Anyone here make their own bows?

Bill in Oregon · Post by **Bill in Oregon** » Sun Sep 18, 2016 10:55 am

I am in the heart of yew and vine maple country, and am feeling the call. Plus the weekend rains should bring up some chanterelles. Great time to live in the Pacific Northwest.

Marvin S · Post by **Marvin S** » Sun Sep 18, 2016 11:00 am

I've played with Osage orange some as it's plentiful in my area but I like my Northern Mist Baraga for shooting.

Panzercat · Post by **Panzercat** » Sun Sep 18, 2016 11:53 am

Does PVC bow craft count?

Seriously, theres some fun to be had with a heat gun and pvc piping. Hit up youtube for the basics, but a perfectly viable recurve is more than possible lol.

Camel73 · Post by **Camel73** » Sun Sep 18, 2016 12:48 pm

Unfortunately no, but I would love to..

Malamute · Post by **Malamute** » Sun Sep 18, 2016 1:08 pm

I think some of the guys on the BushcraftUSA forum were making bows.

Also seem to recall seeing a forum that was oriented towards traditional archers and longbows and making them.

Bill in Oregon · Post by **Bill in Oregon** » Sun Sep 18, 2016 3:11 pm

Malamute, I am a member of both the Primitive Archery forums and PaleoPlanet, outstanding sources of information on this. Just thought I would ask if any Levergunners also played with bow-making on the side.

Grizz · Post by **Grizz** » Sun Sep 18, 2016 5:52 pm

Bill

funny you should ask, I just got a "u-finish" bow from ringing rocks archery yesterday. I want to make bows from scratch, but don't have local high quality materials and don't want to wait 2 years for balks to cure.

if I keep this one I'll finish sanding and then put a finish on it. what finish do you favor for a self bow?

this bow has twisted limbs, both of them. looked at from the tips, when it is strung, the tips are not in the same plane as the limbs. is this normal? seems wierd to me and is not so with my old bear recurve...

6pt-sika · Post by **6pt-sika** » Sun Sep 18, 2016 6:15 pm

I know I don't have the patience to make a bow . And since my shoulders got messed up I can't draw a hunting weight compound so a recurve or longbow is out of the question .

But when I was bowhunting a lot I always wanted a couple long bows one made from Osage and the other from bamboo/cane !

jdad · Post by **jdad** » Sun Sep 18, 2016 7:02 pm

I just pulled 2 Vine Maples out of the yard. 6 more eventually will go. Messy trees that I didn't know had a purpose.

Old Ironsights · Post by **Old Ironsights** » Sun Sep 18, 2016 7:13 pm

Panzercat wrote:Does PVC bow craft count?

Seriously, theres some fun to be had with a heat gun and pvc piping. Hit up youtube for the basics, but a perfectly viable recurve is more than possible lol.

Good article in Richie's Backwoodsman Magazine... available on newsstands (and WalMart racks - next to The Enquirer) now.

Bill in Oregon · Post by **Bill in Oregon** » Sun Sep 18, 2016 7:36 pm

Grizz, jdad, this will answer some questions. Gordon lives in Tigard, OR. He is a genius with vine maple, as you will see. Vine maple's first champion was John Strunk, of Spirit Longbows in Tillamook, OR.

http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/inde ... 195.0.html

JerryB · Post by **JerryB** » Sun Sep 18, 2016 7:37 pm

I have an osage long bow I made several years ago. It is about 35 pounds and shoots real smooth. A friend gave me a book on bow making 'Art of Making Primitive Bows and Arrows' by D.C. Waldorf. It can be ordered from Mound Builder Books P.O. Box702 Branson, MO 65615. About the best and easy to use book I have seen on bow making. I made my bench to hold the stave from plans I found online. I have a pretty good bunch of different bow wood bolts cut and dried in the hay shed. I have not shot in about five years because of my shoulder. Started shooting a few arrows Friday and Saturday afternoon. I may be able to bow hunt this year. I really think bow making is easier than I thought it would be.

Bill in Oregon · Post by **Bill in Oregon** » Sun Sep 18, 2016 7:41 pm

Jerry, you are lucky to live in osage country. It makes a beautiful bow.

Malamute · Post by **Malamute** » Sun Sep 18, 2016 8:11 pm

Bill in Oregon wrote:Malamute, I am a member of both the Primitive Archery forums and PaleoPlanet, outstanding sources of information on this. Just thought I would ask if any Levergunners also played with bow-making on the side.

