first vine maple

[yewsage]

Here is a d-bow i just made from vine maple gathered locally.  It was cut maybe 6 weeks ago.  I am not sure of the poundage but i have pulled it to 26" or so many times and it feels strong.  Right now i'm down on equipment:  no tiller tree, scale, or even arrows.  So, i haven't shot it yet.  But it feels strong, doesn't follow the string, and gives no audible sign of its back being in any danger.  Will probably draw safely to 28".

 http://www.youtube.com/user/bowyer10#p/a/u/2/f9d8BjuEapY


Here are some pics.  It's not finished yet.  I still need to style up the nocks, smooth it all over, give it some kind of decoration, protect it from the weather.  But i really like this wood.  It is really fun to work with.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[walkabout]

awesome character there, glad you found a wood you like alot. im going to have to get my hands on some vine maple myself and give it a try. i love the look of a snakey bow, shows the natural aspect of the sport alot.

[Curt Brisky]

I have Vine Maple instructions on my site.  Go to  www.briskybows.com  and click on Tips and thoughts.  VM is a great bow wood.  Finding it straight is the challenge.  If you like character try some VM.

[yewsage]

yes i've read your vm tips, thanks for putting them up.  I have maybe 2 dozen 6 foot vm staves right now, each minimum 2" diamter, most closer to 3"...i see a lot of vm bows in my future.

[Moen]

Very nice. I like character bows, but hate to make them;)

[walkabout]

haha growing up me and my brother used to make bows out of wild grape vines, lots of twists and nodes/knuckles to deal with. they didnt last long because we always cut them wet, but it was fun anyway.

[George Tsoukalas]

Yewsage, that bow looks great! Keep us posted on how she shoots. Jawge