Bows?
Re: Bows?
That would be good. I'd greatly appreciate that.
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dwayne davis
- Silent Watcher over the Peaceful Lands
- Posts: 288
- Joined: Fri Jun 12, 2009 5:38 am
- Location: north east TN.
Re: Bows?
Just a side note on the knife blade from atlanta cutlery. i have been using the blade for about two months now, it is fairly tough. i have even hammered it through a 6 inch round peice of wild cherry ( using another smaller scrapp of wood) it held up well , something i was not sure about. but it has held.
Not all who are old are wise, not all who are young are fools
Where now is the horse and rider? where is the horn that was blowing?
Where now is the horse and rider? where is the horn that was blowing?
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mcapanelli
- Haeropada
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- Joined: Sat Feb 16, 2008 1:48 pm
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- Contact:
Re: Bows?
Just cut it out and get a Mac already.Peter Remling wrote:If it were me I'd do a factory install and the original version of Picasa should then run and you'd be able to add to your albums. My eldest happens to be coming home late tonight, Ill ask her then post bac. It will be late or sometime tomarrow.
Winter is coming
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Greg
- Urush bithî 'nKi ya-nam bawâb
- Posts: 4496
- Joined: Tue Dec 02, 2008 8:50 pm
- Location: Eriador; Central Indiana
Re: Bows?
To continue our lengthy discussion on bows, bowmaking, and the like, I am currently collecting materials to make my first homemade stick and string. I've been working on the design for months now off and on, and have begun pulling it all together.
I'm in love with the grip on my Bear Paw recurve, so I'm building a bow form off of the handle shape, for starters. I'm using that form to make a 54" longbow with the aforementioned set-back handle (which I find helps me more intuitively fire a bow) that is at least 50# draw, with slightly reflexed tips to try to remove a little hand shock. I'm using as many primitive materials as possible; handmade hide glue, bamboo back, yew belly, and leather and sinew wrapping on strategic points for structural stability. I've never seen a longbow with a set-back handle before; they all seem to have recurved limbs or siyahs, so this may be more or less a first. If I can come up with a solid functional production model, I'd like to start making them pseudo-commercially. They're going to look extremely "rugged"...very old-fashioned and fantasy~ish. In my mind, the perfect ranger bow, combining the knowledge and craftsmanship of the elves with the size, shape, and performance needs of a ranger. I'm going to post a photographic build-along on both tradgang and here, as the project begins to unfold. Hopefully, building costs will remain under $200 so they can be made easily available to you folk if anyone's interested. I'm sick of custom bows that cost upwards of $500, yet don't quite have the look and feel I want. Prototype sketches will be posted shortly.
In other news, I have recently fallen in love with the images on James Parker's Huntworthy Productions website. His "All Natural" bows especially, have an incredibly backwoodsy look and feel to them. Copious amounts of bamboo are used, and his creative staining techniques are incredibly unique. He also dabbles in horsebows, and I am incredibly impressed with the handiwork. Something to look into, for those of you who are in the market such as myself.
I'm in love with the grip on my Bear Paw recurve, so I'm building a bow form off of the handle shape, for starters. I'm using that form to make a 54" longbow with the aforementioned set-back handle (which I find helps me more intuitively fire a bow) that is at least 50# draw, with slightly reflexed tips to try to remove a little hand shock. I'm using as many primitive materials as possible; handmade hide glue, bamboo back, yew belly, and leather and sinew wrapping on strategic points for structural stability. I've never seen a longbow with a set-back handle before; they all seem to have recurved limbs or siyahs, so this may be more or less a first. If I can come up with a solid functional production model, I'd like to start making them pseudo-commercially. They're going to look extremely "rugged"...very old-fashioned and fantasy~ish. In my mind, the perfect ranger bow, combining the knowledge and craftsmanship of the elves with the size, shape, and performance needs of a ranger. I'm going to post a photographic build-along on both tradgang and here, as the project begins to unfold. Hopefully, building costs will remain under $200 so they can be made easily available to you folk if anyone's interested. I'm sick of custom bows that cost upwards of $500, yet don't quite have the look and feel I want. Prototype sketches will be posted shortly.
In other news, I have recently fallen in love with the images on James Parker's Huntworthy Productions website. His "All Natural" bows especially, have an incredibly backwoodsy look and feel to them. Copious amounts of bamboo are used, and his creative staining techniques are incredibly unique. He also dabbles in horsebows, and I am incredibly impressed with the handiwork. Something to look into, for those of you who are in the market such as myself.
Now the sword shall come from under the cloak.
Re: Bows?
I am going to be in the market sooner then I wanted, it appears my 45ish year old bow is dieing 
but it was a hand me down from my dad. I will be looking for at least 50# in either long or recurve or both. I am still thinking about making my own but have not committed yet.
In the last issue of backwoodsman there was a article about making a bow from a wooden crutch so I will be attempting that as soon as I find some time to play in the garage.
but it was a hand me down from my dad. I will be looking for at least 50# in either long or recurve or both. I am still thinking about making my own but have not committed yet.In the last issue of backwoodsman there was a article about making a bow from a wooden crutch so I will be attempting that as soon as I find some time to play in the garage.
