Hi Guys,

I'll be finishing a bbo during the next week.

I'd like to stain the boo.
I've read to do that the skin needs to be CAREFULLY scraped/sanded off.

Will doing this weaken the boo or possibly cause more splinters?

I'm only removing the skin for aesthetics.
If it really is the cause of most problems I may just leave the skin on or possibly paint it.


Thank you

http://tradgang.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=125;t=005458;p=2

this entire thread is priceless. but page two has the answer to your question.  

No. Removing the rind is fine as long as you are super careful not to scrape or sand into the good stuff below it. There are natural, tiny ridges and valleys in much of it, and I think folks run into problems trying to make it look perfectly clean and smooth. I like to leave that little bit in the valleys... this ensures I haven't gone too far, and I like the look after it's dyed.

Try working on a test piece first.

Be gentle with your scraper. It's best to use an edge with a light burr roled over so that it removes less material each pass. And be gentle... swipe the scraper with finess, setting it down gently each time on rind if possible and swiping toward exposed bamboo.

Too heavy a burr and/or setting it down harshly, or with too much pressure creates a 'cut line', or 'dig' each time which is a perfect opportunity for a splinter to raise.... and going back and sanding too much to remove them all can raise the likelyhood too. Working lightly, with a fine burr, and wiping into the previously worked area, eliminates or minimizes such damage or the need to sand it out. Leave litlle wisps of the powdery 'under-rind' behind, and then sand the whole back lightly with fine grit paper... 240-320 and call it good. You'll soon get the feel for it, and know when you're going too far.

I can post pics when I get home if it'll help.

It is better to sand off the rind than to scrape it off. I have scraped off the rind on about 50 BBOs, experienced an occasional splinter raised off the backs. Could be I left a nick with my scraper I couldn't see, could be bad bamboo, who knows.

I started gently sanding the rind off with my last few bows and haven't had any splintering so far. Too soon to tell is this change will be a fix for bamboo backs raising a splinter but looks good so far.

What grit do you use, Eric, or do you use progressively finer grits as and sanding the bow in general?

I start with 150, progress to some 320 cloth backed that cuts pretty aggressively,
normal 320 and finish up with a green scotch bright pad.

Because of the occasional dips in a bamboo back I may leave a few streaks of thin rind rather than trying to dig them out. You can see these streaks in the sanded and stained back of this BBO.



I leave most of the nodes intact as well, just a little light sanding on the tops.

Great link Echatham.

Thanks for the help guys!

That bow is beautiful.

Nice dye job, Eric.

I sand it off also. I use a palm sander with 320 grit, staying a half inch away from the nodes. Doesn't take but 10 minutes to do the entire length of the boo and it's pretty much done..

hhhhmmm...

Roy..do you do the nodes by hand or just leave em alone?

I think I might have an old Black and decker "mouse" laying around somewhere....

The less you do to the nodes the better off you are. I just sand off the rough edge, slightly.

Walt said he had started coating the backs of his BBOs with thin super glue and had no failures since.

Bamboo failure is a very real possibility with BBOs, the more aggressive you get with the rind the more prone you are to experience such.

Thanks guys.

Eric told ya right. Just barely touch the rough edge that sticks up and don't sand too close to the nodes. Eric, does he stain the boo first?

I wouldn't use an electric sander, but that's just me. It doesn't take very long to scrape and sand the rind off by hand, about 10 minutes, and vibrating sanders can leave fine swirly sanding marks that would need sanded lengthwise by hand to remove.

I just took a bamboo and osage tri-lam off of the form. 62" long, 1 1/2" of deflex and 5" of reflex... she's very curvey    Hopefully I'll get the handle piece fit up and glued on yet today.

Love to see a pic Bowjunkie.
Good luck!

Thanks for the info Gents!

I would think so Roy.

I don't understand...

Are you guys saying I should stain it before sanding?
That doesn't make sense to me.

But I'm ready for enlightenment...lol

What Roy asked is if Walt stained the back of his bow before he put a coat of super glue on it. If one went the super glue route, the stain would have to be on before the glue because the stain wouldn't be able to soak into the wood through a coat of super glue.

Normal procedure without the super glue would be to sand, stain and then finish. The rind is real waxy and doesn't stain very well if at all.

OOOOOOHHHHHH

I understand now.

Thank you Mr. Krewson.