BBI build along, my first backed bow

[bowhntineverythingnh03743]

Great job so far Eric. I use a scraper to take off the rine of the boo. You can definately tell when you are taking off just the rine. It is a beautiful little darker color. I use a scraper cuz it seems like I never dig deep enough to get into the power fibers.

Keep the pics coming... its fun to see someone else working on their first

[Echatham]

Thanks Justin, hey could I trouble you for a picture of the kind of scraper you use? i see people talking about scrapers, and I'm just not sure exactly what sort of tool they are talking about.

[J.F. Miller]

a sharp cabinet scraper is the best thing I've found to remove the rind from bamboo. has numerous other uses in making wooden bows, too. is indispensable to me. should be one, or two in every bow makers tool kit.

why didn't you just glue your power lam to your core first, then you could have sanded the ends in perfectly before you glued on the backing?

[Roy from Pa]

A scraper looks like this.



There are many styles, though but the flat ones work great for bow work.

http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=+cabinet+scraper+&qpvt=+cabinet+scraper+&FORM=IGRE

[Echatham]

JF Miller.... that would have been a great idea ti have a couple days ago!

[razorback]

I have a nice piece of Ipe and Boo that I will make into a bow some day. I am getting a lot of great info from this thread. Can't wait to see the rest of the journey.

[macbow]

The reason I don't glue the power lam to the core first is another day of glue drying.
Also the match of the power lam to the core is not much of a problem, the "fit" that is more difficult is the bamboo over the power lam.
The longer the transition the easier, but if too long and thin then the job the power lam provides could be nullified.

[J.F. Miller]

Macbow, by glueing the power lam to the core prior to backing, you have the oportunity to sand the ends of the powerlam for a totally smooth transition onto the core, thus eliminating the problem of voids in your glue joint at the ends of the power lam when you glue backing to core. I'm seldom on a schedule to complete a bow as I build them mostly for my own amusement, so watching glue dry isn't a big deal for me. still, is just cause for having 3 or 4 bows in progress all the time, which I do. always something to do thataway. otherwise, it's a good excuse to turn the dog loose and get some fresh air.

E, with the vast knowledge and experience present here, I'm surprised nobody else suggested it. maybe it's a closely guarded bench secret. well, not now I guess.      :D

[Echatham]

WARNING! GLUE GOBS MAY BE RAZOR SHARP WHEN CURED!
Haha, went to break off a long glue gob that had ran down a wrinkle in the plastic wrap, impaled my thumb. live and learn. anyway,here she is. I do believe she will have a little string follow, thats ok. live and learn. off to clean it up a bit and trace my line for the riser.

[Echatham]

 
 
 

ok, so... another day of waiting on glue to dry... or should i take the bow down to dimensions BEFORE i glue on the riser? its about 1/8" too wide throughout the whole length. riser is a whisker wider than that... maybe 3/16" to wide, im gonna wait on a recommendation or two before i mix any glue

[Echatham]

Razorback thank you, I am really glad this is helpful to someone, its been super helpful to me, just having a couple of people paying attention to the build keeps me from getting distracted.  both my self bows i have built took 6 months each, just because i would stop working on them for weeks at a time.  i have been really putting in the hours on this one.

[Roy from Pa]

Looks nice and I meant to tell ya about the glue cuts fingers like a razor blade, sorry I forgot.

Glue the riser on first then cut out the bow. Looks like you have a lot of deflex and could have used more reflex, but it will be a sweet shooter. I never use a power lam, maybe that's the difference.  I'm thinking your riser post should have been shorter or your mid limb posts higher. My center post is 3 3/4 and my mid limb posts are 2 3/4.

[Echatham]

ya Roy you are exactly right about the deflex. next one i will  make my end posts higher or center and mid posts lower, im still pretty happy with it though.

[Roy from Pa]

My center post like I said above is 3 3/4, mid limb posts 2 3/4 and end posts are 6 inches. But I don't have my end posts cut on an angle like yours, mine are flat on top so I gain some height over yours there. Also I can slide my end posts in towards the limb to get even more reflex. What I do at glue up is measure the reflex at each end and slide the posts inward to make each limb the same height. Also the pressure from clamping can push your end posts out, so clamp them down solid to the base of your form so they don't move.

[Roy from Pa]

It just takes a few bow's and you will get the hang of things, but you did excellent for your first glue up. Not bad for a Navy Boy... LOL  

[Echatham]

scored the glue surfaces of both riser and ipe, then wiped down with denatured alcohol, still a little wet here, but dry by the time i got my glue mixed up.

[Echatham]

mixing up the glue... very precisely.

[Echatham]

apply a generous coating to each surface...

[Echatham]

then you just "Set it.... and forget it!" LOL


Im going to monitor this for a while and make sure it doesn't get too hot, I will move the heater back a bit if i need to.

[Echatham]

I didn't feel like it was warm enough around the back side, so... a little hi-tech engineering:



its a Super Whamodyne Thermal Energy Reflector.... and in true Navy fashion, I will call it the SWTER. (pronounced sweater) its clever because it makes things warmer... like a sweater.