Ozbow

Hey Ian, thanks for the words of support. You should know though, that this 'bowyer' is as local as me. More and more people are becoming aware of who he is - once known for real top-shelf bows, now known for being a dishonorable piker. There are many good bowyers around, including a few blokes who ...

Newzin I think you're on track. Things aren't just 'slow' now - as fairly raised, a 'hobbyist' may not always have all the time they'd like to give to their passion. I'm one of these people myself, as you may be too. But once you have accepted part or full payment as deposit for goods, you have just...

Yeah mate, a little wedge of wood or even veg tanned leather can be glued on and then sanded to smooth it into the profile of the handle. It doesn't have to be huge, just enough to support an arrow shaft. it just popped into my mind that a wooden golf tee split right down the middle could work.... T...

G'day Daryl, Thanks so much for your reply. I indeed have played around with reversing tapers to get enough thickness in the tips, and lessen the rate of taper, but there just ain't enough wood here for the limb weight and limb action that I want. For days I was just looking at the laminations think...

Hi All, Well I received my longbow kit in the mail from John Clark the other day, the contents were really interesting and raised a few points worthy of mention. Firstly, the riser block, or more to the point - the fades. Well they are primo - fade is very smooth and gradual, with 5-10mm of transpar...

Hi Daryl, Thanks very much for this valuable input. It seems to me too, that an eliptical tiller with stiffer tips is an appropriate profile for the hill-style limb. I've read as much as I can find about this topic on the forums, and 3-4 tapered laminations @ .001/lineal inch per lamination has come...

Thanks for the reply Daryl, Were you referring to the binghams or woomera design as potentially whip ended? The issue with being a beginner is that I'm in a position of having to trust that the experts know what they are giving me........ Could I ask you Daryl, if planning a 68" hill style 55@2...

Hi Daryl, Thanks for the reply. If I'm understanding right, you made a similar query to 'Mr Binghams', and he reassured you the performance (stiffness) is the same, but that the clear is not as hard ie. would perhaps scratch and dent a little easier? Interesting distinction, I hadn't thought of it i...

hi everyone - after a few years of trying to produce a functional, shootable selfbow/wood laminate bow, I 've decided to change tack. You can't even procure large diameter bamboo in Adelaide to back grain violated billets of otherwise potentially useful timber. Failures can teach us a lot,granted, b...

'dutchman' a term I reckon I've read here at times and in american sites too - just a 'peg' mate.

Hey Colin, Was as Olivers on the weekend - maybe Adelaide is 'The Sinew Capital' of Australia! Goat tendons $50 1kg bag, Roo tendons $50 1kg bag, and single 12"long (beef?) sinew pieces $3ea. And yes they also have an extensive selection of pigs ears-heaven!!!

Wouldn't have thought the size, quantity or position of the holes will be undermining the strength of the riser - Whether colour matched or not, would not a pair of 'dowels',or 'dutchmen' tight-fitted, tapped in, and epoxied do the job?

Hey Hunterguy, I'm from Adelaide, the worlds most barren desert in regard to bowmaking materials! But even here I've spied big bags of kangaroo sinew for 50-odd bucks at a particular pet feed/fodder store......would have thought you'd be sure to have such businesses up in your neck of the woods? I d...

Hey Cetan, your challenge may be finding a secondhand one - reckon if I had one of these it'd go on the 'keeper' rack. Good thing about a reputable bowyer is that material/manufacturing failures will be super rare, but at worst will be sorted in quick time. Best of luck.

Hey Steve, I reckon get a bow and start shooting. Six months down the track you'll have generated some experience and insight into archery, and this will really help your bow building then.

Is that right BigBob - I wish I'd heard about what you've heard about! Sent you a PM.

Yeah thanks Wayno, hope so too.

Hi guys, I commissioned a bow to be built for me a while back, and it hasn't been the most clear cut experience. I'm still waiting for my bow, and indeed can't even get into contact with the bowyer via any method. My caution is to choose your custom bowyer with utmost care, and set extremely clear t...

Hi Jordan, I definitely agree that a pyramid design is the best design to tackle first up. There are some very good 'buildalongs' on the net, and the tillering stage is a bit simpler on a pyramid bow. Also it can be a fast, sweet shooting design. The mollegabet design looks beautifully simple as mos...

Ha!

Very pleased to hear it Ron!

Out of interest (and my ongoing archery education), what arrows are you shooting, and what brace height have you settled on?

Again, I'm stoked you are happy.

Darren

Sold! Now for my 60lb Old Billy Bow......

Here are the photos -

For Sale - 64" 50#@28" RH Bear Montana longbow. Has shot approximately 500 arrows. Practically as new. Smooth drawing and very quiet to shoot. I've removed the infamously cheap handgrip and the arrow rest/ strike plate as well. Have replaced the arrow rest/ strike plate with fluffy velcro ...

At least it is your left shoulder - I've a faintly lingering impingement in my left shoulder, but shooting right handed the left side does have the slightly easier role...... Your patience with rehab will be CRITICAL! If you think you may be around the mark come christmas, pile on the caution and ai...

Sounds very interesting mate, I'm sure you're going to nail it. At your recent rate of working, I guess we'll see the finished article by tomorrow morning or thereabouts!?

Darren

Hey Guys, Well I glued up my first spotted gum/bamboo stave this morning with titebond 3. Got a little impatient and peeled off the wrapping just now and realised I've stuffed it. :shock: :roll. Not through my impatience mind you, my mistake was the sequence in which I glued the two 36" bamboo ...

Great persistence mate- I'm not sure I would have been able to power through that much discouragment :sad: I looked at that same hickory stave a Ottos last November- it's maddening that they have tons of larger hickory stock in their piles - just not interested in getting off their bums to cut anoth...