Handy Selfbow Making Tool - Build-a-Long

[Dick in Seattle]

Here's a neat little build-a-long for a very useful bow making aid for anyone working on self bows.  I posted it to the Howard Hill Longbowmen yesterday but felt it was worthy of a wider distribution.   Since it is already permanently posted, I'm just putting a link and access route here.   For some reason, when I post multiple stage links to these boards, they often get a space added and won't work.  If the link doesn't work, copy it, find the space and delete it, then paste it in and try again... or just follow the route.

http://www.howardhillshooters.com/bowbox/bowbox.html

Here's how to get to the same place by routing:

Go to  www.howardhilllongbowmen.com

On the index page, scroll down to "Links of Interest to All Archers".   The top link is:  "Making a Worbench/Vise/Toolbox for Bow Building".   Click on that and you're there.

Dick in Seattle

[wingnut]

Now that's a cool work bench.  Might have to put some together for classes in the future.


Thanks,
Mike

[Dick in Seattle]

Mike... it's all rectangles except for the end pieces.  It'd be an easy fun project to set up for a Saturday with a helper and run out a batch of them on a "production" basis.  You could get at least four, maybe six of them out of a sheet of 3/4 ply.

Dick in Seattle

[Steve Kendrot]

Dick,

That looks interesting to me because I move back and forth between two houses and my current bench is way too heavy to move regularly. Plus I find the vise I'm using rough on the bow and not terribly efficient. Do you have any troubles with the high sides of your toolboxes interfering with tool use when you are working on an angle, such as facets?

Steve

[Dick in Seattle]

Steve... couldn't answer that because I just finished the thing yesterday, and the sides were a new idea... my own.  If they don't work out, my bad.   However, I don't think it will be a problem.   One thing I didn't point out in the pix was that while the obvious tendency is to clamp the riser on the bridge, nothing stops you from sliding the whole thing down a bit to get where you need to work past the riser.  

There's a possibility my rig may be longer than it would be best at, too.   I think John Strunk's was a bit shorter.   I thought about shorter but went with this length because I didn't want to end up working on too long a piece past the brace, in case it would flex.

My scrapers and tools should get here from 3 Rivers this week and I'll be working on the bow a bit... then we'll see.

Dick in Seattle