Ah, cool. I had forgotten about them, I saved them in an old computer but lost the links. I recall thinking theyd be interesting to look into more. It was sticking in the back of my mind there were other places, but couldn't recall where.

JerryB · Post by **JerryB** » Sun Sep 18, 2016 8:21 pm

If you can find osage growing in a clump you can cut some good bolts to dry and split into staves. Some other excellent bow woods are hickory, red cedar, black locust, ash and elm.

jdad · Post by **jdad** » Sun Sep 18, 2016 8:40 pm

Bill in Oregon wrote:Grizz, jdad, this will answer some questions. Gordon lives in Tigard, OR. He is a genius with vine maple, as you will see. Vine maple's first champion was John Strunk, of Spirit Longbows in Tillamook, OR.

http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/inde ... 195.0.html

I also live in Tigard...kind of. I'm still considered unincorporated Washington County.

crs · Post by **crs** » Mon Sep 19, 2016 8:44 am

A few years back, The FtWorth Cabelas had a bow making seminar for kids and 86er took his oldest son and I took my grandson. They both made bows and learned to shoot them well. I have pix of the boys and will add them to this post if I can locate them.

Malamute · Post by **Malamute** » Mon Sep 19, 2016 10:02 am

6pt-sika wrote:I know I don't have the patience to make a bow . And since my shoulders got messed up I can't draw a hunting weight compound so a recurve or longbow is out of the question .

But when I was bowhunting a lot I always wanted a couple long bows one made from Osage and the other from bamboo/cane !

I like traditional bows, but have some serious back and shoulder issues also. Nobody knows yet if it will ever be really functional again or to what degree. Ive taken a liking to medieval crossbows. With a cocking lever I may be able to work one. Some Ive seen are pretty interesting looking. Ive posted this before I think. Draw weights vary from long bow or "normal" bows, but some pretty stout crossbows can be had if one wants to hunt with them or just have the biggest draw on the block.

http://www.crossbows.net/5F_finnish.php

Parts can be had from these people and others. Hope to get to try it at some point, building a medieval crossbow.

Bill in Oregon · Post by **Bill in Oregon** » Mon Sep 19, 2016 4:10 pm

Malamute, I gave up compounds about five years ago because I could feel my right shoulder ready to go. Haven't drawn a bow much since then, but have a recurve and a Hungarian horse bow -- the latter very easy on the shoulder. The crossbow is in my eyes a very legitimate alternative to a bow especially for those with orthopedic issues. I wish my state were at all sympathetic to their use, but it is not, and neither is the bow-hunting majority here.
I think a nice, sweet-shooting hay-bale bow of 40 pounds would give great pleasure -- and be legal here for deer. Step it up to 50 and it becomes legal for elk.

JerryB · Post by **JerryB** » Mon Sep 19, 2016 9:40 pm

Bill, I know what you mean with a slick little bow to hunt hay bales and paper plates. It has probably been closer to five years that I had to quit shooting here in the yard because of my shoulder. The little osage self bow I made is about 35 pound pull. I have a 54 inch 40 pound bow that an old friend had made when he lived in Los Alamos, NM for deer hunting. It is the smoothest sweetest bow I have ever shot. I started shooting a few arrows last week and it actually seems to help my shoulder. My chiropractor said to shoot a few arrows every couple of days and just see how it does.
I can shoot guns here any more so at least I can get in some bow shooting again, maybe enough that I can hunt this year.

Bill in Oregon · Post by **Bill in Oregon** » Tue Sep 20, 2016 9:02 am

Jerry, what a nice memory, and good for you for exercising the shoulder in such a pleasant way. The draw, the release, the quiet hiss of the air on the fletching, the slap as the shaft hits the target. Our species has been loving this for untold thousands of years.
I never got to explore Los Alamos like I wanted to, but sure admired the country. Did get to poke around Bandalier. New Mexico is indeed the Land of Enchantment.

jdad · Post by **jdad** » Tue Sep 20, 2016 9:36 am

I remember earning my Archery merit badge one summer, at BSA camp, in upstate NY. They had a bunch of green fiberglass (?) recurves that IIRC were 25#-35#. I used the one 40# bow and IIRC it was a Bear Grizzly. It was bigger than the green bows, but was really easy to use. I haven't handled a bow since my early teens, but I would probably lean towards a recurve like the Grizzly...if they're still made.

