Bow Making

Tillering Stick, of DOOM.

My Bow-Making Journey

I have a keen interest in archery and I'm privileged that I own a property where I can shoot my bows safely without killing the neighbours. That said, I do have plenty of land to hide the bodies. In addition, I own a barn to which I've dedicated a large section for my woodworking activities, including bow making. Anyone who has indulged in the art of bow building will acknowledge that it is not an easy enterprise. You would think the most simplest of bows, the English longbow (ELB) would be relatively easy to build. After all, it's just a straight stick. But this is certainly not the case. The trick is to achieve a bow in which both limbs bend evenly and in concert together throughout the length of the bow. Sounds easy, but in practice, this is, without doubt, the most challenging part of the bow-making process. If you so desire to make a more complex design, such as a recurve, or reflex/deflex bow there will be additional challenges. If you really want fun, perhaps you should design a laminated bow comprising three different wood species.

After 5 years of endeavour, of only trying to make ELBs I have a box full of broken staves and a single, poorly built bow. Bow-making is not a skill that can be mastered overnight. It takes many years, at least in my case, to get to a stage where I can confidently make a bow, and honestly, I'm not there yet. Bow-making requires patience and a modicum of forbearance. There is nothing more frustrating than spending many hours crafting a bow and ending up breaking the bow at the last stage. I would be lying if I said I haven't been discouraged and therefore I have had a break from bow-making in general. But recently, I've decided to get orf my big fat arse (big fat arse!) and try anew.

This time I purchased a rough stave for the construction of an ELB. This time, it differs from my previous endeavours in that the stave is a trilaminate composite. My previous attempts were undertaken on a single piece of wood, unadorned (self-bow). The trilaminate I'm attempting to build this time consists of osage orange (belly), with a bamboo core and an outer strip of hickory. These disparate wood pieces have been securely glued together to form a composite whole.  Also, this stave has been commercially sourced specifically for constructing an ELB. My previous attempts involved using wood from trees grown on my property or timber obtained from a local timber store. A critical part of the overall process is not only selecting the right species of hardwood but also ensuring that the piece of wood chosen is optimal for bow making. There are many factors involved, but I won't be considering the complex mix of characteristics, here. Thus, the advantage of purchasing a piece of wood, specifically designed for bow-making, is that it removes the problem of optimal stave requirements. 

So far, I have been carefully removing wood from the belly of the bow (osage) using a farrier's rasp and a cabinet maker's scraper. Thus far, I have been very conservative with the wood removal and have tried to keep the amount removed spread equally along the length of the bow. So far, so good. The next stage is the dreaded tillering. To help in the process I've constructed a 'tillering stick' (see photo). This simple device allows the 'proto-bow' to be bent along its length using a simple pulley system. This allows the bowyer to stand away from the bow to gain perspective. Hopefully, this will enable me to detect weak spots (hinges) and areas of unequal bending. Areas of the limbs can be marked with a pencil to indicate where wood needs to be removed. Furthermore, any weak spots should be identified and wood from this area, not be removed. This is a painstaking process but is critical. At some stage, the bowyer comes to a stage where he is happy with the work and stops. In the end, I'm aiming for a bow of around 40 to 50lbs draw weight at a draw length of 28".  

Once I've completed the project I'll post an update and let my readers know whether I have a fully functioning bow or, alternatively, expensive firewood.   

Gratuitous photo of my three crap dogs, plus my son's equally shit hound