Osage first try (ding ding)

[red hill]

Kelly, that looks great! I've tried heat treating an osage stave of my own but I must not heat long enough. It isn't taking the bend well.
Good job,
Stan  

[KellyG]

Stan I was getting frustrated with it and then it worked like magic. I think leaving a lot longer to cool on the caul was part of it, but the exhaust heated it up real quick and more even than the coals.

Now for a pic of it being flexed, no wood has be removed from the last pic before I got her straight.
before
 
notice the hindge area or what looks like a hindge

after
 
limbs are close about 2" of movement or so at the tips maybe a little more.
Thanks for looking.

[SEMO_HUNTER]

Looks like your making some good head way now Kelly, I'd say your ready to tiller it down to your draw weight? Try your best to keep it even as you go. Do you have access to a palm sander by any chance? The rasp and scraper will work fine if you don't.

[KellyG]

no sander semo, scissors are my scraper, and I need to get it to a low brack so I can post pics of the string track for PatB the tips are not even close to the handle. If look at the bow from the belly or back it looks like that ---> (
Ok maybe not that bad but if you look from one tip to the other you can see it. I have the string taught very taugth and it runs about an 1/2 inch by the handle. So I am going to shave it down and get it to a low brace and post pics of it then.

[KellyG]

Well I shaved off about 40 strokes aside and got it bending more, but not enough to low brace it. I shortened my string some more. So I hope to have it braced soon.

[KellyG]

Ok no picks, I am trying to shave enough off to get it on the short string. I keep makeing the string shorter but it is not braced at any hight yet. I am hoping if I can shave off enough to get the string on it now I may brace. If it does I will get pics up.
Just wanted to let yall know I am still working on it slowly but surely.

[J. Holden]

Thanks for keeping us posted Kelly!

-Jeremy  

[hova]

just keep at it brother. if youre scraping , youre going to be there forever. if youre not at floor tiller yet , i'd be using a medium to light duty rasp.


yeah the more i think of it , if youre not even at brace yet , scraping will take you forever. and possibly burn your hands...


i would even say to get some 100grit sandpaper or something. i just cant imagine scraping a bow that much.


lookin good with the heat tho , shoulda used a sidewinder...

-hov

[SEMO_HUNTER]

That's what I was thinking Kelly, I tillered my first bow with a 4 way rasp. I used the less agressive flat side to remove belly material and I actually counted the number of passes I made down each limb. Scraper works fine, but even though your using a flat edge doesn't mean you won't get ripples all down the limb. Try using that flat side of the rasp if you have one that's not too agressive. It's as good as sand paper on steroids.

[KellyG]

oh it is ok I should have took more off in the begining but I notice a little mor give with every pass, I need to get one limb bending more. so I am going to work on that limb until I get its tip move as much as the other but both limbs have some flex to them. It is funny I went back ot the gerber and its knife as the scraper yesterday, it takes more wood off then the scissors.

[red hill]

Kelly, I use a fillet knife that is a little thicker than other fillet knives. Sometimes I use a fixed blade knife. It seems to help if the knives are sharp. Just be careful and not dig into the wood. A sharp edged knife can slice through fibers and gouge out more wood than you want.
I've tried the palm sander recently and like the way it works. I just prefer the control the knife gives me while scraping.
Stan

[KellyG]

Thanks stan,
I it is working good, I pitch the top forward just a bit so I hop it helps prevent that.

[J. Holden]

Happy Memorial Day Weekend KellyG!  Thank you for your service.  Hope you get a chance to have grilled something!

-Jeremy  

[KellyG]

Thanks Jeremy,
Well it just so happens we did grill out. Our BN CO Birth day was this weekend and the BN CSM got a bunch of meat and it turned out mmmmmm good. Hope all of yall had a good week end.
Kelly

PS scrapped away some more this weekend. Still cant get it to a low brace get but the limbs are bending more and more.

[KellyG]

Ok I think I need to heat and straighten the limbs. I shorten the string. Now it is pulling further from the handle.  The gap between the handle and string is growing to the side. The string is off the belly the length of the bow. Not much but it is.
This first pic shows the string along the length of the bow.
 
the next two are of the handle area  from the belly and side.
 
 
I think with the gap growing between the handle and string there is some flexing going on sideways. Not sure but that does not sound good.
Is it time to heat her up again and get it a little straighter?
Thanks

[KellyG]

Ok today was a true lessons learned. I have been using Para cord or 550 cord as my string. Well I knew it stretched but not how much.  So today I compared the 550 cord string with the string on my long bow, and the strings were the same lengths. Ok I put said string on my Osage work in progress.
And look at the this I have a brace!
 
I know I have a lot more work but this is a major breakthrough on my part. I feel like I am getting somewhere now.
end views twisted end first.
 
Now the knotty
 
I put my gizmo on her and got a very few breaks in my lines.
Also I have a pm from Patb on my string track, he told me to measure both sides of the limb thickness that could cause the string tracking issue. I did that and got about 1/16 of an inch difference along both limbs.  I took my limbs have 3 pencil mark on them from the gizmo. That is because I ran it down the middle and the each edge of the limbs. I will get picks up of that the next go around.
I have not done anything more though then just use a real bow string and look at the tracking it is closer to center I know the string silencer is in the way. but trust me it is much better. I still am going to have to move it some. But I think I will scrap a little. I have not pulled it yet I know that I am pushing my draw at brace and maybe over it.
So here I my to do list and help me if you think it should really be reordered.
1) scrap off my gizmo marks
2) check weight on scale (if it thought I was close to 45lbs I would do this now)
3) get it pulling out to say 20inches and work on moving that string to center with heat.
4) while waiting on bow to rehydrate, work on tips and handle a little.
5)finish tiller and then make her pretty.
**note show yall as  I go
Ok input please
thanks Kelly

[Pat B]

That braced profile is beautiful, Kelly!!!
   You should get some of the twist out of that one limb but that will come as you continue to tiller if you are careful. One way to check the twist is with the gizmo but instead of working it down the center of the limb, work it down each side of the limb(on the belly) and you will see the areas that need to be scraped to remove the twist.
  Try not to worry about the draw weight for now. Work on the tillering and get that worked out. If it comes in under weight we'll get you another stave for your next project.
   Don't you love those light bulb moments. To me, that is the excitement of wood bow building. Even after 25 years of wood bow building I still get them and that keeps me going on to the next bow.
  As you get the limb bending more you will have to extend the gizmo pencil farther into the gizmo so more point is showing longer underneith. Once you get to about 20" and exerything is going well and the limbs are bending evenly and together you can just take a few full length scrapes off, exercise the limbs and move out another inch. You will have to pay more attention as to how things are going because a lot can happen in a short time or with only a few scrapes at this time.
   You are at a point now where you can see the light at the end of the tunnel so keep your eyes on the prize and don't get carries away or over confident.  Well done, my friend!!!

[KellyG]

Thanks Pat,
I am just glad I compared strings for if I had not it would have been really light in the end.
Thanks again Pat

[J. Holden]

Alright Kelly!  Nice job.  I'm glad it's coming along for you.

-Jeremy  

[hova]

yeah im no expert , but i dont worry a whole lot about where the string tracks until i get to about 20" . if im scrapin , i keep an eye on how she tracks. also how it feels in the hand.

i never really figured on 550 stretching much , but it is nylon over nylon , so its not really a surprise. if you need a string , shoot me your apo and ill whip up something that wont stretch as much.


any color you want , 'long as it's black.


-hov