BBO I may have messed up

[Knawbone]

Building my first bbo for which is at floor tiller stage basically. I used urac to glue on the boo but then { without giving it too much thought ] filed the nodes off the boo. should I have not done this, and if not, can the situation be fixed short of replacing the boo.

[vanillabear?]

[bigcountry]

I sanded too much, and exposed the power fibers.  I ended up haveing to wrap each one with sinew and silk.  

I myself would try to plane down the bamboo and replace.

[Roy from Pa]

Ya have pictures? I sand my nodes off a little. Never had a problem at the nodes.

[Knawbone]

Thanks guys, But Im woundering if I could glue some kind of covering over the boo? Anyone ever try patching the node areas with a thin piece of boo and say super glue or urac? I don't know, just trying to fix it without having to invest more time and money. Ha-Ha fat chance right.

[Knawbone]

No Roy, I don't have any way to send pictures with this computer unfortuneatly. I sanded them right down to nothing.

[Walt Francis]

Cover the nodes with a gap filling super glue and then back the bow with something.  I like to back bows with thick snakeskins, like python or big rattlesnakes, if I have any doubts about the backs integrity.

[Pat B]

A good deer or goat rawhide backing would help.

[Knawbone]

Thanks Walt and Pat, Walt I was thinking along those lines, but don't have the experiance to know just what will or wont' work. Have you repaired this noduless bamboo in this way before? Thanks so much. Pat, I like your Idea. Would it diminish the looks of the bow to put rawhide over the boo and how about weight? Just trying to think of all the variables. Sounds like it would be a strong fix for sure.

[Pat B]

The nice thing about rawhide backings is it makes a great pallet for decorations. You can stain it, dye it, paint on it or cover it with skins if you desire.

[Knawbone]

What do you think of this idea. I mixed boo fibers with urac and formed a node onto a piece of boo. Letting it set at about 100 degrees, If that doesn't work to my satisfaction i'm going to try mixing the boo fibers with TBIII. A composite patch so to speak.If it seems that it works, I'll cover over with snake or fish skins. Any and all ideas are greatly welcomed.

[Knawbone]

Thanks again Pat, you always give great advice and I appreciate it.The rawhide will prob. be my fix as I,v compromized the whole back of the bow. I have never used RH, about how much weight would that add to the bow?

[Pat B]

Rawhide will not add any draw weight and only a little physical weight.
 I don't think the "composite" patch will work. It it fails so will your bow. The rawhide backing or heavy snake skin backing like Walt suggested would be your easiest option. Other than those you can grind down the boo back to a thin flat surface and add another boo backing over that. In this case you could add some backset and bump up the weight if you needed more.

[Knawbone]

Thanks again Pat, I will order some rawhide. Tell me if I'v got this right. To apply the rawhide I should use TB3 with a coat of glue, let it dry and then glue on the rawhide. Do I need to- or should I rap it with cellaphane { with space for air to dry it} or what would be the best method to put it on.

[bigcountry]

Don't wrap with plastic.  TBIII needs air.

Soak the rawhide in water until fleshy.  Could take 1/2hour to 2 hours, in the mean time, size your bow(thin covering of TBIII) and it will be dry by the time your rawhide is ready to glue on.

Take out the rawhide and put on a towel to wick away excess moisture.

Add copious amount of glue to the rawhide.  (smooth side), and lay on.

I use masking tape to hold on every 3-5", I use a socket to get out airbubbles.  I then wrap with ace bandage.  I come back an hour later, and unwrap and work out the bubles again.  I rewrap.  I come back a few hours later again and work out bubbles and rewrap.  AFter about 3 hours, you can remove all masking tape and use only ace bandage.

[Pat B]

The way I do it is...
First I wash the rawhide with Dawn dish soap and rinse well and soak in warm water while you prep the bow. Size the bow with a thin layer of glue and let it dry. Take the rawhide out of the water and roll it up in a towel to remove excess water.
Add a thin but even layer of glue to the bow and the rawhide and lay it down. I like to use 2 pieces instead of one long piece and over lap at the handle. After one limb is done and somewhat cured(after an hour or so)I do the other limb.
 I usually wrap the limb with strips of old bed sheets but remove this after an hout or so. At this time the glue is not completely dry and air bubles and excess glue pockets can be worked out by hand. You can also trim off the excess rawhide with a sharp razor but care must be taken not to lift the rawhide off the limb.
 Be sure the rawhide doesn't slip as you wrap the limbs.   After the glue has cured and the edges have been trimmed let the bow rest at least 3 or 4 days before stressing it to allow any moisture that has entered the wood time to evaporate. The first sizing coat should work as a vapor barrier but some moisture will still get into the wood and your bow will feel mushy.

[Knawbone]

Thanks BC, Will do

[Knawbone]

Thanks Pat, awesome!