Board bow backing question

[Aries]

I just now bought two six foot bilateral ringed red oak boards from ol home depot, they are good boards and the rings  edges are parallel down the length of the broad side of the board, and have no run offs.  Would it still be suggested that i back these guys, and if so what do ya'll think with? I have no experience with board bows. I'm probably gonna work them into d bows.  The two boards are 2x1's.. , how much draw weight do you think i could get out of em?  Thanks for the tips, i thought i'd try somethin new for once lol  ty

[aruge]

I'm on my second board bow. I've backed them both with 100% linen, glued on with Tite bond 3. The guys on the site say you can use about anything, from a paper bag to silk, burlap, about anything. George will also tell you that you don't have to back a good board with anything. You might want to look at his website. He's got instructions for a board bow there. A D bow is the way to start with a board. Hope this helps.  Al

[George Tsoukalas]

They sound like they don't need  a backing. I only tell beginners to back their first few bows-log or stave. Jawge
http://georgeandjoni.home.comcast.net/~georgeandjoni/

[Canoe]

Howdy Group, Aruge, and George T.,

I just backed my first bow, I used silk.  It's an ELB-type Red Oak, and it's 72" long, and is 1-7/16" wide at the handle.

Question:
How much glue should I have used?
 
I was afraid that if I didn't put enough glue on, the backing might peel off.  But, I was (am) concerned that to use too much glue would add unnecessary weight to the bow. 

The way I did the backing was that I spread a layer of TiteBond-3 onto the wood (the back), and then I put the pre-cut silk strips into a plastic bag, added a bunch of TB-3, and squished the bag a while until it looked as though all of the glue had been absorbed by the silk.  Then, starting near the handle, I unrolled the bunched up silk onto the limbs.  lastly, I made sure there were no air bubbles under the silk.

Later, I was discussing this with someone, (not a bow maker), who said that I could have just laid down a thin layer of TB-3 onto th limbs and laid the silk on top of it, and called it good.

What do you guys think?
Canoe

[George Tsoukalas]

Morning, Canoe. I aply the glue down like you did, lay the silk on, and  let it dry.  I sand edges of the silk and apply glue there. Then I apply glue to the back of the silk too.  Jawge

[JW_Halverson]

I've backed hickory board bows  with fabric for years.  My technique is to start with the fabric being slightly dampened with water, then I wet one side with Titebond II that has been diluted with 1 part water to 2 parts glue.  The dampness of the material helps the glue pull deeper into the fibers of the fabric.  When the fabric is glued up then I put a thin coat of straight Titebond II on the bow back and spread it out to a consistent thin layer. 

Lay the glue wetted side of the material on the bow and start to squeegee from the handle area out to each tip.  Wipe up any running glue with a wet sponge or wet cloth and wrap with Ace bandages for the mummy effect.  Unwrap after 24 hours and stand the bow in a corner for a couple of weeks, even longer if it is hickory.  Then all you have left is sanding out the edges and choosing your finish. 

Sanding out the edges may leave a slightly fuzzy edge on the backing that you can re-wet with tiny amounts of glue and then be re-sanded for a smooth finish.  Or you can take a cigarette lighter and burn off the fuzz, leaves a shadow of char along the bow edge that kinda looks cool, too.