Bill in Oregon · Post by **Bill in Oregon** » Tue Sep 20, 2016 10:08 am

Jdad, lots of recurves out there, but you can find the old Bear recurves used -- and can probably find that very model in shootable condition if you poke around pawn shops, Craiglist or the archery forums such as Tradgang, Archerytalk or Stickbow. Take it to an archery shop first though, to ensure the limbs are in sound condition and not twisted before you brace it.

jdad · Post by **jdad** » Tue Sep 20, 2016 10:18 am

Thanks for the tip. I know we have a shop close by. It's hidden behind a Vietnamese restaurant in a weird strip mall. I went in there many years ago because the sign caught my eye and it seemed so out of place.

http://www.archersafield.com/

Grizz · Post by **Grizz** » Tue Sep 20, 2016 11:58 pm

I have a Bear 45# recurve in alaska. doubt I'd enjoy tugging on that one until I get practiced and tuned up with a lighter bow. old bow. no string. have to put that on the list of stuff to send in. I'm at the point where I'm only half drawing the 35# stick bow. need to get some arrows whittled or cast or however its done. Heh

just saw a self bow on t.v. that was in a jungle house in Nicaragua. strung. very short looking, probably closer to three feet long than four. with a long looking arrow. the man's boar hunting outfit. I'm pretty sure we have over persued the technology

JerryB · Post by **JerryB** » Thu Sep 22, 2016 8:48 pm

Well, I shot my osage selfbow this evening and decided that I might just go ahead and try to hunt. Our bow season opens this Saturday the 24th. I am only shooting from forty feet, but I am shooting a better group than I thought I would. I know that some fresh deer meat would make my shoulder feel better.

Grizz · Post by **Grizz** » Thu Sep 22, 2016 9:30 pm

good hunting Jerry, hope you tag 'em

Griff · Post by **Griff** » Thu Sep 22, 2016 9:38 pm

Yes, but my wife does a much better job. So, other than her gifts, she wraps everything else!

And she ties my bowtie also... I can do it... but it's so much better looking in her eyes as she does!

Bill in Oregon · Post by **Bill in Oregon** » Fri Sep 23, 2016 8:15 am

Jerry, that's the spirit friend. Hope you put some free-range organic in the freezer ASAP.

PriseDeFer · Post by **PriseDeFer** » Tue Sep 27, 2016 6:56 pm

A short flatbow that draws about 30 pounds at around 20 inches can be kinder to
injured shoulders. And they are like the little "toy" bows that George Catlin saw and marveled at when he saw the little toy arrows disappear in buffalo.

JerryB · Post by **JerryB** » Tue Sep 27, 2016 9:54 pm

I have seen some deer but not taken a shot yet. A couple does in range but they are still kind of ribby, most of the deer have really filled out nice on acorns except these to I keep seeing. I still shoot a few arrows with my recurve every couple of days.

I am about ready to start a new bow, might thing about a short flatbow.

Grizz · Post by **Grizz** » Tue Sep 27, 2016 10:49 pm

is "flatbow" the same as "board bow"?

I've added red oak to my box store list, when I find something decent I'll saw out a board bow and see where it goes from there.

worst case is I might wind up with a short canoe paddle I guess

jmiller · Post by **jmiller** » Wed Sep 28, 2016 11:00 am

I started shooting archery over sixty years ago. Back in those days there were no compound bows. My father learned how to make laminated recurve bows from scratch. We made all our own bows and hunted with them and shot field archery tournaments with them. I shot my first seventeen deer with a homemade recurve bow and won two state shoots, two mid-atlantic shoots, and came in second in the junior class at the nationals with those home made bows. Back in the 70s NYS started making everyone take a certification class if you wanted to hunt with a bow. My father and I had to take it even though we were very experienced archers and hunters. The instructor told more personal stories than safety stuff and somehow he got on the subject of the new compound bows and how they were making recurve bows obsolete (these early compounds weren't the same compounds you see today, they were pretty primitive). My dad challenged him to a "flight" shoot to see which bow would shoot an arrow further, the instructor's new compound or my dad's home made recurve. We went out side and shot three times. Each time my dad's recurve shot a heavier arrow further than the instructors compound. Kind of an eye opener. Today's compounds would easily beat those old recurves. Most of the deer we shot were complete pass throughs with those recurves. We had custom made a form for the limbs, built a heat box for curing the glue, and made a fixture for building the riser. It took us about forty hours to make a bow. We built dozens of those bows and not one ever broke. I still have three of them which I never use. I strung them up a couple of years ago and shot them at an indoor range and got a lot of looks. Everyone was surprised to find out that they were home made. FWIW, the first time I met Fred Bear was in Michigan where my dad and I were trout fishing. We met Fred on the stream and got to talking about archery. He invited us to his plant and we went the next day. His process was very similar to ours but automated. It took us 24 hours to heat cure our limbs and he did it in about fifteen minutes. Other than that, they were made the same way. To date I've shot over eighty deer with a bow. My dad got his last archery deer on his 84th birthday at my camp. He's gone now but I still have a lot of good memories of making bows and hunting with him.

