Ozbow

Hi Dave, I have found it is more convenient for transport especially when travelling overseas or going to an interstate trad shoot when you have to transport all the camping and associated gear as opposed to a fad. My preference is still a one piece bow. Thank you Perry, Dave, Steve and Alicat for y...

Hi Daniel, I cannot give you any any alternatives for backing timbers as I have always used bamboo for backing bows. Three Rivers advertise hickory strips for backing bows so I guess it must work. Possibly grain orientation may be a criteria as to being horizontal or vertical? When I get some other ...

Hi Daniel, I have managed to obtain milled hickory billets from Kruger Enterprises at Dinmore in Qld. Their phone number is 07 3282 1100. They bulk order from America about twice a year and I am waiting for their new shipment to arrive. The billets are approximately 48 x 48 x 910mm which means splic...

With my introduction to archery shooting an old 48# Damon Howitt that stacked like crazy I invested almost half a weeks wage on a Fred Bear Elk skin glove which I must admit was a superb glove. After heaps of arrows it had finally worn out. By that stage it was impossible to buy them locally and aft...

After playing around making three piece takedown bows I have come to the conclusion that they are a real pain in the backside to make. I am now going to focus on two piece takedowns using the metal sleeve system. The question is; is there an advantage as to which limb should be male or female as I h...

Hi wysper,
Welcome to the forum.
Before buying a longbow it would adviseable (if possible) to try different bows at your club. More importantly don't over bow yourself as you are holding all the weight at full draw.
Cheers,
Daryl.

Hi Grahame, Sorry if the reply is a little late, but as a relatively new user of the site I have not had the time to sift through a lot of the earlier threads. If the project is successful I will definately keep the form. Apart from the backset handle the bow is similar to a bow I showed in a previo...

Hi Grahame, What a coinidence, the bow you are describing is my next project. The following is an extract from David Grey's book 'Bows Of The World' The Renaissance Longbow "This modern bow, shown below, is inspired by the bows used by the Italian armies of the fourteenth and fifteenth centurie...

Congratulations on your latest success. Can you give us some performance figures? The rattlesnake skin adds a great touch. Unfortunately Australian Customs will not allow us to import the skins as they are on some resticted / protected list somewhere in the world. I would love to import some from 3 ...

You are making good progress. I can hardly wait to see the next batch of photos.
Daryl.

Hi Graeme,
Congratulations on a job well done but more so having the determation to keep trying. A couple of questions, does the bow torque in the hand and is there much hand shock?

Daryl.

Hi Graeme K and Archangel, The main problem that I have experienced is that the backing bamboo has failed, not the belly. I believe that part of the problem is the small diameter poles that I have been able to purchase. Possibly larger poles for the backing (lower crown) and smaller on the belly for...

Hi Graeme, Well done! The bow looks good and hopefully it will be a good shooter. The alternative backing to bamboo would appear to be the answer as I believe we have been trying to push bamboo past its physical limits. Having said that I will give bamboo another try as I have got it to work success...

Hi coolhippy80, I like your enthuasium for traditional archery and without wanting to dampen your spirit I would suggest that you make a few simple selfbows which will teach how different woods work and how to correctly tiller a bow. Once you master the art of tillering you could then move into lami...

Hi Graeme, Your build a long has been very interesting. One thing that I did notice in the photo 'finished back' that the nodes were just past the fadeout area. I prefer to splice my backing bamboo on the handle so that the nodes are on a non working area of the handle. I don't know if this a valid ...

Hi Steve,
Excellent build a long.
Hopefully it will encourage others to have a go even if they don't have some of the power tools.

Daryl.

Hi, There appears to be reluctance with some archers shooting longbow and recurve to use a bow stringer. Some of the sights you see at shoots make you shake your head in dismay. The step through method seems to be the most abused. From observations the person is either too tall, too short or doesn't...

Hi, I purchased a milled billet of rock maple 75mm x 75mm x 2.1 m. As I want to convert this billet to laminations to use under .040 glass for longbows and recurves I have to work out the best way to cut it to get maximum yield. The laminations will be in the vicinity of 1.5mm thick. I thought it be...

Hi Buzz I buy my roo from the local 'Super IGA' supermarket. My favourite dish is the herb and garlic processed by Macromeats. I am lucky that the local IGA is about a 90 second walk from my backdoor and at times pick the goodies at half price as they are getting close to their best by date but are ...

Hi Mick,
I recently repaired the tip overlays on a recurve bow using Dymondwood for a club member and they worked out extremly well.
Will send you an email.

Cheers,
Daryl.

Hi Steve,
Nice photos of your bows. It would appear that there are a lot of bowyers in Australia producing good bows on a non commercial basis. Hopefully your posting will encourage others to post photos of their achievements.
Daryl.

Hi dwd,
I will try to download the info from the data base and convert it to a suitable format for the site.

Daryl.

Hi Trad Shooters,

On behalf of the committee and members of North Albert I would like to thank you for making the Traditional Rendezvous a success and to GrahameA for great photographic record of the event.

Daryl.

Hi Jape, If you are going to save the bow I would suggest using a scraper and sandpaper as a spokeshave may be a little aggressive in what you need to do. The spokeshave is one of my favourite tools for selfbows but is used in the earlier stages of shaping the bow. Elbow grease, scrapers and sandpap...

Hi Jape, You did not mention if the flatbow was self or laminated. From previous experience with self bows I scrape or sand the belly if I need to reduce poundage. By doing this you remove less wood to obtain the same result by shaving the edges. I believe the ratio is somewhere around 7 to 1. Have ...

Hi Torsten,
A take down is probably the better option. With the take down you don't have to adjust to a new handle shape as you move up in poundage.
Some archery shops will trade in the lighter limbs on heavier ones.
Keep the little lady happy,

Daryl.

I have backed a few selfbows using Japanese jockey (as in horse racing) silk which is supposed to be better than suiting silk. It has a shiny and dull side. Apply the pva glue the dull side as well as the bow. Have the bow unbraced when applying the fabric. If you are using linen try a tear test as ...

Hi,
It has been interesting watching the progress of your build a long. The bow looks as though it should be a good shooting bow and hopefully you will be able to give us an update on its performance.
Daryl.

Hi,
The bow is looking good. Are the secondary grooves in the siyahs an aid to stringing the bow or did you shorten the nock to nock length to increase the draw weight?

Daryl.

Hi Dave, Depending on quality I have been paying between $4.00 and $6.00 per lineal metre for spotted gum 86 x 19. The main problem that I have encountered is that new and old growth as well as sap trails run through a lot of the boards. This may not be a big problem for an experienced bowyer but in...