"Knowledge is a weapon. I intend to be formidably armed." Richard, the Seeker (Sword of Truth)"
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dwayne davis
- Silent Watcher over the Peaceful Lands
- Posts: 288
- Joined: Fri Jun 12, 2009 5:38 am
- Location: north east TN.
Re: Bows?
hey guys,
I was reading this thread and noticed the mention of the welsh short bow. i have owned one of these. notice the past tense ( owned) the ones on the market are made from red oak if memory serves. so was mine. it did well untill it snapped in twain. ( on a mildly cold north east TN morning, about 38 degrese.) now one made from a diferent wood such as hickory or osage orange might do a bit better. but oak is just not a good bow wood. oh imho fur silencers would look just fine.
I was reading this thread and noticed the mention of the welsh short bow. i have owned one of these. notice the past tense ( owned) the ones on the market are made from red oak if memory serves. so was mine. it did well untill it snapped in twain. ( on a mildly cold north east TN morning, about 38 degrese.) now one made from a diferent wood such as hickory or osage orange might do a bit better. but oak is just not a good bow wood. oh imho fur silencers would look just fine.
Not all who are old are wise, not all who are young are fools
Where now is the horse and rider? where is the horn that was blowing?
Where now is the horse and rider? where is the horn that was blowing?
Re: Bows?
Does anyone shoot of the hand?? As I stated I'm kinda looking at some bows but don't want to spend a lot of money. Dark knight armory has a bunch of really nice looking bow around 250 and under. I know there are probably better bows out there but it wont be my last bow and i want to try a few different kinds and weights. As soon as I finish going through all of them I will post the links to a couple I'm looking at.
"Knowledge is a weapon. I intend to be formidably armed." Richard, the Seeker (Sword of Truth)"
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Greg
- Urush bithî 'nKi ya-nam bawâb
- Posts: 4496
- Joined: Tue Dec 02, 2008 8:50 pm
- Location: Eriador; Central Indiana
Re: Bows?
For those of you who craft your own arrows, 3Rivers has a great deal going on right now for fletching. 20% off of dozens, 10% off of 100's. I'm definitely loading up.
http://www.3riversarchery.com/Arrow+Bui ... thumb.html
http://www.3riversarchery.com/Arrow+Bui ... thumb.html
Now the sword shall come from under the cloak.
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Greg
- Urush bithî 'nKi ya-nam bawâb
- Posts: 4496
- Joined: Tue Dec 02, 2008 8:50 pm
- Location: Eriador; Central Indiana
Re: Bows?
Alright, I've acquired the Bamboo and Ipe staves that will eventually become my first of many (hopefully) Ranger-intended bows. I drew up my form last night to plan out where the riser block will run and where the limb core will go, and I daresay I've come up with a design that is structurally sound but remains traditional enough in design and form that it would have been doable in Middle Earth. For my first bow, I'm going to use Urac 185 to glue it up so that I can test the design, but eventually I'm planning on making my own natural glues. If they don't work, I'll just say the elves made my glue, and call it a day.
Here's a Microsoft-paint version of the bow form, so you all have an idea of what I'm planning [note: the riser is longer in this image in comparison with the limbs than it will actually be...a bow made to scale of this drawing would explode]:
The limbs aren't supposed to go quite that far forward of the riser when unstrung, so pardon the not-quoite-accurate drawing. I'm sticking with fairly narrow limbs, as the Ipe and Bamboo should be able to handle them. It'll allow for as light a bow as possible for carrying and shooting quickly, as well as make for faster limbs. It'll be shot off the hand, so there's no structural loss in the riser from a sight window.
In the space where, on a modern longbow or recurve, there would be limb fades at the ends of the riser, the bow will be wrapped in Sinew for a rugged look, feel, and for added structural support. These wraps will be duplicated at the limb tip overlays, which will be either Ipe or antler (probably Ipe for the first few bows...I want to try to keep it light).
The working portion of the limb is going to be fairly long as compared to most, but that's how I'm keeping it short. The bows aren't going to be made any longer than about 54". Making them draw smooth will, of course, be the big challenge, but I think it's doable.
Here's a Microsoft-paint version of the bow form, so you all have an idea of what I'm planning [note: the riser is longer in this image in comparison with the limbs than it will actually be...a bow made to scale of this drawing would explode]:
The limbs aren't supposed to go quite that far forward of the riser when unstrung, so pardon the not-quoite-accurate drawing. I'm sticking with fairly narrow limbs, as the Ipe and Bamboo should be able to handle them. It'll allow for as light a bow as possible for carrying and shooting quickly, as well as make for faster limbs. It'll be shot off the hand, so there's no structural loss in the riser from a sight window.
In the space where, on a modern longbow or recurve, there would be limb fades at the ends of the riser, the bow will be wrapped in Sinew for a rugged look, feel, and for added structural support. These wraps will be duplicated at the limb tip overlays, which will be either Ipe or antler (probably Ipe for the first few bows...I want to try to keep it light).
The working portion of the limb is going to be fairly long as compared to most, but that's how I'm keeping it short. The bows aren't going to be made any longer than about 54". Making them draw smooth will, of course, be the big challenge, but I think it's doable.
Now the sword shall come from under the cloak.