build along from start to finish

[eman614]

i love the build alongs on this site but they all start with the glue up of the bow. so i figured that i would do one starting with the glue up of the form.

i recently became the owner of a new fire hose press system by way of a good gentle man here on the tradgang, but i had no form for it since i have been using the rubberband method for my press. first thing first, i have to build a form.

 i started with a piece of 23/32" ply wood that i got from lowes, and ripped it length wise into 12" strips(i hope this is tall enough!). next using the titebond2 pictured, i spread a thin layer of glue over both pieces, and stuck them together. next i screwed the form together using 1 1/4" screws. i drew a rough shape of what the forms shape was going to be, and made sure not to glue too close to the lines.

with that done its now time to let the glue dry. while it dried i worked on the template that i will use to make the bow. i make my template out of 1/4" oak laminate. first i draw it on the template , then i cut it out on my band saw and sand iit to the exact shape using the wheel on my belt sander. this is the final product .

that is all for now, but there is plenty more to come. this is a work in progress, so you guys bear with me. hope you all enjoy.

[metsastaja]

How did the top part of your form press turn out.

[Shore08]

How thick is your form?

Thanks for starting at the beginning, BTW. I am about to undertake my first one and I always looking for buildalongs to help me go through the steps in my head.

[kennym]

Lookin good Eric!

A tip from many form trys:

 Take a GOOD metal yardstick,or a pc of .050 glass and bend around your template. It will point out any flat spots.

 I never seem to be able to detect these til the bow is done!!  

[eman614]

forgot to post the pic of the form glued together. here it is the red outline is just to show me where not to screw.

more to come... soon hopefully.

metsastaja i haven't gotten there yet, but it is coming soon.

shore08 the buildalongs are the best way to learn. they are the best and cheapest learning aid out there. my form currently is 1 7/16" thick. there is more to that but i haven't got there yet.

kenny, thanks for yet another fantastic tip. it is sure to save me some frustration.

eric

[eman614]

i got a bit more done on it so far this weekend. first off i use my template to mark out for both limbs. i use the method that kennym showed on here previously. this is what it looks like just prior to cutting. the thin black line is the one i am using.

next i use the jigsaw to cut it out. while cutting i try to stay within 1/8" of my line. this makes the following step a bit easier.

here it is all cut out. this gives you an idea of what the bow will look like.

 in this pic the template is screwed into place so that i can use the pattern bit for the router. this pic also shows a little better how i marked the shape of the form to begin with. jsut make sure the lines line up and it should be fine.

thats all for now. eric

[Shore08]

That's looking good, can't wait to see your next steps.