[aeronut]

in reply to: More Hobbies–A Bow of a Different Kind #163269

The upper bout had fallen out and I needed to glue a reinforcing rib along one edge to replace the missing one.  I made this out of two layers of basket reed.

I then glued this back in place and the body of the fiddle was back in one piece again.

[aeronut]

in reply to: More Hobbies–A Bow of a Different Kind #163268

Now I start work on the fiddle.  It was a little daunting to work on a family heirloom that is 160 years old.

First I took off the strings, pegs, and tail piece and gave the wood a long needed cleaning.  Then I opened the gaps on the bouts (sides) as much as I dares and worked epoxy into the gaps and clamped them together.  I made a set of luthiers clamps to do this.  I can find a use for them in my bow building.

[aeronut]

in reply to: More Hobbies–A Bow of a Different Kind #163267

I stripped all the old ugly remnants of wallpaper that had lined the inside of the case and then made a new nose piece for the bottom by steam bending a piece of Poplar to fit.  Then I cut strips of denim for reinforcement and glued the split top and bottom pieces back together.  I lined the top with some red cloth and then put red crushed velvet in the bottom.  That was some tough stuff to work with.

• This reply was modified 2 years, 3 months ago by aeronut.

[aeronut]

in reply to: Arrow Wood Help #163168

I’ve never used Douglas Fir but I have made and shot hundreds of Poplar shafts.  You might take a look at that for comparison.

I shoot Poplar mostly and if I want a tougher shaft I use Hickory.

[aeronut]

in reply to: Whatcha Got Going 2023? #163160

Happy Birthday Richard.  I turned 67 nine days ago.

Good luck on the carp shooting.  I always enjoyed that pass time.  Been rainy and chilly the last few days, just enough to make everything damp.  Temps are going to fall down into the 20’s again tonight but that’s just typical Kansas weather.

[aeronut]

in reply to: Whatcha Got Going 2023? #163105

I have read that some think the Africanized variety is getting watered down and they aren’t as mean but, be careful around them anyway.

I have one hive that is just mean tempered.  While collecting honey sometimes they will be ok but most of the times I’ll have to close up the hive and try again another day.  I made a couple of splits from that hive and gave one to my cousin.  They ran him off several times.  He said he split that hive last summer and they calmed down.  Why?  I have no idea.  I can work around my mean hive with no problems but getting inside and checking them is a toss up.  LOTS of smoke will help a little.

One spring I ran through three different swarms with my bucket truck.  They make a mess out of a windshield and there was dead bees all over everything in the bed.

The weather has been warming up enough the bees are out and working over my Maple trees.  I keep a bird bath full of water for them and at times the whole perimeter is lined with bees.  My nephews came up for the funeral and they were a little timid about the bees flying around but quickly dismissed them.

I’ve been going out some nights with my night vision for coyotes or raccoons but mainly now for the marauding skunk that has been showing up.  They can wreak havoc on a bee hive.  It will eventually catch a lead pellet.

[aeronut]

in reply to: Whatcha Got Going 2023? #162993

Yesterday was a very bad day for our family.  My brother had been having some chest pains went in to have a stent put in.  Things went terribly wrong and he passed away from major complications.  He was 72.

I got a message from him at 11:30 that they were still waiting to go in for the procedure that was scheduled for 9:30.  From that point on I had a very bad feeling that I could not shake that something was wrong.

Please, if you have a mind to, keep his family in your prayers.

Thanks, Dennis

[aeronut]

in reply to: Whatcha Got Going 2023? #162979

I really wanted to but didn’t get a chance to go see the Buffalo Soldiers cemetery.  Maybe next time if I go again.  I saw quite a bit of javelina sign but never spotted any of them.  I was in hunt mode the whole time we were out of camp.

Being April there was a lot of bees in the air swarming.  I heard and saw five swarms go over camp and they looked like a small black mass going over.  We went by a tree that was loaded with a swarm.  We could hear them from a pretty good distance and I told the guys to give them some room because they might be Africanized.  One of the teams walked by a tree later that had a swarm in it and a couple of them got stung.

[aeronut]

in reply to: Whatcha Got Going 2023? #162902

We were in Warsaw Canyon and Holden Canyon.  Some of the guys were in California Gulch for a while.  Border Patrol is in that area a lot because of the cartel drug mules.  That’s why we were there doing spot and report and disrupting their travel routes.  It is a ruggedly beautiful area but the drug mules have turned that area into a trash dump….discarded water jugs, clothes, backpacks, food wrappers, etc.

I saw several mule deer and a few turkeys while we were out in the field.

[aeronut]

in reply to: Whatcha Got Going 2023? #162854

I had a front yard midnight hunt last night after I heard a loud snarl on my front porch.  That’s where my dog takes up her station to watch what’s going on.  I grabbed a light and figured I’d be dealing with another possum but was kind of surprised to find a jumbo coon.

I have a birdbath set up by my beehives and during the summer something was knocking it over.  I set up a trail camera and found out my owls were using it as their watering hole along with deer and coons during our drought.  I believe this was one of those that turned into a porch pirate.  My last dealings with a coon was last summer when I woke up with no electricity.  Apparently my dog had chased it up the electric pole and it got crossways with the wires and blew the transformer fuse.

I would like to get some chickens  but we are overrun with coons and coyotes.

[aeronut]

in reply to: Whatcha Got Going 2023? #162795

I had a check up with my neck doctor yesterday morning.  He said everything in the xray was looking great and I didn’t need to do any more follow up visits and just contact him if I was having problems.  Whee!

We had our OSS (Oklahoma Selfbow Society) banquet last Saturday and had a pretty good turn out for it.  Now to prepare for OJAM next month.

[aeronut]

in reply to: Whatcha Got Going 2023? #162745

I was in the Coronado National Forest four years ago on a border watch operation.  That is a ruggedly beautiful area.  The bad part is the drug cartels have turned it into a trash dump.

[aeronut]

in reply to: Fred Asbell #162391

My condolences to Teresa and the Asbell family.

[aeronut]

in reply to: For those who shoot more than one bow…. #162359

I have a few, er, several of various draw weights from 35# to 55# that I shoot.  Some i have bought, some I have made.  For me, so far, it just takes a few shots to get in the groove for whichever bow I happen to grab.  That could change at any time.

One of my nephews brought out a green fiberglass bow with a 40# draw and asked if I could make a string for it.  I got one made a few days later and shot it a total of 12 times.  When he came to pick it up we went out to the turkey target and he scattered arrows around it at 10-15 yards.  I took it back to my 40 yard mark and proved its worth when I hit the 8 ring.  I told him I had been chasing arrows for over 50 years so it kind of comes natural after a few thousand shots.

I call this the Bear’s Den.  That little orange bow hanging in the back corner started all of this 56 years ago.

A few more and I have some others in the shop.

• This reply was modified 2 years, 5 months ago by aeronut.

[aeronut]

in reply to: The Super Diablo is still super !! #162200

Sounds like a fun day Richard.  I’ve only had one chance at a coyote that came through the timber as I was stillhunting and I shaved a bald spot off of its back.

I’ve got a racoon fight recording on my caller and have had real good luck with it.

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