2 piece self bow ... first try. finished pics pg 11

[KellyG]

coming a long nicely

[Pat B]

Looking good, Ruddy. Are you gonna put on overlays. Not necessary, mostly cosmetic.Do round over any sharp corners or edges so you don't cut the string.

[broketooth]

good question about the overlays mr pat. ive been curious about using deer toes as an overlay. i was wondering if anyone has done this? if so whats the procedure.the other thing im questioning is putting sinew on as a backing.ive read in another thread here on tg that sinew shows its benefits on bows 60" or less. my bow is 62" n-n.63" tip to tip. would i be wasting my time and effort on sinewing my bow?

[Pat B]

I've never used deer toes(hooves). If you can get the glue surface flat they should work fine.
 This bow is not a good candidate for sinew. To get the full potential from sinew a bow needs to be over drawn so to speak so if you were drawing 32" or more sinew would benefit a bow of this length. Save the sinew for it's own project and finish this one up as is. She is nice enough as she is!!!

[KellyG]

deer toes now you made me curious, I think it would be similar to buff horn or gemsbok horn. I hope you try.
Kelly

[broketooth]

she shoots!!! is started workin on her at 4 a.m. this mornin, sorry couldnt resist. i did some more sanding on the bow. filed in the nocks just a little deeper and sanded the rough edges so's not to cut the string. strung her up and got her on the tiller tree for a workout. did some warm ups out to 24". then i raised the brace to 5 3/4" and exercised her out to 28" draw. i put the scale on her and she came in  49#@ 28" draw. here are some pics sorry about the last pic not bein rotated i dont know how to do that. ive already put 3 dozen arrows out of her i have to let batman and bernie shoot her some and see what they think. she aint ready to get all dressed up yet got to shoot her in for a little bit there is some small detail work to take care of first. let me know what ya think. ruddy

[broketooth]

oh the last pic , the bow is canted so the arc might look funny. ruddy

[Osagetree]

Excellent tiller. How much set did you end up with?

[KellyG]

[broketooth]

i dont know yet on the set. its still strung on the tree.i guess mr pat calls it " sweating the bow". i'll unstring it after lunch and give it a rest and get back to ya on that osagetree. ruddy

[broketooth]

a few more pics

[ber643]

I just knew that bow was going to come out looking as grand as it does in the last pic on your tree and in the FDs, Ruddy. You've done a great job and can be proud of your work. Now a little TLC in a simple finishing up.

I'll be honored to get a chance to shoot it, buddy, as I am sure Don will be too.

[ChristopherO]

Excellent job!  That bow will be capable to take any game animal you want to pursue.

BTW, I experimented with deer hooves last year but the shell of the hoof was too thin for an overlay.  The quick of the foot was much thicker than I would have thought.  Maybe a big bucks hoof if more suited for the job.

[broketooth]

i want to say a big thanks to  batman for gettin the stave. to mr pat for walkin me through this build. to bernie for lettin me use your bowscale, and lettin me look at the awesome selfbow collection hes got.and to everyone else who gave advice and encouragement. this was a lot of fun i should be finishing this up soon. i will post pics when she's all dressed up. ruddy

[steadman]

That is a good lookin bow! Been foolowing this and have to say congrats on a fine bow!  

[Red Tailed Hawk]

Real nice Ruddy, one to be proud of for sure.  

[bluegill]

Well done Ruddy!

I have used deer hooves as overlays but you have to use a big mature animal and cut just right to get the thickness needed. They look great when polished up.

Sean

[ber643]

My pleasure to be of some help, buddy. With any luck at all, I'll get to see (and shoot) the bow this coming week one day       (I was just talking with Ruddy on the phone). When you come down, Ruddy, I have some various "colored" woods (small pieces) that work well for overlays, especially on Osage, and/or some various bone/antler materials. We might find something you'd like to use, if you don't find something before then. Looking forward to you (and your bow) visiting.

[greyghost]

Ruddy, great looking bow. Looks like you nailed it, congrats. Can't wait to hear what the set is on it.


Earl

[broketooth]

from the way it looks to me , so far just an inch. im guessin that it takes about 100 arrows for the bow to settle in? am i correct ?