callling bowyers help need on a project.

[greatbear]

hiya fella's ive recently watched a youtube video of dave Canterbury shooting a survival takedown bow.
I immediately went into I want one mode.
thing is you cant get em over here and if you could they would cost a fortune.
so am looking to make something like myself. no wood involved as I want the bow to be almost maintanence free so fibre glass is the way to go.
it has to be foldable or take down. am wanting to know where to get the bits I need. I was thinking of a draw weight of about 38lbs at 28 inches. and a total length of about 4 feet long. my first thought was to get two solid glass rod blanks of exactly the same measurements and tapers and connecting them together in the middle like a Victorian carriage bow.
or do it in 3 pieces like the bow dave Canterbury uses which would be harder to do without the right machines etc but again my problem is getting hold of the flat thick fibre glass to make the limbs. anyone done a similar project with success?
cheers guys GB

 

[ozzy1977]

Sound like an interesting but tricky problem.

 

[dwardo]

Cannot believe I am saying this but have you looked at PVC plastic pipe bows? They do work but start to lose cast pretty quickly and dont last long.
You can make all-wood take down bows but you have to buy a collar for the handle. Basically as you said they are just shaped and fitted brass pipes with a steel collar, not cheap. You are also going to struggle with 4ft long in anything besides a synthian/horsebow type of design. Good rule of thumb is twice your draw length plus the handle length plus 10% so 28+28+5+a bit is well over 60 so 5 ft.

I am making a take down at the minute. Just deciding wether to cut a perfect yew stave or go for elm.

 

[Bladeophile]

Can you describe or show the handle section in the middle on say - a wooden takedown bow? I'm imagining two limbs at say 2.5' ish length and something that bolts the two together. Cheers.

 

[palmnut]

I suppose if you could find some decent quality large diameter bamboo then a Bhutanese bow could be made so that the two sections bolt together at the handle. If you can find he 'boo, then this should be quite quick and simple to make. Still likely to be 5ft+ length mind you.

I've yet to find a source of decent quality bamboo in the UK that will make a decent weight (~40lb) Bhutanese bow that will take the strain, however :-(

Peter

 

[greatbear]

thanks for your comments guys im determined to make this work. on ebay I found a guy in uk selling one of the survival bows dave Canterbury was using. they sell in the states for around 70/80 dollars but the one for sale on ebay was listed buy it now at around £325 . thought its a bit much and a similar thing can be made if you can get hold of the right materials.
so still on with it. but ant been able to start yet.
materials are the problem. am determined to do it in fibre glass or similar..looks like ive set myself a right task.

 

[boatman]

To pep up a short bow to 38lbs is easily possible although making such a short bow to only draw that much would be easy anyway. Take a take down "stealth bow" and apply cordage technology to the desired weight. Stealth bow apparently draws 20lb so tensioned nylon cord should work.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Petron-Stealth-Leisure-Bow-Kit/dp/B009NU82I0/ref=pd_sim_sbs_sg_2 Can be found much cheaper.

http://www.primitiveways.com/cordage_backed_bow.html

 

[dwardo]

If you have a look through my stave making and tillering thread you will see a gorgeous laburnam take down bow by yarrow. Should show the sleeve too or just google take down bow sleeve.
the problem you have with a short bow and log draw is not only material issues but stack and string angle/finger pinch.
Basically a bow is two levers and they have a maximum bend before they become inefficient. The horn bows get round this with big sihas or ears.
It also is incredibly hard to make a short bow that's tillered well without lots of practice. Definitely consider a shorter draw length and also take in mind that shorter bows by their nature are less accurate due to stability.
Unless you fancy going down the bowyer route and learning the craft then buying a cheap take down is probably the best option. The usual glass 3 piece ones break down to nothing. Not as lovely as an all wood bow but still fling an arrow albeit with less soul.

 

[yarrow]

I too have seen this bow you talk of. And admittedly I am biased as I make and shoot wood long bows, but honestly you want to be making yourself a wood takedown bow. The draw weight you are looking at does not need much wood at all to make - two thin strips of hazel would do it. Buy a commercially available take down sleeve or make one out of suitable metal tube or pipe. Once you have made one out of wood and seen how easy it is you would not want a plastic or pvc one in your gear. Plus wood grows all around and is "the" go to material for bows & its a great way to expand your bushcraft knowledge of trees and their different properties. Trees spend all there lives resisting and flexing in the wind, we can utilise this inherent trait to our advantage without having to look too far or reinvent the wheel with pvc pipe. Wood is also very durable, it just needs a good sealer. If you have leather boots or a leather sheath for your knife then why not a wooden bow? Wood and leather need the same care. But as I said I am biased here is why-

 

[nuggets]

Yarrow ,them look fantastic

 

[dwardo]

Thats the one mate Fast and hits very hard that one, even on the side of a lock with freezing fingers ...

 

[greatbear]

if it were not for the fact that this bow needs to be very long lasting requiring almost no maintainance and be almost indestructible I would try to make a wood bow. they do look amazing