This isn't mine. It comes from Tim Baker on the old Leatherwall. Hope it helps.
YOUR FIRST WOODEN BOW
Following is a 50lb design that is easy and quick to make, is as fast and accurate as any, and costs
about five-dollars.
This bow is about the same length you are tall. It's drawn side-view shape is that of an
English-tillered bow. This design's grip is part of the working bow itself, making the bow easy to
layout and easy to make. It stores more energy than shorter bows, draws with less stack, and is
more stable/accurate. It may have a larger number of good features than any other design. These
instructions call for a lumberyard hardwood stave. With such a stave it's possible to readh this in the
morning and be shooting your bow the same afternoon. Not likely, but possible.
If you don't have access to such lumber do this: Cut a straight hardwood tree, split it down to
four-inch wide wedges, take the bark off without damaging the wood surface. With saw or hatchet
reduce the stave to 72" for a 28" draw. Add or subtract two inches for each one-inch change in
draw length. Narrow the stave to two inches from end to end, 1" thick at the grip, 3/4" midlimb, and
5/8" at the nocks. Set it horizontally in the warmest, driest part of you house and wait a month. Let
air move freely over all its surfaces, back and belly.
Selecting a lumber stave: Use any of the heavier hardwoods. White oak, rock maple, hickory,
pecan, mulberry, redoak, etc. Select a board on whose face ring lines are almost perfectly straight,
with no meanders or kinks, and at least almost perfectly parallel to the board. Don't bother about
ring lines on the side of the board; they can be misleading; they don't need to run straight. You will
likely have to look through 50 boards or more.
Tools: A hatchet and a rasp are all that's absolutely needed. But a spokeshave and coarse and
medium rasps make the work faster and easier. A block plane is helpful if used carefully. A bandsaw
saves about two hours of roughing out.
Front-view layout: With a sharp pencil and a straight-edge draw the bow 1 3/8" wide from midlimb
to midlimb. From there draw a straight taper to 1/2" nocks. Reduce the stave to these dimensions.
Don't stray past the line. Create smooth square sides. Smooth out the angle where the midlimb
begins to taper.
Side-view layout: Draw these lines on both sides of the stave: Let the center six-inches be 7/8" thick.
Moving toward the nock, let the next two inches taper to 3/4" then to 9/16" at midlimb, then to 1/2"
at the nocks. Let these thichness changes be smooth and gradual, with no angles.
Reduce the stave to these dimensions. Don't stray past the line. Remove the wood from one side of
the belly at a time, with the tool at a slight angle, such that when both sides are done a slight crown
will have been create along the center of the belly. Then remove the crown. It'simportant to do it this
way. Otherwise at some point you will dip below the opposie line. This method also averages out
any errors of reduction. It's also easier.
As you reduce down to the pencil lines frequently sight along the length of the limb from a low angle
and make sure your work is smooth and uniform, with no dips or waves or dings. THIS IS THE
MOST IMPORTANT PART OF BOWMAKING. This decides if your bow will break or not. If
thickness taper is smooth and gradual it's difficult to break a bow.
Narrow the belly side of the grip just enought to cause a nocked arrow to rest square against it. Do
this on both sides. Round all corners of the grip.
Cut nocks with a rattail rile or similar, then string the bow with a slack string. Set the center of the
grip on one end of a 30" one-by-three board or similar, and place the string in a notch cut into that
board, causing the bow to bend about five inches. Lean this rig against a wall then back up and
inspect the curve of your new bow.
The shape you are seeking is not part of a circle, but the shape of a satelite dish antenna--an almost
flat, only slightly bending grip, the each portion bending slightly more than the last as you move from
grip to nocks, Ellipitcal tiller.
It would be good to draw this shape on paper and have it ready to refer to while tillering.
If your bow does not take this shape, or if the limbs are not curving equally, make pencil marks on
the belly where the limb is too stiff. Remove wood from these stiff areas, first on one side of the belly
then the other--then remove the slight crown created. Do this with long sweeping strokes, creating
no dips, waves or dings, frequently sighting along your work, as above. THIS IS THE MOST
IMPORTANT PART OF BOWMAKING.
When the curve finally suits you brace the bow about five-inches high and inspect it again. Mark any
stiff portions and reduce them as above. When content with the curve draw the bow to half it's
intended draw weight, measured by you best guess or a scale. Set the bow on the tillering stick at
this length of draw and mark any stiff areas in the limbs and remove as above. Re-check the tiller,
re-mark, remove wood, etc. until perfect curvature is reached.
Now draw to full draw weight. If full weight is reached at, say, twelve of draw you need to remove a
medium amount of wood all along the bow's length. Do so by above methods, check for proper
curve on you tillering stick, correct where needed.
Again draw to full weight, now at possibly fifteen-inches of draw. From this point on remove only
paper thin amounts of wood at a time. Set the string in ever farther notches as draw length increases,
but never farther than five inches short of intended draw lenght, and not even there for more than a
few seconds.
Continue this process until about one-inch short of intended draw length. Smooth all surfaces to your
taste, slightly round all corners, and you're done. The bow will settle right into its design weight.
Nock the arrow just above the center of the grip--search for the spot the yields the feel of balance
string pull during the draw.
The arrow will fly more accurately with one limb or the other as the top limb, but this may change
over the life of the bow.
Please ask for details or clarification if needed.
There is much more to know--about different designs and woods, tillering techniques, quick drying,
board selection, split-stave preparation, layout, variations due to different woods--too much to say
here. But the above should put a good bow in your hands. For more general information keep and
eye on the 'Wood Bowmaking Secrets' threas, or post a question.
Tim Baker.
Butch
