Nettle Bow String?

[Diligence]

All,

I've heard of it being done, but have any of you actually been successful making it? I've made lots of nettle cordage, but I've never strung any on a bow.

Any tips or trick for end treatments? (flemish twist, etc)

cheers,
D

 

[SkogKniv]

I have never tried it but I would think the use of the nettle with so much strain, would give out after some mild use. Sinew seems to be a best bet for an all natural material.

 

[clownman]

i dont think i'd dare try it, last thing i'd want is to be smacked in the face by a bow arm when the string gave up

 

[troy]

Have used nettle strings on low powered bows that I made for the young kids, say 20 to 30 lb, not much use above that tho.

depends how you make it really but I found the best way was to soak the stems in order to get the inner bark, which makes a far nicer looking string - as far as amounts go, it took a whole boot load to make just two strings plus soaking them in something like saddle soap or leather conditioner helps prevent to much friction.

 

[Dexter]

How about nettle string on a fire bow. Anyone tried that?

 

[Wilderbeast]

How about nettle string on a fire bow. Anyone tried that?

by "fire drill" do you mean "bow drill" or something different?

 

[Dexter]

Lol.. my bad. Yes a bow drill. A fire bow sounds like something rather nasty you might use in battle.

 

[Chance]

I made a small yew bow for my daughter on which the nettle cordage string has survived a couple of years. Straight from weed to bow; no drying, no soaking. Tension from the wood has prevented loosening of the lay.
But I can't say that I'd want to risk scaling it up to a 'real' bow; and I wouldn't have the skill, patience, knuckle skin or expletive vocabulary for nettle on a bow drill.
Would it not be, almost by definition, one of the pinnacles of bushcraft: to walk into the woods with nothing, and come out with fire ?

 

[JohnC]

I tried a nettle string on a bow drill, it wore through quickly, but I tried with a little more success using the egyptian style tying/ wrapping of the string round the spindle, it seemed to be less abrasive.

 

[gregorach]

If you're meaning a bow to shot arrows from, I don't think nettle is up to the job for anything with enough draw to be useful. I think horsehair or flax are the traditional options for that.

 

[Toddy]

IF you take the time to properly rett out the nettle fibres, and then spin them damp, and then ply them up balanced, they will make a string as effectively as flax or hemp.

Straight from the plant to the firebow string, make it fine, keep it even and ply it up at least twice and it works very, very well indeed.

cheers,
Toddy

 

[Diligence]

any suggestions for making the loops Toddy? I would use a constrictor knot on one end, but a loop on the other.

D

 

[Toddy]

This is where I confess my total ignorance of modern bowstring fixings
One end was spliced and whipped to create a permanent loop that fitted over the nock, the other was just wrapped around itself three times and the end slipped under the wraps and pulled tight.........it worked.

Actually, this is a subject in it's own right, all these knots for fastening bowstrings and the like..........and I'm so not the one to talk to about them

Hopefully the archers will be along to have a look at the thread.

cheers,
Toddy

 

[troy]

Two methods I used to use for loops with natural materials;

For threads twisted together - place all the threads together and twist a couple of times for the length that you needed the loop to be, then bring the ends together and carry on twisting these together.

I did used to braid them together as well which I thought might of added some strength and prevent less stretch - start with 4 strings, half them and braid a 4 braid for the length of the loop needed then bring the now 8 strings together and do a 8 string braid.

In the end despite all my experimentation I ended up using a aparatus to make strings with dacron - once you start making bows above 20 lb its the best option.

 

[Chance]

Just adding it as an option, but a timber hitch has served me well at the low-ish tensions I'm playing with.
Emphasis on playing.

 

[Diligence]

Thanks Troy - I understand that method. I want to attempt a bow with all natural fibers, but also don't want to break my bow...

Toddy - the "other end wrapped around itself" is my method of tying a "constrictor knot" or timber hitch....although I think it has other names too.

cheers all,
D

 

[ForgeCorvus]

Try this
http://www.stickbow.com/stickbow/features/flemishstring/flemishstring.html
He's telling you how to make a double-loop Flemish string, personally I use a single loop Flemish with a timber hitch

The jig is not needed, my brother makes them using just a nail to hook the loop on


Someone who knows more about fibres will have to tell you if you need to make strands first or not (I would think so, but I've never even tried to make cordage)

 

[Diligence]

excellent link....I'll have to give that a try.

D

 

[bushcraftbob]

I made about a matre of nettle cordage last night, using fibres that i picked in the summer, it does seem very strong, and im sure i could get at leat one ember out of it using the bowdrill before it breaks!

Is there anything that can be applied to te nettle cordage to prolong its life, i.e beeswax or something? As once it dries will it start to fray and break?

cheers

 

[Toddy]

Do you know what unspum flax fibres look like ? Well imagine those kind of scaled down to about 10cms long, fine and white. That's what the actual nettle fibre looks like.
If it's spun properly; damp, fine and even, and then plyed up several times, it will make a superb string. However, it's a lot of work making it so clean, so miost of us will use the skin that contains the fibre just as it is. This makes it easier to make, but it also weakens the string since all the chaff that is the dried skin will over time crumble away leaving the string seriously underspun. That's when it gets a chance to fray.
Work it damp, work it tight and fine, ply it up to the thickness you want and it will be a good cord though.

cheers,
Toddy