Hey, y'all,
Last spring, I harvested a ton (literally) of hickory staves, debarked them in the field, and have been seasoning them in my workshop since then. My first two attempts from this batch failed. The first was a self bow, just using the outermost ring as a back. The second was rawhide-backed, also using the outer ring. Both blew during tillering. I studied the remains, and concluded that the outer several rings were weak and also were easily crushed (by a vise or misplaced sledgehammer swing). Inside of about 1/4", the wood held -- it was just the outer portion that came apart. I guess this means it's the cambium layer, even though it's white like the heartwood, and there's no clear transition between the two.
[If anyone can provide more hickory insight on this subject, I'm all ears.]
So anyway, for my third try, I shaved the back down about a quarter inch, and decided to back it with linen (a first for me). I read that hemp linen is significantly stronger in tension than the usual flax linen, so I found some online and gave it a try. I applied it with TBIII once I got to the floor tillering stage, then finished tillering it and put some arrows through it. Once I was confident it was a shooter, I put on some rattler skins which look better than the fabric and provide some camo. The belly has some interesting coloration from some whisps of heartwood, so I left that natural.
I gave it a bunch of coats of tru oil, added some purpleheart for the tips and arrow pass, and made a handle wrap from a leather scrap I found that had a kind of cool embossed pattern. I didn't want the rattles to go to waste, so I used them to dress up the handle lace.
Since I've never tried other types of linen, I can't report a comparison. However, I can say that the hemp linen was easy to work with, light, and it's holding my bow together successfully -- so I'll call it a winner.
The bow is 65" NTN, 55# @ 28", 1 7/8" wide at the fades, tapering slowly to mid-limb, then slightly more sharply to 3/8" tips. It has a total weight of 23 oz.
I plan to give this one to a friend in NC who spends most of his life fishing (as a professional charter captain) and bowhunting. He's been a compound guy so far, but I'm trying to bring him around. Who knows, maybe I'll get a fishing trip out of it.
Cheers,
...Tom
