Yucca bowstrings/cordage

[TRACY]

I've been experimenting with leaves from the yucca plant for making primitive strings. So far I've managed to make some short lengths of cordage of varying thickness. This is the first time that I've attempted a string with natural materials and have found it very challenging but rewarding. I figured it would be good practice for making a sinew string since yucca is so widely used as a landscape plant around here and readily available. I did a search here and couldn't find much mention of yucca and was wondering if anyone had suggestions and advice for making yucca strings for this greenhorn string maker.

Thanks Tracy

[Justin Snyder]

Keep adding fibers so you get a longer piece.  I have a whole mess of processed yucca fiber under my bed. I have only made one string from it. Justin

[leapingbare]

Keep it even, when making strong cordage as for a bow string ya gotta keep it even, make it thicker than you would a deacon string and if possible only shoot self knocked arrows off of it.

[TRACY]

This stuff seems to be really strong. My plan is to shoot cane with this string and so self nocks won't be a problem. It seems like I do a few twists and add another strand and the cycle repeats. Luckily I have several plants on my property that are volunteers because I'm gonna need more material.

Thanks Tracy

[mullet]

  Has anybody tried it with the Spanish Bayonet? It looks the same as the Yucca but has leaves 4 to 5 feet long.

[Hillbilly]

Eddie, if it's the same Spanish bayonet I'm thinking of, it is a species of yucca. We have one that grows here, Yucca filimentosa or beargrass. It makes good general purpose cordage, but it's not as strong as dogbane, nettle, or milkweed.

[Pat B]

Eddie, the Spanish bayonet has a sharp point on the tip. You can break it and pull it down the leaf to get a needle and thread for sewing.   Century plant is also related.     Pat

[TRACY]

I just saw the needle/thread trick on survivorman. Pretty cool

Hillbilly, Do you think my time is better spent using other materials? Don't want to reinvent the wheel here.

Thanks Tracy

[Hillbilly]

Tracy, dunno-I've never tried a yacca string. Jim Hamm shaows a couple yucca strings in one of his books. I made a dogbane bowstring once, it lasted a good while but finally broke. Seems that most of the NA's preferred sinew, gut, or rawhide for bowstrings-and they were very skilled in making cordage, fabric, and stuff from plant fibers.

[Justin Snyder]

I have seen what appears to be snares for small game made from yucca fiber in several local museums. 

[mullet]

 Claude VanOrder makes string out of the wild yucca that grows in Florida and uses it on his bows with bear grease.

[Phillip K]

Yucca Needs to be Hammered on a wood log to get the fibres apart and then rinsed in water to get the soap out then it can be used as Cordage. Of coarse  I seen this done on video.

[TRACY]

The only cleaning I have done is scraping the length o the leaf with my knife to remove the chlorophyll pulp and then let dry. When dry, I split the individual strands much like pulling sinew and then add to the string as I go. It's working ,not to say it's right though. Native Americans no doubt made mostly sinew and gut strings for a reason, they worked. If my survival was at stake here i would be using sinew also