Syringa character bow (updated)

[Keenan]

 Thank you Gordon, 
  That means alot to me coming from such a master craftsman as yourself.  I talked with Dave and we have a good spot for our get together and bunny shoot this spring.
  I'm not sure that I can pull this one off, but I was inspired by what John Strunk said Saturday about trying anything to see if it would make a bow.  Guess thats where I'm at in life.  If it dosn't work out I know I will learn something in the process.
 
 PS. It was sure a thrill to see you sitting up there on that pannel of famous bowyers like John Strunk.Your input and representation of primitive bowyers was awesome. I'm still losing sleep over all those nice bows that I saw.        Keenan

[juniper junkie]

not to mention he left with a couple of nice staves!!!

[Keenan]

  Your a good Man JJ.  That was a great show you guys put together...   Keenan

[juniper junkie]

here is a pic of Keenan instructing John Strunk on the correct way to make a bow.

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[Keenan]

 Now thats funny,,,,, ,,,,,,,Keenan

[Ryano]

Ok, I'll bite what was this get together all about? Looks like ya'll had a good time.

[juniper junkie]

Ok, I'll bite what was this get together all about? Looks like ya'll had a good time.

this was the Traditional Archers of Oregon annual banquet, we had a bowyers panel which consisted of Norm Johnson of Blacktail Bows, John Strunk, self-bow extraordiare, Allan Boice of Liberty Bows, and Gordon Fertlletch. they answered questions from the audience and told about them and thier bows, we had tons of raffle items, door prizes and awards. it was a good time. here is a pic of the plaques I made for awards, I had some help in finishing them up. they are made of yew with syringa arrows.

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[Gordon]

Those plaques were just awesome - seeing Dave tear up after receiving his spoke volumes.

[Keenan]

 Ok time to up date this thread and show where we are. The side with the severe kink has proven to be a little challenging. I started by test some scraps that were left over.To see just how much, I could heat bend without breaking. As expected it works well over a distance but a small consentrated area has it's limits.
  Because this limb dips down then takes a turn back up. I will try for a slight deflex reflex profile. First I will take as much of the radical bend out of the sharp kink as possible. Then I will try to match it with the other limb by adding some reflex with heat.
 I'm using an old glue up form that I have, as a clamping jig. With this sharp bend, trying to use a backing plate on the inside is difficult some I'm just going to hold my breath and try not to ask to much from the wood.
  You will notice the heat gun is relatively close to the wood. This is because I am just adding a little more heat to the already heated limb.  As Gordon stated on his buildalong, You should hold the gun 5" or there abouts to get a slow deep heat.
  You can see on the view looking down that the handle area is in line with the tips. In the last pic you can see that the profile is starting to match. It's not perfect but is a good starting point and we can do a little bending to see what things are looking like. My daughter made the mistake of wandering out to the shop, so I imposed. She said if any of her friends she the pic, I will owe her big time...  Keenan

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[Keenan]

   After letting the stave sit a few days, I put it on the tillering post.  You should always wait a day or two after doing any heat bending, befor stressing the limbs.
  As you can see the profile is not perfect, but is close. I may do a little more heat bending after I see how the tiller is shaping up. As you can see the right limb is fairly stiff at this point. So I will work on this area some to even things out.     
 The last pic shows the right limb bending more after removing a little wood and then excerising it a little. I leave the tips fairly stiff at this point untill I get it to the bracing point.  Keenan
 

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[koan]

Keenan..I cant decide if its ugly or beautiful ...but it definatly shows off your great ability as a bowyer.....Brian

[Keenan]

  LOL,, Thanks Brian,   I might have to call it the "ugly stick",,,,LOL,,,,But I think the only thing it's showing off is a severe sickness for character bows. And a lack of comon sense,,,,,,,    Keenan
  Here is a little more progress.   Time to go to a brace, so I cut in some string groves. I do mine similar to the way Gordon dose but I rarely measure anything. I just eyeball about 3/4 from the tip and at a fair angle to the limb.
  As mentioned by others the first bracing is always a little never racking because it will sometimes reveal weak spots or hinges that are not visable on a long string. It survived being strung to brace. But right limb is definately a little stiff in the mid limb.  Keenan

 

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[DanaM]

Syringa is Lilac right, I see ryano called it mock orange. Is this it?

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[Keenan]

 Yes Dana, However sometimes has white flowers instead of the purple.   Keenan

[Ryano]

Dana, That is what juniper junky said it was. My mom has a mock orange bush in her front yard, not sure if its the same thing or not ?

I have been getting a lot of questions on the syringa arrows I have been shooting for a while now. so I thought I would share with you how I build them. Syringa (philadelphus lewisii) grows throughout the more arid regions of the northwest and northern california, also referred to as mock orange, it grows in rocky hillsides and along creek bottoms, in the mid summer it blooms with a white flower, which is Idaho's state flower. it produces shoots and seeds for distribution. usually growing in clusters of shoots ranging in size depending on the age of the plant. the plants which grow in the more shady areas produce the longer shoots. shoots with reddish color bark are sucker shoots and are weaker than the grayer bark ones and have a larger pith in the center. this is what a bush looks like.