In May of 2012 I was lucky enough to win the osage stave from "The Monster Osage Tree" that Clint (Osage Outlaw) donated to the Tennessee Classic for thier raffles.
In July of that year I signed up with my pal and fellow Hawkeye Bowmen member Holeinthebowchuck for a bear hunt in Zama City Alberta with Big Bear Outfitters. After making our down payments on the hunt, both Chuck and I decided that we would make special self bows just for the hunt, and I chose to make my bow from the stave I won at the Classic, hoping that there might be some special karma in the wood.
The bow I made is, 61 and 3/4 TTT, 59 and 1/2 NTN, 1 and 1/2 at the fades, 3/8 at the tips and 52# @ 26". The handle has a brass and silver wire inlay bear track surrounded by a carved snake scale pattern and a brass wire inlay border, with an ebony arrow shelf. The tip over lays are ebony over blood wood and the top tip is carved to represent a black bear bleeding at the throat. The bow was then finished with several coats of bear fat to give it the spirit of the black bear and protect it from the elements.
This is the fifth self bow that I have made. I used the dimensions suggested by Gary Davis in his video and for the final tillering I relied on the guidence and expertise of friend and fellow Hawkeye member "Iron Leg"Dave Reed.
I named the bow "The Big Bear"
Buffalogobbler
