Plan B Forum

Mergawanna good for something: I need a bow for a home project am working. I could drive up to West Monroe buy one at Sports Academy for about a hundred dollars. That is not a lot of money, but I hate to spend that on something I might use only one time; especially when I can make one myself. So with my saber saw, my electric hand plane and a little block plane I carved one out of a piece ash I had cut on the property and had been curing since late summer. Making the bow was not a problem, I did it in a few minute; the bow string that is a different story. A bow string has to be strong and have very little stretch. One of the best material for this is tendon (sinew). However, hunting down, killing a deer and stripping off the tendon processing it into bow string is just a little too much. Next in line historically is linen, but that is so unlikely to find in this area that I will not even try it. The two threads I did try to find were Rayon and Dacron; I could find neither not even at hobby lobby. I tried nylon, I knew that nylon stretched, but all materials stretched to some extent. The way to overcome stretch is to reduce the cross section. The smaller the cross section of the material the less it will stretch, but the weaker the material is. Weakness is overcome by using multiple threads. So I made a bowstring using eight nylon threads. It did not work; it was strong, but stretched like a rubber band.

So, after this I went looking for Dacron again; I didn‘t find it, but I did find hemp thread. I thought well I tried nylon which I knew would stretch to some extent, so why not try hemp. I made a bowstring using hemp and it worked. Well well well look what the cat dragged in: the marijuana is good for something. The only thing I have worry about now is some hippy smoking my bowstring. (joke) I did some internet research and found that hemp is another of those traditional materials used for bowstrings.
So why was it not mentioned in my college archery ( textbook ) handbook?

There is one problem; evidently hemp or this thread doesn’t handle abrasion very well, so I think that I will make another bowstring using hemp threads for the core lines and nylon for the wrapping.

As a bow man myself (although I have not shot in years) I salute what you have done. Good job. There were no Archery classes when I attended college. I wish there were.

Use Spectra, Ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene. UHMWPE or sometimes just HMWPE.

Very high strength.


yrs,
rubato

Not in the field of "primitive archery".

If I recall correctly, the bow and arrows must be hand made out of natural material.

He tried Rayon, Dacron, and Nylon.

Not 'primitive' fibers.

yrs,
rubato

My mind was so focused on "primitive archery" (a dope-growing friend in Sonoma County is really big into it) that my befuddled mind skipped over those terms....silly me.

Yeah, I know, no cats were ever harmed when making catgut. Damn!
http://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php ... -cat-guts/

dales wrote:My mind was so focused on "primitive archery" (a dope-growing friend in Sonoma County is really big into it) that my befuddled mind skipped over those terms....silly me.

When I was younger I was into primitive archery, not that I was aware of any competitions. Of the tackle used neither bows or bowstrings are not that hard to make if you have the right material, but making a good arrow is a hard thing to do.

My arrows, to be honest to the best of memory where only fair to middling, and I cheated some too. Where I live flint is in short supply and broken glass is a lot easier to make. I used glass for scrappers and instead of feathers for stability I used brown paper. In those days grocery bags where made a stiff brown paper, I cut it in the shape of a arrow feathers and glued it to the arrow shaft. I also remember making some using chicken feathers, but they were harder come by. Strange how I can remember that when so much other stuff is fading in the fog. I don’t remember getting a paper cut from the paper arrow fins and I don’t remember doing anything to prevent it.

I'm surprised nobody else has asked this question; it was the first thing that leaped out at me:

I need a bow for a home project am working.

Uh, Lib, I'm a little hesitant to ask this, but just what sort of a "home project" requires a bow and arrow?

My mind was so focused on "primitive archery" (a dope-growing friend in Sonoma County is really big into it)

Good thinking...

That way he can take out trespassers without the drawing the kind of attention that gunfire might bring...

Lord Jim wrote:I'm surprised nobody else has asked this question; it was the first thing that leaped out at me:

I need a bow for a home project am working.

Uh, Lib, I'm a little hesitant to ask this, but just what sort of a "home project" requires a bow and arrow?

I have this tree that is leaning towards the house; because of the way it is leaning I am reluctant to try to cut at the truck. I am taking it down a limb at a time. I use the bow to shoot a string over a limb that I to use to pull a rope over the limb and use the rope pull and guide the limb away from the house when I cut it. Well, cut is not really not a good term; I have used my shotgun to take down some of the limbs.

I'm glad you cleared that up lib...

I was afraid it might be something like a solution you had devised to deal with a family of raccoons that had moved into your attic, or maybe you were planning to teach your kid the story of William Tell...

Lord Jim wrote:I'm glad you cleared that up lib...

I was afraid it might be something like a solution you had devised to deal with a family of raccoons that had moved into your attic, or maybe you were planning to teach your kid the story of William Tell...

I wouldn’t have a problem with shooting a raccoon, but I would never put a person at risk especially someone I love. When I use the shotgun I am very conscious of where the shot will land. Where I live the chance of hitting a person is quite low, but I am still very careful. I have more concerned for my neighbor’s horses. My black cowboy friends keeps horses next door; I always make sure they are on the other side of the field when I shoot in their direction. Did you know that some blacks are into horses, rodeos and country music?

Did you know that some blacks are into horses, rodeos and country music?

Uhh, yes, actually I did know that...

Amazingly enough, there are also black people who like classical music, racquetball, renaissance art, and lots of other un-black things...

Yeah I know, weird...go figure...

ETA:

Just out of curiosity lib, why did you feel the need to bring race into a discussion about designing a bow?

liberty wrote:"....

I have this tree that is leaning towards the house; because of the way it is leaning I am reluctant to try to cut at the truck. I am taking it down a limb at a time. I use the bow to shoot a string over a limb that I to use to pull a rope over the limb and use the rope pull and guide the limb away from the house when I cut it. Well, cut is not really not a good term; I have used my shotgun to take down some of the limbs.

Deep respect! slugs or buckshot?


yrs,
rubato

liberty wrote:

Lord Jim wrote:"... Did you know that some blacks are into horses, rodeos and country music?

No kidding:
















+

= "Blue Yodel #9" 1930




yrs,
rubato

liberty wrote:I have this tree that is leaning towards the house; because of the way it is leaning I am reluctant to try to cut at the truck. I am taking it down a limb at a time. I use the bow to shoot a string over a limb that I to use to pull a rope over the limb and use the rope pull and guide the limb away from the house when I cut it. Well, cut is not really not a good term; I have used my shotgun to take down some of the limbs.

(in the style of Jeff Foxworthy)
If you have EVER used a shotgun to take down a tree branch, you just might be a redneck!

-"BB"-

Cute the way you did that rube...

Making it look like it was lib quoting me asking that silly question, rather than the other way around...

Lord Jim wrote:

Did you know that some blacks are into horses, rodeos and country music?

Uhh, yes, actually I did know that...

Amazingly enough, there are also black people who like classical music, racquetball, renaissance art, and lots of other un-black things...

Yeah I know, weird...go figure...

ETA:

Just out of curiosity lib, why did you feel the need to bring race into a discussion about designing a bow?

Working now, will respond later. Depending on workload perhaps as late as Monday.

rubato wrote:

liberty wrote:

Lord Jim wrote:"... Did you know that some blacks are into horses, rodeos and country music?

No kidding:,
rubato

I'm quoting his post now before he edits it out. rubato actually had to do that on purpose - there's no accidental way to make it look as if lib was quoting LJ when it was the other way round.

Why would rubato go to all that trouble to make it appear that LJ was making a racist comment?


Hmmmm?

that s just wrong, but even worse...

...Joe is Liberty.