Need Bow Building Instruction...Books?

[GrayRhino]

In addition to the "how to's" posted on tradgang, what instruction materials would you recommend for a guy who knows nothing about building a bow, but would like to give it a try?

[horatio1226]

Bowyers Bible.
Brian

[arrowslinger22]

The 3 Traditional Bowyers Bibles, The Bent Stick by Paul Comstock (especially for selfbows with white woods).  Depends alot of what type of bow you want to build, selfbow, wood composite, wood and glass/carbon.

[AZStickman]

"Hunting the Osage Bow" by Dean Torges...... Terry

[GrayRhino]

I think I'd like to try making selfbows for now.  I've heard of the Bowyer's Bibles.  Do they explain in detail all the steps necessary to build a self bow?

Thanks for the replies and PM's.

[AZStickman]

My site has one or two step by step tutorials you might find helpful as well....  www.bowyersworkshop.com  ..... When I decided to start building selfbows many years ago, the bowyers bibles had just come out..... I read Volume 1 cover to cover twice before I started making shavings.... It hepled a lot but still left me with a lot of questions......I fumbled around for quite a few years until a couple of Texas boys took me under their wing and taught me the Torges style of facet tillering...... Dean describes it in a very thorough and entertaining read in Hunting the Osage bow and the pics on my site kinda show the way I was shown By Rusty and Mike how to actually facet tiller...... Good Luck and post pics of your progress..... There's a slough of great bowyers on this site to help you along..... Terry

[GrayRhino]

Thanks AZStickman.  I'll be going back to the tropics in a few months and I'd like to try to make a bow from guava wood, or something else available there.

[Sandman808]

AZStickman,
Thanks for the post.  You made it look like I should give it a try.  Did you use off the rack lumber or did you split the stave yourself?
Like GrayRhino I will try a tropical wood.  Guava is very easy to get in Hawaii so I will try it.  Anyone try guava wood before?  Would there be a long curing period?  If it works I will try to get a group of boy scouts to make them.
Steven

[Sandman808]

I just did a search on Guava Bows and they are nice to look at.  I think I may have to harvest a guava tree and go for it.  Any local boys out their?  I am in Mililani and I know the Pupukea Ranger.
Steven

[AZStickman]

The Facet Tillering technique will work with any wood not just Osage..... I've always used staves (just a personal choice) but facet tillering would work with boards too....... I like to think of it like this;
Learning to build selfbows is a journey....Before I learned to facet tiller every bow was a seperate trip through the jungle blazing a new trail each time and no telling where I'd come out...... When I learned to facet tiller I now had a path to walk through the jungle and I could get to the same place every time.... Good Luck guys.... Terry

[Longbowz]

"Billets to Bow"  by Glen ST Charles

[GrayRhino]

I think it was a fellow named "Manny" here on tradgang that I saw had made several guava bows. He is/was in Hawaii.

Haven't seen any posts from him for a while now.