave is lumpy and twisted, straight lines and measurements seem to become a bit pointless rather quickly.

Children contribute to a deterioration of mental health and I have 3 already, so I know how you feel

Certainly is a challenge, but it's providing a lot of opportunities for decision-making, so it's turning out quite fun.

[Crogacht]

Alright, did a bit more thinning work on the other limb in preparation for heat straightening.

Back, Belly and Side.

[Crogacht]

So I needed to bend the bow near the handle/fade area of one limb quite a way to line it up with the handle.

This is my very basic setup, but I think it does the job OK.