Hide Glue. How do you seal it?

[**DONOTDELETE**]

Ok, I think this will be the best place for this.

When working with hide glue in areas with high humidity, what do you use to seal it so water doesn't turn it to jello. Thinking of doing a Sinew backed bow and using hide glue for the job.

[Shaun]

Sinew and hide glue is always going to be susceptible to moisture problems in humidity or rain. The best you can do is slow the effect by using a good finish on top. No finish is going to be waterproof, but it will be some help.

Ed Scott of Owl Bows claims to have "water proof" sinew backed bows. He told me that he uses TBII for application of sinew and then TBIII as a top coat or to apply skins over the sinew. Of course, he lives in AZ so what would he know about humidity.

[**DONOTDELETE**]

was thinking of using TB3 with the sinew. Might even just do a dry bow with hide glue/sinew, for indoors or out West in the dry air States.

[Pat B]

On "Elkie" the sinew backed osage static recurve I built a few years ago for an elk hunt I used Knox gelatin for 2 of the 3 sinew layers and TBIII for the third. I then added a snake skin with TBIII and sealed over the skin with TBIII. Then I put 6 coats of Tru-Oil.
   When I built Elkie she was 56#@26". A month later during the humid summer she dropped to 45#@26". I shipped her out to Colorado 2 weeks before the hunt and she was back to 55#@26" for the hunt. After the hunt I gave Elkie to my host. A month later she was at about 65#@26". As Shaun said, you can't prevent moisture exchange no matter what you seal it with...and you don't want to totally encapsulate it anyway. It needs to breath. If you can control the humidity(hot box or in the A/C)you can keep the M/C at a reasonable level.   Pat

[**DONOTDELETE**]

Thanx Shaun & Pat.

Pat do you thin the TB 3 to seal over the skins?

I could make the bow and only use it in the winter, when we don't have humid days

[wingnut]

Use an epoxy finish over the top of your sinew job to get the best seal.  Then build a second bow like the first so you can let em dry out between hunts.  LOL

Mike

[**DONOTDELETE**]

That's a great idea Mike.

[Pat B]

Sal, I don't thin the TBIII but put down a thin coat with my finger like I do the Tru-Oil.
   Mike, I have used "Massey" finish also but didn't see much difference here in the humid south. In the winter when things are dryer and I have the wood stove burning sinew backed bows are great.
  Sinew backed bows are a fun project to build. I have a few more planned but they are not practical hunting bows in warm humid climates...at least not for me. Thats probably why the Eastern Woodland tribes used mostly longer selfbows.       Pat

[wisconsin wood butcher]

i used hide glue for the sinew then sanded down whitetail rawhide and used tbII to make it stick    
 to the sinew .poundage so far so good the tiller seems to be the thing as it cures

[John Scifres]

I've never been able to keep my sinew bows from changing weight as they dehydrate and rehydrate according to relative humidity.  But you can certainly keep rain and snow off your bow during hunts.  I use a plastic finish like polyurethane and it does fine.  In the winter months in colder climates, keep your sinew bow in a heated house and it will stay strong.

[**DONOTDELETE**]

thanx John.

[DirtyDan]

I am working with raw flax now, trying to see if I like it better than sinew.  I do not know if it will be any better than sinew with the humidity, but I am applying it with TB III.  We'll see.
Dan

[Pat B]

Dan. raw flax doesn't stretch very much. You can over power the belly if you are not careful. A thin layer makes for good back protection but too much can be too much. Sinew stretches and returns like a rubber band and that is what makes so good as a backing and adds performance. Pat

[BLACK WOLF]

I haven't found a seal that protects sinew from humidity.

Rain...yes...but going from a dry climate to a humid one will always cause a sinew backed bow to loose some draw weight. The more layers you use the more humidity will effect it.

Ray