M. M. Wright · Post by **M. M. Wright** » Wed Sep 28, 2016 11:30 am

jmiller, So glad you've got those wonderful memories and thanks for sharing them.

Bill in Oregon · Post by **Bill in Oregon** » Wed Sep 28, 2016 12:31 pm

J: Yes, thank you indeed for sharing this memories. Wow!

Camel73 · Post by **Camel73** » Wed Sep 28, 2016 7:22 pm

It's nice to read some traditional archery stuff here...

JerryB, I've seen a lot of ribby deer here and very small ones also. If our precipitation keeps up winter kill could take a toll this season.

Nice to see that you're making it out there.

jmiller, you should give us a topic write-up on how you went about yer bow makin

I for one would absolutly love that!

Bill in Oregon - Thank you for the topic sir!

Blaine · Post by **Blaine** » Wed Sep 28, 2016 7:32 pm

jdad wrote:I just pulled 2 Vine Maples out of the yard. 6 more eventually will go. Messy trees that I didn't know had a purpose.

Blacktails make good use of them. Makes life miserable to try to go thru them.....

JerryB · Post by **JerryB** » Wed Sep 28, 2016 9:34 pm

jmiller, thanks for the great write up. I know the country around Grayling, my family deer hunted and trout fished on the Manistee river and we canoed and fished the Ausable river a lot too.

Leverguns and traditional archery kind of go together.

PriseDeFer · Post by **PriseDeFer** » Wed Sep 28, 2016 11:17 pm

A flatbow can be made from a sapling, limb or a board. Building a board bow can be quicker. I've used white ash, pecan, hickory. Here is a nice tutorial using the red oak that you can get at Home Depot etc.

http://poorfolkbows.com/oak.htm

Learn how to make strings. You'll need a long string for tillering, I used 1/8 inch
wire rope and the clamps that go with it, not for shooting just for the first bending and shaping.

Grizz · Post by **Grizz** » Thu Sep 29, 2016 11:00 am

thanks, I am following that build. turns out that I probably got the wrong grain structure in the board I bought, but I am going to forge ahead with it anyway.

I learn by breaking things, not by reading about NOT breaking things, so . . . onward thru the chips and shavings . . .

Camel73 · Post by **Camel73** » Thu Sep 29, 2016 1:10 pm

Grizz wrote: I learn by breaking things, not by reading about NOT breaking things, so . . . onward thru the chips and shavings . . .

Lol, that seems familiar somehow...
I'll be checking that build out too

Blaine · Post by **Blaine** » Thu Sep 29, 2016 2:19 pm

Grizz wrote:thanks, I am following that build. turns out that I probably got the wrong grain structure in the board I bought, but I am going to forge ahead with it anyway.

I learn by breaking things, not by reading about NOT breaking things, so . . . onward thru the chips and shavings . . .

I used to do that...I just got tired of paying good money for my mistakes...

Grizz · Post by **Grizz** » Thu Sep 29, 2016 3:57 pm

BlaineG wrote:
Grizz wrote:thanks, I am following that build. turns out that I probably got the wrong grain structure in the board I bought, but I am going to forge ahead with it anyway.

I learn by breaking things, not by reading about NOT breaking things, so . . . onward thru the chips and shavings . . .
I used to do that...I just got tired of paying good money for my mistakes...

after I hired nyc bmw to rebuild my R-50 engine and donated my entire savings account to them, I began the process of discovering that it is FAR CHEAPER to break things and fix them myself than it is to hire someone else to do it. that covers the cost of the parts, however many times I break them, and the tools I need to replace them. the cost of my mistakes is chalked up to the tuition cost of the school of hard knocks.

the extension of this is that I make enough money NOT hiring someone to work on my vehicles that it more than pays for the tires and other stuff and covers a good portion of the gasoline bill for wearing out the tires.