Finishing and sealing a bow?

[A_Locomotive]

Hi. I recently picked up a u finish bow from Atilla Archery. It is a fiberglass backed ash and bamboo bow. So i hope this is okay to ask here since this isnt really a primitive bow nor really are my questions about finishing it but I am just having trouble finding am active bower community that can offer me tips. I am having trouble determining how best to finish and seal the bow so wanted to asked a few questions and i am also open to suggestions. Ideally i'd love to just buy a bunch of stuff and experiment but i don't have a huge budget and would rather not be super wasteful. I am still not 100% sure of the colors or tones i want to stain it but right now i am semi commited to a water based minwax stain i picked up. Its their green tea color. Looks nice in photos bit I have nor tested it so not sure what to expect. I was hoping I could maybe use it on the bamboo that edges the back of the siyahs top and bottom of the handle and edge of the limbs. I was thinking i might try masking it off and seeing if that would work to prevent the stain from creeping I to the ash handle. The siyahs shouldnt be an issue since their is a layer of fiberglass between the woods that i plan on covering anyway. How feesible is making wood for staining?

Now for the grip and siyahs I am unsure what I want. I was thinking either one of minwaxes oil based stains(I have two colors I picked up but havent opened so can still be returned) or perhaps using a rub in oil finish like tung or teak oil. I like the way these oils look in photos but dont know which is more appropriate for a bow. I am also wondering if there would be any issues with the final sealer i want to use. Was thinking i would seal the whole thing with waterbased wipe on poly, would this adhere propely over the ring/teak/oil based stain if i weny that route? Or would i be better off just going 100% water based?

My last question is in regard to thd fiberglass on the limbs themselves. Would any of the above products if applied to the fiberglass have any negative effects from solvents or discoloration? Ideally I'd actually like the fiberglass to havea greenish hue to go with the bamboo, would the water based stain impart any color to the fiberglass or will it just wipe off clean? The fiberglass isnt mirror smooth it was sanded by the bower along with all the other surfaces.

Sorry this was so long winded, i did my best to make it concise, i have never finished a bow or done any sort of wood work so this is all new to me. Any and all tips or suggestions are more then welcome. I am also most definitely open to more primitive and natural alteratives for finishinf this bow as well.

[Stick Bender]

The finish I recently have been using is vinyl sealer & pre cat lacquer for all bows , the glass has a factory seal that needs to be removed before the finish, this is not a good site for your questions, I will send you a PM where you can find better answers to your questions.

[Pat B]

A good option for staining the wood and boo would be Rit dye in denatured alcohol. There are many colors to choose from. As far as finishes I use Tru-Oil, a gun stock finish, on all my bows(even a glass recurve I have) and the ones to be hunted with I spray over the Tru-Oil with satin poly to cut the shine. I know of nothing that will permanently stain the FG. Any good wood stain will work on the wood and boo. If you are going to add a handle wrap you can test the colors on the handle under where the wrap will be.

[A_Locomotive]

Thank you! And sorry for posting so off topic. I hope to sometime in the future hope to attempt my first bow and I'll likely come straight back here as the older methods of bow construction fascinate me, I'd love to try my hand at a composite bow one day though i'd imagine for a first bow doing a more simple bow would likely be the way to go.

[Pat B]

You have to crawl before you learn to walk.