Osage first try (ding ding)

[KellyG]

Jeremy thanks slowly but surely.

Hove thanks but that string came off my long bow and will work. I am going to have to start shipping stuff off soon. I need to finish this on and start on the other stave and get it looking like a bow. So I can send it home or lose that stave, because it is untreated wood.

[red hill]

Good job, Kelly! Wish I had your patience and determination. I still rush some of my work...
Looks good, sir.
Stan

[J. Holden]

Woo Hoo!  Start shipping stuff home?!  Is the light at the end of the tunnel?  Hang in there.

-Jeremy  

[KellyG]

thanks stan

yep jeremy it is thanks

and here is the next errr fumbling and bumbling brought to you by yours truely

Ok I have worked on it a little more and thought I should show the gizmo in use.
the first pick is of the gizmo and me showing the biggest gap, and I adjust that pencil so it is almost touching. The you run it the lenght of the limb, middle then the sides
 
here are my lines it left, i scrape about 10 time where the lines are and leave the area alone where it is. Eric correct me please if that is not right.
 
Ok she is pulling about 10" here, I have it out to about 12 on the tree but can pull 14" if in hand. It just scares me on the tree pulling that far.
 

[KellyG]

ok we are pulling further here she is on the tree.  The first pic is the way i have it post most of the time the limb on the left the twisted limb the one on the right the knotty.
   
Now I have just flipped so the twisted is on the right. you can see the belly now and the twist better.
   
the knotty limb the gizmo show the outer half needing more wood remove. The twisted I get lines almost the whole way so  I guess that means she is bending really good. The good thing on the knotty side the stiff spots are at knots.
If you count the notches the string is in the 13 one so it is 13" from the belly. Not to bad. I have scraped it once more since these pics. I am doing ten but my next one will only be 5 scrapes. I really notice the difference when drawing it. So I would rather be safe and do less scrapes.
Well input is always welcome.
thanks Kelly

[red hill]

Yeah, I noticed the difference between scrapes, too, Kelly. She's really coming along well. Good job.
Stan

[Pat B]

She's coming along nicely Kelly. I can see from your pics that the outter limbs need to bend more. Leave the inner 1/3 of each limb alone until and get the outter portions working more. Check the twisted limb on both sides of the belly and the gizmo will show you where to remove wood to eliminate or at least lessen the twist.
  Be sure to exercise the limbs well between wood removals. From now on it won't take much wood removal to really change things.

[SEMO_HUNTER]

Great job Kelly, it's really starting to come around. That paracord has a heck of alot more stretch than ya think don't it?
The real bowstring made a world of difference.

Listen to Pat's advice and you'll do fine.
I wish you could just drive on over here so I could take that twist out for ya this afternoon, but I know that's impossible.

Hang in there buddy!  

[KellyG]

well semo give me about 4months and you can drive over to see me any time. I am only 2 hours west of KC.

[KellyG]

Will do pat. I will start that now. The gizmo leaves 3 marks almost the whole lenght of the limb on the twisted one. They start and stop about the same place if it is a 1/4 difference I would be suprised. The knotty starts and stops over the knots. I have been taking just a little more of of the outer third of the knotty one. Say five scraps on the lines in the inner third and 10 on the outer but I will stop doing that and just do the outer.
Thanks for the kind word redhill, and the advise Pat,

Kelly

[KellyG]

OK I have her pulling 48lbs at about 19".  Now what? the twist is still in it. Do I stop now and heat the twist out? The twist does not look any less.

 

Thanks,
Kelly

[Shaun]

I generally take the twist out and get the string tracking through the handle area before going any further. You have two things going on with the limb (s), one is twist, the other is curve. Both limbs look like they make a "C" shape bending out of the handle and back at the tips. I'd mess with it some with heat and bending the limbs closer to straight or at least tracking through the handle. You can use heat to bend limbs sideways because they will not bend that direction when working. At this stage you cannot change shape much with heat in the plane that the limb works, it will bend back as it works. Looking good with sweet brace shape!

[Pat B]

Kelly, I think I'd get the twist out if for m=no other reason it is distracting.   Once you get the twist out remove wood from mid limb on both limbs and don't take any m,ore from the fade area until you get your limbs bending evenly and together. They are actually bending together  so get them bending evenly.

[KellyG]

will do and thanks both of you. That twist makes it that limb look flat pat but I need to post a pick form the other side I am getting what to me looks like even bend if I flip it and tack a pick it arch nicely. I an guess somewhere between the to is the truth. Thanks for looking.

[Pat B]

If you can get the bend out it will make it easier to see proper tiller from both sides. Knowing that it looks better from the other side is common. I often flip a bow on the tree if it has character especially just to be sure I get a good visability of the bending limb.
  Also I wanted to tell you something about the gizmo(unless you already know). If you are getting a line down the length of the limb shorten the pencil point on the gizmo and scribe again. You have to periodically adjust the "depth' of the point to allow for wear but you should also adjust the depth as tiller progresses also.
  When you get near the fades you will get a false reading from the gizmo because of the "artificial" curvature of the fades. The surface of the fade bends permanently.

[KellyG]

Pat I run the gizmo the length of the bow with the pencil backed out first looking for the largest gap and then screw it out to just touching that spot and  run it down the middle then each side and then repeat the process on the other limb. I have a shorter one about 4" that I will start using soon. If that sounds wrong let me know.

[KellyG]

Ok clamped and cooling now for over 12 hours now. I will take it off after my run in the AM. Did this before your post about the alignment so we shall see. The other limb is the one that is more off in that c then this  one. I will heat that end tomorrow and work on getting that out.
 

Here is the pick of my heat source.
 
Well more to come later. I think while I let it rehydrate, I am going to start on the other stave. I need to get it bending so I can say it is a bow and mail it back and finish it. Or I lose that stave and have to leave it here.

[J. Holden]

Love the heat source!  Now get scrapin' soldier!  In cadence, scrape, scrape, scrape...  We never leave our own osage behind.

-Jeremy    

[Pat B]

Look at you Kelly, with 5 big, new "C" clamps and the most expensive heat gun in the archery world!  Tax dollars well spent! d;^)
  Good idea on the other stave. Let's get it bending before you come home. Looking forward to you getting your feet back on US soil. You better get as much done on both of the bows before you get home. That honey-do list has got to be a mile long by now!

[KellyG]

Jeremy thanks, and I wilco

Pat I got about 90% of the twist out. No should I string it and see where the string is tracking now or let it set for a few days and string and check. I am going to get that other stave down to my ring on saturday I hope and sunday I should be able to lay it out and get it cut to profile, and with some of joe's advice on his thread make some quick work I hope.
thank and I will try and get some pick up of the much less twisted bow.