Bow woods

[pdccr]

I went around town for an hour to every carpet and flooring place in mackay, none of them stock bamboo flooring. Since that was my plan i now have no wood to make anything with. I am searching for a mill around mackay but they seem to be elusive and out dated.

Any one else in a wood desert? I am going to try and use any bloody thing i get now.

[ichiban]

canberra for me is essentialy that sure theres lots of wood but its all so expensive so not to long ago i went around and cut a few golden elms from around the place there are heeps around but no one i have heard of is using golden elm for bows (not sure why). from what i have read when it comes to elm all elm is a good bow wood its just every 1 is so whiped by us red elm that no one has tryed it (as far as i know) so google golden elm and u should have some growing in your aria.

cheers,
Dave

[pdccr]

none that i know of, i also dont have the tools to make a tree into boards.

[ichiban]

they dont need to be boards, if you have the TBB series check em out if not buy em there good books i neglected many resposablilitys reading those books over and over and over

[pdccr]

Yer i have the first 2 but i would need to get some more tools to make a decent bow from a tree, maybe a hatchet or a spokeshave.

[ichiban]

yeah i got a hatchet for like $10 from bunnings, i have found a eletric plainer to be a god send it cost me $40 from bunnings and it dose everything i ask it to (a new set of blades almost costs as much as a new plainer) i have made 5 or so bows with it and am loving it.

cheers,
Dave

[pdccr]

bugger this, im just gonna go down and get any hardwood they stock. Any wood i should look for?

[ichiban]

(every1 will disagree with me but hey) just grab something 1/4 sawn, with a tight staright grain that you cant dent with your finger nail and long and wide enough to slightly over build it. it wont be the fastest bow but darn it all it will be a bow asuming tillering is fine.

Dave

[pdccr]

Ok, im gonna have to walk down. This is gonna suck. Carrying 3-4 pieces of hardwood back home in the heat.

[Glenn]

Toby, one of the timber suppliers maust have some spotted gum decking on hand. If not just buy the Ullan and if it doesen't work buy some hoop pine to back it with, there will be some way of getting a bow...Glenn...

[pdccr]

Ran around calling up today, sorry we dont have any in stock. I roughed out a little 50' stave and was trying to snap it but thought not to as it bent pretty well.

[Glenn]

There must be plenty of shotedge decking around to make board bows out of. When I lived in your aqrea I use to buy lots of Mackay Ceder for door jambs and architraves, there must be saw mills still working in the area. I have found a lot of good staves in the fire heap at saw mills. Mostly there is a lot of sapwood on the offcuts from the logs but enough heartwood to make really good sapwood-heartwood selfbows from them, infact the best selfbows I ever made have come off the burn pile at the sawmill. I think there is a sawmill that cuts hardwood at Kuttabul north of Mackay...Glenn...

[pdccr]

Excellent, i will go and check it out on thursday, thanks for that glenn. It appears there is nothing you dont know about bow making

[pdccr]

Does platypus timbers sound right?

[Glenn]

You've got me buggered on that one Toby...Glenn...

[pdccr]

I guess there is only one way to find out then huh

[pdccr]

Rang around and the kuttabul sawmill closed down when they made the rain forrest protected. The only one i can find is a private mill north of prosserpine. Going to check it out.

[pdccr]

Found someone stocking spotted gum!!!!! Finally $7.45 per metre for decking or $10.68 per metre for tungue and groove. I am going for the decking.

[pdccr]

What should i back it with? Looking for wood backings, dont have bamboo but do have quandong and i could possible get a few others.

[Glenn]

You shouldn't need to back the spotted gum but if you want to back it you could try the silver quandong...Glenn...

[pdccr]

Awesome, going to get as many as i can. Which dimensions whould i use?

[ichiban]

im with glen, you dont have to back spotty gum, its a very elastic timber, i did it because the guy wanted yew (i explained that he would be looking at at least $100 US for the stave alone plus shipping) so i made it to look a bit like it.
in regards to how many, it depends on your budget first and how many have the right grain, trust me if the grain sucks it wont be a bow....ever, i have cleaned out my bunnings and have left several hundred boards (i took 3) because the grain was no good.

[ichiban]

demensions wise- depends what you type of bow you want,
i made my SG/BB to be 70" long 1" wide at the center and 1/2" nocks (thease dementions for me where a starting point)
and for a flat (piramid) bow i would say maby... 66" long, 1.5 form the fades to 1/2" nocks (as a starting point).
i have only made flat bows from silvertop ash where the fades where 2" wide but spotty should take 1.5" fades.

thats a gustimate.

cheers,
Dave

[pdccr]

Ok i will try to get the best i can.

[ichiban]

hope it goes well for ya

[pdccr]

Im really please with how it went, here they are.

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The small one i am going to use for tip overlays and handles. Should i have tip overlays?

Here is my first one, its 1.8m or 70"

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Here is my second one, its 1.8m or 70"

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Here is my last one, its 2.0m

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Any feed back on what dimensions to use. I will go for maybe 30-40 pound draw weight and not sure if i need tip overlays. 40# would be great and i dont care what length at. The reason i got the staves that length is because they sold them at 1.8m and i found one large piece with great grain. I kept the left over for handles and overlays. These staves were bought at Porters for those that have a store near you, they should stock these now, they changed from all aussie hardwoods to spotted gum! I have 6 staves now, i have a mate coming up and he wants a bow so i told him we would make him one.

[pdccr]

Its also 8cm wide and 19mm thick, could i get 2 bows out of that? Thats 4cm width at the handle.

[pdccr]

Would this indicate a problem in the wood, its on my longest board and runs for approx 10cm, its a 2m board so i have plenty of room. Should be able to get 2 staves out of each board.

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[pdccr]

Glued my riser on 2 of them, using 1 board for 2 staves.

[Glenn]

Toby, I doubt if those gum pockets will do you any favours, you will jus have to see how the bow goes, maybe you will loose them when you shape the limb down. It can be hard to detect with our euclyptus trees as you can't always see them until you cut them. You will made good bows at 40mm wide, if you make them too wide the thickness of the limb becomes too thin and they lack performance then. For a 40# bow you shouldn't any trouble making a selfbow from that width out of spotty...Glenn...