How many pieces of Bamboo....

[Abram]

....did you mess up before you learned to thin it properly. I have ruined about 4 pieces in the last week. I thought I had a system going where I roughed it out with the Bandsaw and then finished it with hand tools only to damage another piece last night. I have more but I am beginning to think that perhaps I should just shoot a bow and leave the bow building to the experts.....LOL. I will get me another piece ready tonight and go even slower this time, hopefully I will get this one done well enough for glue up.

[Dano]

What hand tools are you using, and how are you damaging the bamboo?

[Abram]

Dano,

I am using a spoke shave, a toothing plane and occasionally a rasp. I have a tendency to get one edge thinner than the other and in the proces of truing it up I damage the thin side or like last night I found a high spot in the handle section and proceeded to try and correct it with the rasp only to gouge the boo leaving a dished out area.

[Dano]

Can you get a hold of a belt sander? I have way better luck using a belt sander.

[Abram]

Dano,
I have a belt sander and for some reason I cannot sand one down without destroying it. What is your technique for using the belt sander?

[No-sage]

Here are some pics of my sanding system.

I clamp a piece of plastic at the end of the drum connected to the dust collection port. The plastic is my homemade miter fence for my bandsaw:

 

After I cut it to outline and remove the bulk thickness with the bandsaw, I sand the tip thin.  Then I hold the bamboo up in the rear end and use the plastic to hold up the tip.  I use a push block to press the bamboo down to the belt.  By flexing the backing, only the part under the block gets sanded:

 

[Dano]

I do pretty much as Keith does, but I have to try that fence idea. If you have a smaller hand held beltsander, you can clamp it in a vice and do the same.

[bigcountry]

I learned the hard way you have to keep the ends lifted up or it will dish on you.  

Keep the boo moving.  Don't stay in one place too long.  Another thing, which I know some will disagree with is to knife edge before shaping to final shape.  That way, you have room if you get one side thicker.

[Abram]

Thanks fellas, I will give it another go. Perhaps the belt sander and no-sage technique is the ticket.

[Eric Krewson]

I use a belt sander with a 36 grit belt, no fancy jigs, just go slow and keep my bamboo moving. I pull the bamboo to me and apply pressure to the area I want to sand the most.

Come up to the shop Abe, spend the day and we will do a glue-up.

[Abram]

Eric,

I have been trying to visit ever since the ASTB state shoot but one thing or another keeps getting in the way. Perhaps we can get together in September if that is not too close to hunting season.

[Eric Krewson]

Any time Abe, Tuesdays, Thursdays and weekends are best for me.

[Tom Leemans]

I've always rough thinned it down with a jointer, (blades must be sharp!) then finished up with a toothing plane. I started using a sander once, but had reservations that the thickness taper would not be consistent. Maybe I'll try the fence deal.