Primitive Archer

Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: DuBois on December 29, 2013, 10:20:35 pm

Title: Old Bow from neighborhood kid.
Post by: DuBois on December 29, 2013, 10:20:35 pm
Over the summer a kid rode up on his bike and asked if I wanted to buy a bow. I was a little skeptical but he only wanted $20 for it.
68" and I guess about 40#. Haven't strung it up.
Just curious if anybody knows anything about it. I thought about dong something to fix it up and give it back to the kid if I ever see him ride by again. No name or writing and it has a thin white FG back and looks like it's missing overlays.
1 and 5/16" at the widest and it is 1/2" thick all the way to tips which are 1/2" wide.

(http://i1311.photobucket.com/albums/s662/mdubois7/023_zpsfb418cf7.jpg) (http://s1311.photobucket.com/user/mdubois7/media/023_zpsfb418cf7.jpg.html)
(http://i1311.photobucket.com/albums/s662/mdubois7/022_zps1f5b444b.jpg) (http://s1311.photobucket.com/user/mdubois7/media/022_zps1f5b444b.jpg.html)
(http://i1311.photobucket.com/albums/s662/mdubois7/021_zps91b9d6b1.jpg) (http://s1311.photobucket.com/user/mdubois7/media/021_zps91b9d6b1.jpg.html)
(http://i1311.photobucket.com/albums/s662/mdubois7/020_zps6bea2e4a.jpg) (http://s1311.photobucket.com/user/mdubois7/media/020_zps6bea2e4a.jpg.html)
(http://i1311.photobucket.com/albums/s662/mdubois7/019_zps122fe4c7.jpg) (http://s1311.photobucket.com/user/mdubois7/media/019_zps122fe4c7.jpg.html)

Thanks folks,
Marco
Title: Re: Old Bow from neighborhood kid.
Post by: Pat B on December 29, 2013, 10:52:44 pm
Looks like an old backed lemonwood bow from the 1930s or 1940s. If you want to make it shootable you'll have to re-educate the wood how to bend. Start slow with a long string and gradually exercise it an inch at a time. Sometimes the glue on these old bows has gotten brittle and the handle may pop off as you bend the bow. You can replace it and the tip overlays with TB glue.
Title: Re: Old Bow from neighborhood kid.
Post by: burchett.donald on December 30, 2013, 12:24:31 am
 Looks like it's been taken care of... Hardly any string follow...Nice deal for 20 bucks.
Title: Re: Old Bow from neighborhood kid.
Post by: wood_bandit 99 on December 30, 2013, 01:09:25 am
Looks to me like it may have been more of a personal bowyer than a mass production bowyer that made that. Looks good and just train the limbs to bend a previously mentioned. Before doing that you may want to sand it and glue in tips, just don't put a finish on it invade a lam pops off or the tiller is jacked. That way you can fix it.
Title: Re: Old Bow from neighborhood kid.
Post by: chamookman on December 30, 2013, 05:35:14 am
I agree with Pat - 30's - 40's Lemmonwood Bow. Every Hardware store in the Country carried them. I have about 20 of them - nice bits of Archery History. Bob
Title: Re: Old Bow from neighborhood kid.
Post by: Fred Arnold on December 30, 2013, 07:42:13 am
Looks a lot like some old Ben Pearson bows I've owned and refinished for the grand kids but they usually had some discernable lable on the upper limb. Pretty good old bows.
Title: Re: Old Bow from neighborhood kid.
Post by: RyanY on December 30, 2013, 08:40:12 am
Looks eerily similar to the bow I just replicated. I'm going with Pat on this one.
Title: Re: Old Bow from neighborhood kid.
Post by: paoliguy on December 30, 2013, 09:06:31 am
Looks like an old Ben Pearson to me too. I've seen a few of them that were pretty similar to that one.
Title: Re: Old Bow from neighborhood kid.
Post by: Buckeye Guy on December 30, 2013, 10:25:46 am
I think every kid in this country who's dad had $5 to spend on his boy for Christmas must have had one under the tree !
Still love them  even if our family was not rich enough to own one
This appears to be backed with Paper , so it took a little less set than some of the others
Title: Re: Old Bow from neighborhood kid.
Post by: Thesquirrelslinger on December 30, 2013, 11:55:13 am
I think every kid in this country who's dad had $5 to spend on his boy for Christmas must have had one under the tree !
Still love them  even if our family was not rich enough to own one
This appears to be backed with Paper , so it took a little less set than some of the others
Fiber backings were very common before fiberglass was invented.
Its more or less a very thick paper- much stronger than cardboard, etc.
It isn't a bad idea to leave it strung for at least 24 hours before you start pulling it- you are much less likely to break it.
Title: Re: Old Bow from neighborhood kid.
Post by: Mohawk13 on December 30, 2013, 12:51:52 pm
Ben Pearson for sure. Their early bows were not marked on the bow, just the box they came in. Nice bow!!
Title: Re: Old Bow from neighborhood kid.
Post by: Pat B on December 30, 2013, 02:27:56 pm
I would not brace that bow until you exercised it a bit first. Stringing a bow can be very stressful to the bow and an uneducated bow may not be able to take that stress.
Title: Re: Old Bow from neighborhood kid.
Post by: DuBois on December 30, 2013, 03:06:50 pm
Thanks guys, I will get to it someday.
Looks eerily similar to the bow I just replicated. I'm going with Pat on this one.
I had it in the garage and saw ryoon's post on his replication and it made me think about looking at this a bit closer.

I think every kid in this country who's dad had $5 to spend on his boy for Christmas must have had one under the tree !
Still love them  even if our family was not rich enough to own one
This appears to be backed with Paper , so it took a little less set than some of the others
Yes, it is paper now that I look closer at the tip area. I like paper better than FG anyway  ;D

I would not brace that bow until you exercised it a bit first. Stringing a bow can be very stressful to the bow and an uneducated bow may not be able to take that stress.

I'll take it easy and slow. I did bend it as if floor tillering to a few inches already just to get an idea of how it felt but I won't go any further than that.
I will fix it up and post some pics of the refurbished bow in the spring. Thanks, Marco