Attempting my first board bow

[ScreaminD]

Hello all,

I've been doing a lot of research (online and am currently reading Volume 2 of the Traditional  Bowyer's Bible) about board bows.  I've selected a 6' piece of 1x3 red oak for my first attempt (going to make a pyramid style bow).  I have a smaller piece of oak as well for the riser and tips to be added.  

I have 2 questions (so far):

1) I want to put a thinner piece of wood between the bow board and riser (just to make it fancier).  I have a piece of poplar that will do nicely.  Will this affect my bow's strength (using the poplar and having 2 glue joints instead of the one)?

2) I can't find any Titebond 3(in SW Ontario Canada).  Has anyone successfully tried Gorilla Glue?  It says it's waterproof and bonds anything.

Thanks,

Andrew

[macbow]

Andrew, as for the piece of,wood,between the,belly and,handle,wood.
Don't see any problem. This slat should be longer than the handle piece and will end up tapered and part of the handle.

Wait and see what others say about the gorilla glue . I have not used it. Since it's all made of wood any good wood glue should work .

Be sure to,exercise it a lot once you get to floor tiller and beyond .
Ron

[wood carver 2]

Welcome to the addiction! Once you build a bow,you will never have enough.    
I don't think you should have a problem with a thin lam between the board and the riser. The main thing is to have a good tight fit with no gaps and to continue the fadeout from the riser, through the lam and into the board. I hope this makes sense. There are people here with way more experience than I have who can probably explain it better.
Where in S.W. Ontario do you live? I buy my TB3 from Lee Valley Tools. There's one in Waterloo and another one in Burlington. From what I've learned here, you shouldn't use Gorilla Glue (I'm assuming the type that foams up) for bows.
Having said that, I have used it to build risers for laminated bows, but I would never use it for limbs.
I hpoe this is helpful.
Dave.

[wood carver 2]

Welcome to the addiction! Once you build a bow,you will never have enough.    
I don't think you should have a problem with a thin lam between the board and the riser. The main thing is to have a good tight fit with no gaps and to continue the fadeout from the riser, through the lam and into the board. I hope this makes sense. There are people here with way more experience than I have who can probably explain it better.
Where in S.W. Ontario do you live? I buy my TB3 from Lee Valley Tools. There's one in Waterloo and another one in Burlington. From what I've learned here, you shouldn't use Gorilla Glue (I'm assuming the type that foams up) for bows.
Having said that, I have used it to build risers for laminated bows, but I would never use it for limbs.
I hpoe this is helpful.
Dave.

[wood carver 2]

Sorry about the double post. The infernal machine had a brain f**t.
Dave.

[LittleBen]

Dave, I wouldn't recommend gorilla glue, its a foaming polyurethane glue. I believe it will not yield a bond as strong as titebond III. I use TBIII for everything in my bow building and I have never had a problem. It wont really fill gaps so you need a good set of clamps, but it soaks into the wood, bonds to the wood fibers and is ridiculously strong. I buy mine by the gallon. It's like $25. If you build many bows you'll use it. If you make other wooden stuff too you'll use it faster than you think. Good luck again.

[ScreaminD]

Thanks for the info guys. And thanks Dave for the Lee Valley Tools info. I live in Kitchener, so it's not too far.

Andrew

[George Tsoukalas]

I'd build a bend in the handle bow from my first; much easier to tiller. No glue on pieces. There's a buildalong on my site, ScreaminD. YOu can go 1 3/8 in wide for 45-50#. Choose straight grained stock. Do not narrow the handle. Leave it full width. My site has info. Jawge
http://georgeandjoni.home.comcast.net/~georgeandjoni/index.html

[red hill]

Just about any carpenter's glue will work, ScreaminD. I don't care for gorilla glue, personally, but I do like CA (super glue).
The accent piece won't cause a problem but like posted above, use lots of clamps to ensure good contact.
Good luck!

[psychmonky]

One small addition...You have the internet. There are thousands of online retailers that sell TBIII. I would just recommend shopping until you find somewhere with free shipping.

[Roy from Pa]

Here is a great thread on building your first bow.
http://tradgang.com/noncgi/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=2;t=000122

[Mike Most]

http://tradgang.com/noncgi/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=125;t=002064#000000

Check out 4est Trekkers bow build on the link above, gives lots of answers