bamboo bow string?

[JoJoDapyro]

Has anyone tried to make a string from bamboo thread? Just curious.

[tattoo dave]

I've wondered the same thing a time or 2. Bamboo fibers seem like they would make a good string. Never tried it though, not sure how to get a hold of some bamboo fibers.

Tattoo Dave

[paco664]

i don't know about strings... but they make very durable clothing from bamboo...

[DC]

I found out from a fiber dealer the other day that bamboo fiber isn't natural fiber. It's basically rayon made from bamboo instead of wood. It's advertised as environmentally friendly because bamboo is very renewable.

[JoJoDapyro]

I searched Flax fiber and found a site that sells flax, bamboo, hemp and then blends of fibers for knitting. The bamboo is called "Bamboo carbon Fiber"

[Springbuck]

I found out from a fiber dealer the other day that bamboo fiber isn't natural fiber. It's basically rayon made from bamboo instead of wood. It's advertised as environmentally friendly because bamboo is very renewable.

I don't understand this.  If it is made from the bamboo, how is it not a natural fiber?   I have actually read some of the Chinese patent information regarding the proprietary processes which chemically break down bamboo to allow fiber extraction, but it primarily involved enzymes and depolymerizing stuff I didn't understand well.

  Tell me where I can get bamboo thread and I will try it, but my impression is that the processes do leave you with short fibers, hence you see bamboo cloth, but not rope.

[JoJoDapyro]

The bamboo fibers are as long as the hemp and flax fibers they sell. PM sent.

[Carson (CMB)]

In Alleley and Hamm there is a drawing of a bow where the discription says that the string is from cane fibers. It looks like it is lit down as thin as possible then possible crushed and rolled to get long fibers.

[DC]

I'm not saying it's bad it just isn't a natural fiber like flax.
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bamboo_textiles

A little down the page it says "modern use also see rayon". Rayon is manufactured by dissolving the cellulose in some solvent and then spraying it through a spinneret and letting it harden. Kind of remanufactured fiber.

But wait there's more I just noticed. A Swiss company "Litrax" has a new way of making it that sounds more like what I would like.
Any way, read the two Wikipedia articles 

[Springbuck]

Awesome, thanks.

The Litrax stuff does sound more like the process in the patent papers I was reading.  The deal seems to be that an extra breakdown or enzymatic step is necessary, because there is less parenchymal tissue between bamboo fibers as compared to hemp or linen.  Which is why bamboo is "woody".

FTC says that in order to be called bamboo fiber, it must be mechanically separated, and if bamboo cellulose is chemically broken down to vicose and and extruded like rayon, it must be called rayon or "rayon made from bamboo".

[freejutube]

hello,

i tried the primitive way : the bamboo strip "bowstring";
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iVQ0ZdGtx44

now searching for info about how to do it reliably...
some ideas, please ?

[JohnL]

     I picked up a spool of bamboo thread from a craft supply, once, with the same idea.  Problem is, bamboo thread is not twisted-up from long fibers.  They crush bamboo, then chemically ret-out the fibers --which by that point, are just short torn-up lengths.  Then they spin that into thread, called "Viscose".  What you end up with is no different from soft cotton thread, made of short fibers.  If you pull a length between your hands, it breaks immediately.

-John

[Hamish]

I seem to remember the New Guinea natives, and perhaps some other Melanesian islanders using a thin split piece of bamboo, to act as a string for their bows. No threads, or weaving, just a thin split piece, tied of on both ends.

[freejutube]

I seem to remember the New Guinea natives, and perhaps some other Melanesian islanders using a thin split piece of bamboo, to act as a string for their bows. No threads, or weaving, just a thin split piece, tied of on both ends.

yes... i've tried just that... worked well for a few shots... now searching for tips about how to tie the bamboo strip reliably, with strong natural plant material (not animal sinew, hide or guts), and in a way that doesn't hurt the bow...

i've read about an interesting way to do it, but didn't dare to try yet :
- keep a long strip of bamboo on each side of the future bowstring,
- smash those into fibers
- tie the rest of the strip to the bow with its own extremities that should have become supple...

seems too simple and elegant to be true or easy to do :-)  and not sure it wouldn't hurt the bow (bowstring with zero elasticity)... well... will have to try that with an old bow...

[bownarra]

It won't have zero stretch and anyway that is exactly what you are after with a bow string so don't worry