Primitive Archer

Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: Tracker on January 26, 2009, 08:43:07 pm

Title: Ever Made a Father/Son Bow? Post pics Here
Post by: Tracker on January 26, 2009, 08:43:07 pm
Hey, I am new to the bow world, but am getting hooked already. Am working on my first long term. This short term survival "Father/son" bow I made last summer from a single Chalk Maple sappling. It is a little rough, but surprisingly strong, it would bring down a deer, I'm sure. I was wondering how many of you guys made these, what you think of them, and if you have pics, as they can be made many ways. The handle and the lines between the main stave and the son are yucca. I made a bowstring of yucca cordage, but it was too small and broke. I think that a reverse wrapped yucca to about a 1/4" inch would hold up, will have to try this.

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Title: Re: Ever Made a Father/Son Bow? Post pics Here
Post by: Kegan on January 26, 2009, 09:31:51 pm
Wow, very cool! I've made a Penobscot before (well, it was a help-save-a-lower-weight bow sorta project). Very cool Tracker :)! And very good idea too!
Title: Re: Ever Made a Father/Son Bow? Post pics Here
Post by: Tracker on January 27, 2009, 02:46:50 am
Thanks Kagan! Forgive the ignorance of a greenhorn, but just how is a Penobscot made? I"ll have to look that up. The Father/son is kind of like the first compound. To make it stronger, you can also string the "son", or run one long string around the father and the son, or put small blocks of wood between them, or tie little peices of wood to the belly of the son. These bows can last a long time, but you do violate the back because you whitle it down flat so that the two limbs will lash firmly together.
Title: Re: Ever Made a Father/Son Bow? Post pics Here
Post by: JackCrafty on January 27, 2009, 01:49:24 pm
Hmmmm....interesting.  I've never heard it called a "father-son" bow.

As far as the flat back on the larger bow.....you just need a stave cut from a larger diameter sapling.  The back won't be perfectly flat, but you can carve the belly of the smaller bow slightly concave so that it matches up to the larger bow.

There seems to be a lot of fascination with this type of bow (penobscot/abenaki).  I think it's because there isn't much hard data on the performance of the variations of the bow.  It also looks pretty cool.

I don't think they perform better than other bows....if they did, the flight shooters would be all over it. ;)
Title: Re: Ever Made a Father/Son Bow? Post pics Here
Post by: Kegan on January 27, 2009, 02:56:17 pm
That is a Penobscot :)!