2016 Primitive Archer Bow Trade Sign up and Information

[jandersson]

Gutshot: I saw Simson (Simon?) do that on one of his Osage bows, go for it. Good luck!

[ajooter]

Well I finally finished shaping one of my nocks...been busy lately haven't had as much time.  I'm gluing up the second nock tonight.

I got a package in the mail today.  And my gf made what will probably be her only contribution to the trade   Other then putting up with me working on bows all the time.


Offer still stands....anybody who needs some rawhide speak up!

[Fred Arnold]

Dylan, give it plenty of time. Don't rush it. Sometimes you have to find a different project to take your mind somewhere else for a short while. I believe in letting it regain it's composure for a few days and with steam I'd wait even longer. Keep it  in a controlled environment. Weigh it  everyday and see what that tells you.

Rich the quiver is amazing. That would hang on my living room wall!!!

ajooter, that's a nice hide and looks huge. What was it?

[TimothyR]

Offer still stands....anybody who needs some rawhide speak up!

I could use a small amount. Let me know what you need!

[ajooter]

Let me know how wide and how long and I'll hook ya up Tim!  I don't need anything in return.  Shoot me your address via pm.

Fred it's goat rawhide.  It's really nice to work with.  I soak the whole hide and then cut it into strips.

[David Ewing]

How do you know when the bow is ready for the tillering tree? I'm aiming for about 50 lbs. I don't have a clue how much the limbs should bend when I push on them.  They are some what flexible, in my opinion anyway. I don't really have anything to go off of.

 Once again I forgot to take pictures. Hahaha. I'll get you guys some tomorrow.

[half eye]

David,
     are you familiar with the "push-pull" method of stringing a bow? If so do that just a little bit to test for relative power. You can put it on the long string now....but be real careful that you do 2 things and I do mean watch BOTH of 'em.....Pull just enough to see if both limbs look like they are pretty even.....
if they are not then stop and make them more even.....when they are then put your scale on and pull it to 40 pounds and see where you hit that weight....if it hits 40 at about say 8-10 inches you are still heavy but close enough to go to your scraper......
    When I say long string I define that as JUST as long as the bow (not real sloppy) I know it's the "exciting time" right now because you want to see her bend.....please dont do that you only have to pull it one time a little to far and ya got a kids bow EVERYTIME.
   Here is your mantra.....are they even? where do they hit 40, are the even, where do they hit 40......keep that up till you are about 6 inches short of full draw.....then are they even, where does it hit 50 ....are they even and where do they hit 50....until you are there.

 Make sure the limbs are real close to bending the same first, then pull and NEVER go past intended draw weight........the more bows you make the more the urge to just pull her back is gonna creep in.....stick to the mantra. Also, once you are back to about 6-8 inches of draw then be sure to shorten your string to "low brace" before you carry on......at about 14" you should be able to safely brace it.

Each and every time you shorten that string you better be damned sure you have nice even bends in the limbs....if not then get 'em even FIRST.. I'm not trying to be a smart ass....it just that there is a certain process to tillering, if you follow the mantra you wont have any big problems.....when ya get over confident (like I still do at times) something will come back to bite you and ya got either a kids bow or a broken bow.

Oh ya......quit forgettin the pics man cause you know us hill-billy's like our pics 
rich

[---GUTSHOT--->]

Rich, thanks for that info on tillering. I'm going to change my method of tillering and give yours a try because I've made more kid bows than good bows. Thanks again   And David keep asking those ?'s and you will make a awesome bow.

[stuckinthemud]

David,
     are you familiar with the "push-pull" method of stringing a bow? If so do that just a little bit to test for relative power. You can put it on the long string now....but be real careful that you do 2 things and I do mean watch BOTH of 'em.....Pull just enough to see if both limbs look like they are pretty even.....
if they are not then stop and make them more even.....when they are then put your scale on and pull it to 40 pounds and see where you hit that weight....if it hits 40 at about say 8-10 inches you are still heavy but close enough to go to your scraper......
    When I say long string I define that as JUST as long as the bow (not real sloppy) I know it's the "exciting time" right now because you want to see her bend.....please dont do that you only have to pull it one time a little to far and ya got a kids bow EVERYTIME.
   Here is your mantra.....are they even? where do they hit 40, are the even, where do they hit 40......keep that up till you are about 6 inches short of full draw.....then are they even, where does it hit 50 ....are they even and where do they hit 50....until you are there.

 Make sure the limbs are real close to bending the same first, then pull and NEVER go past intended draw weight........the more bows you make the more the urge to just pull her back is gonna creep in.....stick to the mantra. Also, once you are back to about 6-8 inches of draw then be sure to shorten your string to "low brace" before you carry on......at about 14" you should be able to safely brace it.

Each and every time you shorten that string you better be damned sure you have nice even bends in the limbs....if not then get 'em even FIRST.. I'm not trying to be a smart ass....it just that there is a certain process to tillering, if you follow the mantra you wont have any big problems.....when ya get over confident (like I still do at times) something will come back to bite you and ya got either a kids bow or a broken bow.

Oh ya......quit forgettin the pics man cause you know us hill-billy's like our pics 
rich

Oh, that explains Sooo much about where I've been going wrong.  Awesome post, thank you !!

[jandersson]

David:
Listen to half eye That is good advice.
And I don't know what tillering setup you have but if you're up close to the bow when you're pulling the string it can be difficult to see how it bends. See if someone can snap a picture while you're pulling the string it that you can look at , it really helped me to get some perspective.

[PlanB]

I like your method Rich, and I'm going to change to that this time. Keep writing this stuff! Also, like everybody else, said, the person who gets that quiver is a lucky so and so!

I have only one little thing to contribute, and maybe it's just me.... sometimes when I had some local weirdness in a couple character bows I tried, and it was hard to tell if there was hinging, I found that exercising the bow on the tiller tree and looking carefully at the limbs moving helped me see how it was bending all along better than I could judge by just holding it in one position and looking. The movement showed the bending part of the limb in action. It also helped when one limb had more deflex near the handle than the other. When it was stationary it looked like the deflexed limb was bending more, but it was actually stiffer at one time when I was doing that. That was when I was tillering on a pulley rigged tree.

[David Ewing]

Awesome. Thanks guys.

[jandersson]

I have only one little thing to contribute, and maybe it's just me.... sometimes when I had some local weirdness in a couple character bows I tried, and it was hard to tell if there was hinging, I found that exercising the bow on the tiller tree and looking carefully at the limbs moving helped me see how it was bending all along better than I could judge by just holding it in one position and looking. The movement showed the bending part of the limb in action. It also helped when one limb had more deflex near the handle than the other. When it was stationary it looked like the deflexed limb was bending more, but it was actually stiffer at one time when I was doing that. That was when I was tillering on a pulley rigged tree.

+1

[Drewster]

Rich, that's a great post.....for all of us.  Thanks!  I would add that while following your mantra, exercise the limbs really well every time you remove wood.  Some have recommended to exercise them 30 times or so, but I exercise mine 40-50 times each time wood is removed to help really train the wood to bend.  Proceed slowly and patiently.  Sometimes it helps me to tiller a little and then wait til the next day and look at the bow with fresh eyes before proceeding.  Just my 2¢ worth.

[half eye]

You make very valid additions gentlemen.....When we have everybody contributing it HAS to be good and thanks for caring enough to contribute.....as I have said before this is GREAT
rich