56" sinew backed osage static recurve...the beginning.

[fujimo]

that sounds interesting bert, how does the hickory work with the sinew, being a better tension wood than a compression wood.
i have a nice hickory stave that i have had on my rack for at least 5 years, and am always tempted to cut it into backings, but your idea sounds"cooler"   :D  
really want to see how these all turn out.
just as a matter of interest, what would be a good length of recurve for my 29.5 " draw@ 50#- probably would like to build it to bend thru the handle- so that i can get it a bit shorter.
wayne

[Bert Frelink]

Wayne I don't want to highjack Pat's thread but if you are going to sinew back any kind of bow and gain performance I wouldn't go any longer than 60".
Here is a couple of pictures of where I am at but I will have to heal up before I can make anymore progress.
 
 
This one will be 60" long if it holds together??

[fujimo]

yup, i sure recognize that shop   :D  
all these bows look so awesome.
 those are pretty sharp"curves" almost like a lever.
thanks
 wayne

[Pat B]

No problem Bert. I'll look at your bows any day! d;^)

[Pat B]

I finally had time today to get the string nocks cut in and a little tillering done. After "floor tillering" I realized one limb was a bit stronger so I worked on it first to get both somewhat even then I began tillering. Here she sits before removing any wood today...
 

and after ac little tillering and about 25 pulls to exercise her...
 
  ...after a bit more wood removal and exercising here is where she is now...
 
  I'm still on the long string. I'm guessing she is at about 70# to where I pulled so I need to get more meat off so I can get her to low brace to see how the limbs line up and so I can get a more accurate weight measurement. Here she is relaxed after her workout today...
 

[Dan Landis]

Looks real good from here Pat.  I've been following this one real close.  The lilac bow I was working on came in under weight, thought I would try to sinew it to salvage it.  How big of an increase in draw weight can be achieved with sinew?

[Pat B]

Dan, depending on how much sinew you use I'd say up to 10#. The sinew will make it a zippier bow so it should shoot like a heavier bow. How long is your lilac bow? You really need to stretch the sinew to get the goodie out of it. If the bow is too long the sinew won't stretch enough.
  You could flip the tips and temper the belly and maybe get a few more pounds too.

[Dan Landis]

Pat, It was around 64" but cut it to 60", but didn't think it felt like I gained much, so I put it away till I get some more sinew.  I would be happy if I could get 10# out of it.  Right now it's in the low 40# range.

[LittleBen]

That a bow right there Pat! Not much limb on it though, if that makes a reliable bow it will eb a testament to your experience ... not that I have any doubt you'll get there. I really like the recurve loook. It's going to be sweet.

[Pat B]

There isn't much bending limb, Ben. I will bring the bend back into the handle so I will feel it give at full draw. 3 courses of sinew should help it hold up if I do my part.
  Dan 60" will stretch sinew. Kick the tips up a bit too. Both might just get you 10#.

[Dan Landis]

Thanks Pat, How much sinew do I need to make it work.  So far I only have one deer worth, front & back leg tendons and the back strips.  Hope to gather the rest this fall from a local butcher shop.

[Pat B]

I'll use mostly back sinew. I like the longer length and ease of seperation. It may take 10 or more, I won't know til it is done.

[Roy from Pa]

Looking nice, Pat.

[Bert Frelink]

Pat, would you post a few pic's of the sinew processing before you glue it on the bow please, that is kind of where I am at, altough all I have is leg sinew.
It's looking great sofar, thanks for sharing.
Bert.

[Pat B]

I will Bert but I'm not sure when that will be. I want to get the bow to brace first and make any corrections before adding the sinew.
  The last sinewed bow I built was with back and I love working with the longer strands. It makes a neater application for me. On the other sinewed bows I built I used either deer or elk leg sinew. They were seperated by length so I started with the longer stuff. When it was dry I added the mid length stuff to fill in bare areas and then use the shorter stuff to even everything out.

[rollingrock]

Please delete

[rollingrock]

Please delete

[bigbob2]

Very nice bows especially the closest to front but love 'em all.

[Steve Kendrot]

RR, those are beautiful bows, but thinking you meant to post them here:  http://tradgang.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=125;t=010083;p=2

[red hill]

Looks sweet, Pat!

Question. How do you string a bow with recurved tips? Do you use a stringer?

I attempted static recurves on a bbo this spring and couldn't string It by hand like the other longbows I've made. I usually place the lower tip on my instep, pull the handle and push the top tip as I slide the loop into place.