[William Warren]

in reply to: Hickory Self Bows #45145

David Petersen wrote: Snuffornot — I really like the snakeskin look you get by burning. Wish I’d thought of that a long time ago. I’ve built about three dozen wood bows and some of the longest-lasting and all around best have been of hickory. I switched mostly to osage because it’s so much easier to work. By slicing a 1/8″ lam of a hickory board, reversing it and gluing back on as a backing, I was able to up the speed a bit, get shorter bows and a lot better survival rate. But when it works there’s nothing more satisfying than a true self bow. Scrape on! Dave

Thanks Dave,
I just run a propane torch over it very quickly. Another neat trick is to rub charcoal into the grain before staining to bring out the grain. Looks sort of like zebrawood.
I’ve actually wanted to do one with some snakeskin. I’ve also wanted to try laminating one layer as you mentioned either with hickory or bamboo. I will one day when I can come by some hickory boards. I might have to just get some cut locally. so far I’ve only had one hickory bow fail. The backing held it together as it broke probably saving my noggin.

Duncan

[William Warren]

in reply to: Coming out of the hunting closet #44747

Good luck on your hunt. A lot of good advice on here.
Just hunt slow and try to get close no matter which bow you use! And enjoy the 4 days out.

[William Warren]

in reply to: Hickory Self Bows #44739

Thanks Guys,

It started out as one of those things where you just have make one to say you did, but it has turned into a quest for the perfect one. I make about one a year. The last one was the one with the burned stripes. It is actually my favorite one and probably the straightest one I’ve built. But it is a heavy bow drawing about 68# at 28″ I don’t shoot it well these days so I’m going to start a new one this winter and try to make it about 45# or 50#. I have a couple a three staves curing in the shed. I’ll keep you posted on my progress.

Duncan

[William Warren]

in reply to: Hickory Self Bows #44058

steve graf wrote: Beautiful! Where do you get the cotton camo cloth? And what do you finish over the cloth with?

One of my old hunting partners got that cloth directly from a mill back in the 1980’s. We were very fond of the Trebark camo and we personally knew, and have hunted with, Jim Crumley, the inventor of that pattern when he was just beginning to market it. I still have a few yards of it left. I would not sell one of the bows with that camo without Jim’s endorsement but I have built and given a couple to friends.
Any cotton cloth will work. I bring the bow’s back down to the shape I want. I use a good wood glue for adhesive. After gluing down the strips allow it to dry for an hour. Then brush on a coat of polyurethane and let that harden. The poly makes it easier to trim the excess cloth. I use a very sharp knife blade to trim the cloth. Then I check the egdes and glue down any areas needing glue. Now you can run the edge lightly along a small belt sander. I usually put the backing on before staining so the stain will get the white edges after sanding. I use walnut hulls in water for stain. After the stain is dry I begin putting on coats of polyurethane sanding lightly between coats. I put on 5 to 7 coats. The last coat gets buffed lightly with steel wool to take of the shine.
If you can’t find this cloth by the yard you can always sacrifice a pants leg. You might find a pair on E-bay or at a swap meet. Some hunter might have outgrown their britches and they could wind up on your self bow as backing:).

[William Warren]

in reply to: Dedicated or Obsessed? Deciding when to hunt? #44034

I think I’m more like you Steve. I have always been a working man and have not been able to be choosy about anything hunting related, I have killed some decent deer. But a long time ago I decided size did not matter to me. I had friends who held state records and it changed them in a way I did not care for. People have begun to place more value on the notariety and endorsements that taking a record head can bring. That is just not the focus of my outdoor activities and I have come to dislike what hunting has come to represent. I’m glad we as traditional bowhunters have chosen the path less traveled by. We are an example to those who will soon turn away from the hype just as we did, looking for a more enjoyable experience. I too, think Steve’s friend will burn out but it may take time.
In the mean time, I hope we all have a happy hunting season free from feeling like we just HAVE to kill a decent buck. Instead we could just thin out some does!

[William Warren]

in reply to: longbow vs fishbow #44013

I enjoy building and shooting hickory long bows but one of the drawbacks of hickory, as tough as it is, is that it will eventually take a set which will rob you of some speed. I have found that I need a much heavier pull to gain any speed with my bows. How much set your bow develops depends on the individual peice of wood. Some staves are just better than others. It does help if the stave is allowed to dry properly. I’ve noticed if I air dry a stave for about a year it will result in almost no set.
Too much set could be the problem.

