Going back a few years

[Badger]

  I wonder how many of us still have bows from about pre 1995. I think I destroyed all the evidence. I was looking over some of the stats on a paper that Tim Baker gave me on the bows brought to the first Mojam. Most of them were real clunkers. If you go back to the early 1950's 40,s and 30's the bows were very well made even by todays standards. I think heat treating and reflexing has gotten more popular so our bows today will likley perform a little better than the older ones. But looking at the old bows it is obious they knew what they were doing and hasd some good bowyers around then.

   Does anyone have any pics from around 1995 give or take a few years? As far as I can tell this looks like the period when we were starting to relearn how to make bows, kind of a re birth of a hobby. My dates might not be accurate as it is just an observation on my part.

[snag]

Not the 90's...more like the before the 40's.  Several of these bows are still in a friend's position. Most all are yew.  Often when I look at some of these pictures I wish could have had a man like this to mentor me and show me what he knows. This is why this site is of so much value to so many.

[Badger]

 Great picture, they had some great bow makers in that era

[George Tsoukalas]

This is my first bow. I made it from black locust cut from my property. It has 5 inches of set because it was still wet.. Tiller is all over the place. It still shot well at 45#. I made it 1992 or so. I never kept records.

I have all the ones I made except for the ones that I gave away.

Jawge

[simson]

I made my first in 2005 ...

I've seen meanwhile a lot of pics like above in books  like Glenn St . Charles or Laubin and many others.
Here in Europe I think you can only find the English bowmakers and perhaps some Czech or from Poland and the did ELBs.

The big change was your and Tim Bakers work and the others in the Bowyers Bibles.
And let me use the chance to thank you for that!

[Eric Krewson]

My osage bows from the mid 90s were wide, clunky with poorly shaped handles and lousy tillering.

[Marc St Louis]

I still have a couple but they are not much to look at

[Badger]

   I was with group of boyers that used to meet at pasadena once a month. One of them showed up with a yew american long bow that he had bout at a garge sale for $5.00. It just so happened to old guy that made the bow originally was with us that day still building bows. He had built that same bow 50 years earlier. Beautifully made bow the same style most of us make today but no reflex. very slim tips, narrow profile and 8" handle and fades. The bow still shot nicely at 45# right where it was built originally.

[Will H]

I made my first on 2004. I read "the bent stick" and started carving. It was a vine maple stave, 2" wide to 4" from the tips then tapered to 3/4" nocks or so.. I shot it for a while and killed a couple rabbits with it before it raised a splinter at a pin knot.

[mikekeswick]

I started after reading the Bowyer Bible vol 1 somewhere around 2006.....I can't thank the authors enough 

[chamookman]

Got My start in Gary Davis's garage back in the early 90's (92 or 93 I think). Have some pics (somewhere), maybe Wirwicki could post some up? My first bow was a Black Cherry (stave), backed with Pin Cherry bark - came in under weight and quite clunky, but Man was I proud  . Bob

[Pappy]

My first shooter was a Hickory,66/68 long 2 inches wide to mid limb then tapered to the end, that was in 89/90  stacked like crazy and the handle ,well lets just say it sucked,2 or 3 inches of string follow, not sure on the weight, I stopped tillering when I could pull it to full draw without it breaking  so to say the tiller was off is an understatement. I still have it, I killed a deer with it and like chamookman said ,man was I proud, I will try and remember to get a picture, it hangs in my man cave.
   Pappy

[MWirwicki]

Yes Steve, that was before we knew much about heating up wood.  We looked for natural reflex in staves to get the most of them.  I'll see what I can find for pics.  As Bob said, early 90's.  Hacked one out in my basement with a Sawzall.  It wasn't pretty but the hook was set.  Met Bob (Chamookman) and Gary and I couldn't burn the shavings fast enough.  The cool thing about the early 90's is that it was "pre-internet".  A lot of trial, error and experimenting.  There wasn't a whole lot out there.  I started with Massey's "The Bowyer's Craft" then the Comstock's "Bent Stick". 

Last year, I resurrected an osage bow that I built in 1995 for an elk hunt.  It was 64 pounds at 26".  As many of us, I was younger then.  The bow had a knot hole in one limb which gave it character, but the knot's natural form deflexed the limb in that area.  The other limb stood nice and straight.  I narrowed the limbs a bit, put it on a form took the bend out at the knot and retillered to 45 pounds.  It's now my go-to shooter which I'm very consistent and pretty darned accurate with.

[Badger]

  I don't even count my early 90's years. I broke everything. I got lucky on a couple of laminated bows but all my self bows broke. I think I found jawges web site around 97 or so. Made my first self bow shooter following his instructions. In 96 I bought a bandsaw and got serious but it didn't help my percentages any I was still at 100% broke. Looking back i wish I would have at least bought a book before I ever started.

[George Tsoukalas]

I am humbled to know I helped you get your first bow, Badger, and this from 3000+ miles away.

I went through a lot of bow wood... a lot of black locust. I broke a good 14 before I got a hunter...and even after.

I ran out of log staves and went to boards early to mid 90's.

I gotta little help from Bob Holzhauser with tiller.

My younger brother, Lord rest him, and I shot and hunted with FG recurves for many years.

The first bow I made him just folded up on him. He was so apologetic. Of course, it was not his fault.

I later made him a BL sapling bow. He loved it.

Well anyway...

Jawge