Lets Build a Takedown Bow From Start To Finish

[Matt Moline]

Alright I have bee on this site for a while now and thought I would write my first post. So lets dive in!

First lets square up the table saw and get some riser blanks cut.      

[Matt Moline]

Now the bow we are going to be making is going to be 1 3/4 in width so I am going to be using a 3/4 sheet of ply and two 1/2 sheets of ply for my form.  Lets get this ripped down!


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 IMG_0161  by  mattmo2517 , on Flickr[/IMG]

[MoeM]

Nice pics on your HP- funny hoster; prices and some infos are translated.
I really like the railroadspike knive!

[Matt Moline]

Thanks bud!

[kennym]

We been needin a glass build for awhile Matt. Good deal!!

Cant wait to see it!  

[jess stuart]

Can't wait, we need more, and more faster. LOL  What are you going to build longbow or recurve?

[Matt Moline]

Ok so I got my boards done and cut and now its time to draw out my curve.  I am just copying a limb of another bow I made so this should be nice and quick.

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The gap on the form needs to be 3/4" so I just use a 3/4" piece of scrap to trace for my second line.

[Matt Moline]

Just to clarify with everyone here.  I am going to be making a 62" takedown recurve.

[Matt Moline]

After we get to this point its time to cut out the pattern.  Lets get some dust flying!

   

I make a larger first cut and then come back and make my final cut.  You don't have to do it this way it just makes it easier to move a large section of board around your ban saw.

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Just take your time and you will get there.

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[Matt Moline]

Alright we got some rough spots on this.  What we need to do is get this filed down strait and square.  This is a time consuming part but we need this to be right or all of our limbs will be out of whack.

There is nothing worse than pulling a limb out of an oven to find out the you have a permanent twist!  

 

Lets start taking this down.

 

Just take your time and make sure that every inch is nice and level.

 

[Matt Moline]

Well I went ahead a little faster with this and forgot to take some photos of the form build.  To give you an idea of what to do next, I will just explain.

Once you are done straitening up your first piece of ply and you are happy with it you can then move on to the next step.  Cut out your other two sides and glue and screw them together.  Once the glue is dried you just take a router and a flush trim bit and route both side of the form so that they are flush.   I use a 1/16" piece of maple, that is grind down flush and then apply it on top of the form with some number 77 adhesive.  

 


Move on over to the top part of the form and you should be looking good like this.

 

I ended up using 1/2" MDF for the two outer parts of the form.  MDF is cheaper and its also what I had In my shop. I would not use a complete MDF form as I have heard of them breaking while they are in the oven but this should work out just fine for many bows to come.  

I always check to make sure the form matches the bow limb. Fits just right.

 

[Matt Moline]

The one thing that I like to add to my forms is some fender washers on the sides so that the limbs don't move all over the form.  This trick really helps in the glue up, so that the lambs are not moving around as much.  

You will need to do drill some quick holes on the drill press.  You can use a hand drill as well for this just make sure that you clamp it down well.

 

 

Take some screws and secure it to the form.  Make sure that these washer can move a little so that when it comes time for the glue up
these are able to move down when the air hose is inflated.

 

[Matt Moline]

I ended up swapping out the maple strip on my form with a black formica strip that I got.  You will see how I alined the fender washers on the form. I try not to use a lot as they can also get in the way of the glue up.  


 

 


Now you can mount your hardware and you should be good to go. I got my bracket hardware from Bingham Projects.  Don't forget to cut some shims about 1/8" in thickness so that your compassion hose is not squeezed on the sides of the brackets.  This allows the hose to apply even presser on your lambs for the glue up.    

 

[Trux Turning]

[Matt Moline]

Alright its time to build a bow oven!  Now this one is going to be shorter kind of oven and will be 4'x3'x8" when it is completely finished.  This is a quick and cheep oven solution that I have come up with so you are not spending huge bucks for a large and expensive oven.  This one is a good first time build and I need a new one for some some other projects I am working on.

So lets build a box!

 

 

This should be pretty strait forward for everyone so I am not going to be explaining a lot.  Just build a complete box and then cut it with your table saw to create a top piece.

 


Add some hinges on the back of it.

 

Now that the box is done we need to move to the wire ring of the lights.  I just picked up some 200 watt lights, some ceramic light sockets and use and old extension cord and wired it up.  

You only need to use three lights in this type of box and this will maintain a heat of about 170 once it is done.  

Its alive!

 


Once you have tested your wiring, its time to go and get this attached to you oven.  Screw it down and make sure it is nice and secure.  Also make sure to add a small hole, where the cord will exit out of the box. You will want this so the lid won't clamp down on the cord.

 

Now that part is done you can grab some Aluminum Foil and some spray adhesive to secure it down.  Make sure you get the corners good!

 

 

[Matt Moline]

The glow means its working.    

 

You will notice that I put a simple $4.00 meat thermometer in the front center of the oven.  This will not be there the whole time and will be used once in a while to check the heat from time to time.  

 

Now that we have an oven and a form lets get some limbs made up!

[Matt Moline]

Alright lets get our Smooth On going.  Remember its a 50/50 mix.

 


So the woods we will be using is Padauk for the limbs and Maple for the wedge.  I got these all ready and done from Bingham Projects.  I do make my own at times but this was a quick build and I don't work with Padauk wood limbs that much so it was just easier to order them.

 

Mix it up good and apply an even coat of epoxy on each part.  

 

The way I set up my lambs is glass, taper,wedge, parallel and glass.

 


Make sure that you have plastic wrap to cover you form so that no glue will stick.  Its also a good idea to "grease up" with some car wax.  Wax really helps not only protect your form but it really does extend the life of it.

 
 

Well I only have two hands so I wasn't able to take a photos of the final form process.  I secure the limb down with some filament tape  and then lay the hose and metal pressure strip.  I fill my hose up to 70 PSI and then pop it in the oven for 5 hours.

 

[kennym]

I'd say a camera could be ruined doing a glueup!! LOL

[Matt Moline]

The camera happens to be my iPhone so yeah..... lol Kenny I buy from you from time to time. Good to have you on here!

[kevinbarry]

This is great info!Thanks. Looking forward to the finished bow.