[William Warren]

in reply to: Ground Hunting Tips #40511

I hunted from portable stands for years and always harvested deer from them. It is just in the placement that makes the difference. But the older I got the less I wanted to go to all the trouble and now I hunt exclusively from the ground, often with no blind. I like to stalk my blind on my way to it and many opportunities have come before I ever got to my blind. I’ve crossed paths with so many deer just slipping around but unfortunately there are not many places you can do that anymore without fear of meeting other hunters and disturbing their hunt or worse. Once gun season starts it is pretty much over for the stalking. Your actually safer in a treestand.
Another ground technique is rattling. I have killed 2 bucks by rattling them into range. There is nothing more exciting. You have to pay attention and it is best if you can see the buck beforehand and be ready. You can put the antlers down and use a grunt tube to bring him on in.

[William Warren]

in reply to: Question about Cresting Paints #40481

David Wrote: Now, someone please remind me the best way to remove fletching tape!

The wife’s hair dryer??:D

[William Warren]

in reply to: Flu Flu's #39204

Greatreearcher wrote: Hello everyone! I have a question to pose today! I am very very well informed about regular 4 fletch flu flu’s, been using them for about 4 years now! I was just wondering if someone has ever used the wrap around method? And if so I am very curious about them, never even seen one! So can anyone tell me if they are any better and if so, how to make them!? Thanks alot, happy hunting!
Chris

I’ve seen the spiral wrapped flu flus but have not used them. I do have some 4 fletch flu flus. I must fletch up one to see how they work!

[William Warren]

in reply to: How many bowyers? #39186

There are some beautiful bows posted here. If I can ever figure out how these pics are getting posted I’ll post some of mine too.

[William Warren]

in reply to: What do you like best about Bowhunting? #39162

I know this describes more than one thing but here goes,
The morning sun on my shoulders, my favorite bow in my hand, a book of verse in my pocket, and a well scouted location to hunt and see nature unfold before me.
I especially love to sit on my stand long past dark and listen to the night ceatures come alive, then slowly make my way back to my truck in the dark. Of course, this requires an intimate knowledge of the woods you hunt and excellent vision.
To Steve D, I agree that it is risky to be in close proximity to a sow with cubs. In my experience with bears almost all of them can be spooked off by stealthily breaking a small to medium sized stick. This will work on all but those that have become accustomed to human activity. But given the opportunity, I probably would have done as you did and choose to stay put. If they winded you that probably would have spooked them and then you could beat it in the opposite direction. Awesome story!

[William Warren]

in reply to: Anyone ever break their bow hand? #37701

Fortunately I have not broken anything since childhood, but I have had back problems from shooting too much weight. This combined with a severe strain in my left forearm caused me to abandon the compound bow and return to my recurves in the early 1980’s. I had a 47 lb recurve that I could shoot. It was like starting over but I killed some deer and now that compound is a relic in its own right.
Hope you get better soon but a break in the hand can take months to heal. You may be looking at starting back with a lighter weight bow and some physical therapy.
Did you have to have surgery on it?

[William Warren]

in reply to: skeletons in your closet #34191

Bad shots happen even if we have practiced due diligence in our preparations. I had the misfortune of losing the very first deer I ever shot with an arrow. It was a poor shot placement, a classic rookie mistake of shooting to far forward. Second mistake was going after him too soon and jumped him out of a bed. Spent the entire next day trailing tiny specks of blood to a second bed. there was no more blood after he left that bed. That experience has effected me for a long time and I have probably passed on many animals that I should have shot at because I was waiting for that perfect shot. As a result, I prefer close shots, 15 yards or less, quartering away at unsuspecting animals. Anything else and I’m likely to hold my draw.
As for an “annular space” under the spine? I’ve field dressed many deer and I have not seen this. I think a high shot from a tree stand might produce only a one lung hit resulting in a long tough tracking job. If you think you have a high hit, it pays to wait awhile before going after him or it could result in a lost deer. Just my thoughts.

[William Warren]

in reply to: Wyoming Pronghorn Spot and Stalk Success #34161

I have hunted lope with the rifle and I must say you are to be commended on your stalking skills if you got within bow range of any pronghorn in open range. That is definitely a trophy in my book too. Congratulations!

[William Warren]

in reply to: Can anyone identify this BEAR recurve? #34149

Greatreearcher wrote: is it possible that some bowyer made it and put that bear medallion on there? Kinda odd that it has no serial number!? Info like that doesnt wear off, just thinking aloud!

Had that same thought. I noticed the medalion looks kind of out of the normal alignment. You could be onto something.
Or someone may have refinished it and removed all the proofmarks with the old finish.

[Author]

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