Favorite bowstrings and finishes?

[Fox]

So i just ran out of my normal bowstring material ( Dacron B50) and i really would like to buy something that's not polyester, something more natural. what would you all recemend? i also just ran out of my normal finish wich i normaly use shalac, what do you all like? i know a lot of people use true oil, but i really would rather seal my bows with something more natural, i know shalac is bug shells so thats why ive used that, but im not sure how good of a sealer to keep moister out... anyway let me know what you all use. Thanks


-Fox

[Pat B]

There are types of linen that are appropriate for bow strings and some other natural fibers from plants like milkweed, nettle, yucca and others.
I've always used Tru-Oil but bees wax and hard brittle pitch blended together and applied warm and with heat to help it penetrate should be pretty good or animal fat(bear, deer, pig, etc.)hand rubbed in or with heat assistance should work.

[Mafort]

Flax stricks can be purchased online. Flax is raw linen. I use a beeswax/coconut oil mixture and then I heat it up in a can and heat my bow up and then I run it down. I then go over it with a buffing when I rigged to a standard drill and buff it as best I can.

[Hawkdancer]

I still have plenty of B-50, but some folks have touted Irish shoemaker's linen for strings.  Got to find some of that, I think Balfour 18/4(?) was mentioned(I reserve the tight to a brain fart ). I used beeswax and flaxseed oil hand rubbed, TruOil is also good.  I use it on gunstocks.
Hawkdancer

[bownarra]

Its Barbour linen. Makes a great string. That or grow some hemp. It is the best natural fiber by a margin.
Finishes - shellac is extremely waterproof and there is no need to use anything else. In fact shellac is a better sealer than tru-oil Another great natural finish is tung oil. Tro-oil is ok but only ok. It looks pretty good but isn't very scratch resistant nor is it the best at keeping moisture out.

[lonbow]

bownarra´s right. I´ve used shellac a couple of times and I´m really happy with it. You can first apply two or three coats of linseed oil and let it dry for several days. After that you can apply several coats of shellac. The linseed oil below the shellac highlights the wood grain.

[lonbow]

I´ve found some interesting results of testing different wood finishes. It´s written in german, but I think you might figure out the numbers on the chart.

Here´s the link: https://de.wikibooks.org/wiki/Bogenbau/_Finish/_Finish-Vergleich#/media/Datei:FinishtestHolz.png

[Eric Krewson]

I use shellac to seal staves but found it is not waterproof. If I forget a stave and leave it out overnight the finish will be frosted from the dew migrating into it in the morning.

Shellac is a great grain filling base coat, but needs a top coat of a more waterproof finish.

A lot of the flintlock gun builders use shellac as a base coat and follow up with a good oil finish.

The German study listed above reflects my findings.

The best finish I have ever used it the epoxy acetone or Massey finish. I am in lazy mode now and use Tru-oil on my bows and arrows, it works well for me.

[George Tsoukalas]

I like a waterproof stain or alcohol in Rit Dye followed by 3 coats of Spar Urethane. For osage I like 3  coats of Tru Oil followed by 3 of Spar Urethane. The Tru Oil seals the grain nicely. Jawge

[Fox]

Okay thanks for all the replies.. I think I'm going to Stick with shalack... I'll have to look into linen... I have lots of Dogbane around aswell but the time it takes to process, it would take a long time to make a bow string..