Changing paradigms

[Pat B]

I've decided to switch over from working on the diorama of the Kodiak Bear Hunt to working on Elg Bue, my Hjarno attempt, a 7000 year old bow found in a fjord in Denmark. As all of you might remember(it's been so long) I've shaped and partially tillered this bow and was waiting for winter to add the sinew.
 I started by cleaning my work bench in our sunroom(for me, this in clean).


and gathered the sinew, glue, crock pot and other supplies for the process.


I set up my form with 2x4 blocks to support the tips...


I usually draw the handle down to the form so the stave is in more reflex for the sinewing. The last few times I've done this I would tie the handle down to the form with sinew and just sinew over this.  This time I drilled a hole in the form at the center line, drilled a shallow hole in the back of the handle and used a screw and washers to draw the handle down to the form which gives me a more positive attachment that using the sinew to tie it down...



 Once I get my head screwed on right I'll start the sinewing process. I'll keep you posted...

[Roy from Pa]

Nice Pat but..

Once I get my head screwed on right I'll start the sinewing process. I'll keep you posted.

I hain't got that many years left:)

 

[Pat B]

I promise it won't be that long, Roy. I'd hate for you to miss it. 

[Roy from Pa]

 

[Buggs]

I got to ask, is there a technical reason you wanted to wait till winter to do the sinew?

And I back you up on the project hold
Some folks start a project and won't stop till its done. Not me, I have to start a project as soon as I think about it. That way I will have it sitting in the corner of my shop, unfinished, as a reminder of my great idea.

[Pat B]

Phil, I like working sinew in the winter because it is drier and especially in our house with the wood stove. I don't want the sinew to dry too fast though. But once the sinew feels dry the wood of the bow also has to dry from the moisture from the hide glue. I'll keep the sinewed bow on the form until that's done.
 I wanted to get this sinew job done so I set the diorama aside because it doesn't have to be done until the first weekend of May for the Tenn Classic. Once the sinewed bow is done I will set it aside to cure and dry then I can get back to the finishing touches of the diorama. My brain, ADD and/or dyslexia doesn't allow me to multitask or else I have too many unfinished projects around. My basement shop is full of them anyway so I don't need to add more to that mix. I still have the hickory backed ALB to finish up too and hopefully I can get that finished too.

[Roy from Pa]

I still have the hickory backed ALB to finish up too and hopefully I can get that finished too.

Yup I hope I make it to see that one done too:)

 

LOL come to think of it, I have a bow needing finished too:)

[Kirkll]

I got to ask, is there a technical reason you wanted to wait till winter to do the sinew?

And I back you up on the project hold
Some folks start a project and won't stop till its done. Not me, I have to start a project as soon as I think about it. That way I will have it sitting in the corner of my shop, unfinished, as a reminder of my great idea.

I've got an osage stave i've been working on for 10 years now...Off more than on...  I'm with ya bro.

[Pat B]

Still getting over the holiday slump. That's my story and I'm sticking with it. 

[Roy from Pa]

Yup Pat, same here. Holidays and surgery..

[Pat B]

I'll be starting the sinewing soon. I realized I had a bit more straightening to do first so yesterday I did that...


I also decided to rough up the back of the bow for better adhesion. I had some cambium remaining on the back and I didn't want it to impede the sinews adhesion. I got much of that remaining cambium off and scored it well over the remaining little bit.  I use a Shinto rasp, dragged sideways along the back and upper edge of each limb and along the back of the handle...

[Pat B]

After scrubbing the back of the bow with Dawn dish soap and rinsing with boiling water I sized the back with hot hide glue then a while later I started adding the sinew. Here is where I am now. Not as smooth as I hoped but once this sinew dries I'll sand the rough places and prepare for the second layer of sinew.

[Roy from Pa]

Looking great, Pat...

[Pat B]

Here is what it looks like this morning. It seems to dry pretty quickly but don't let that fool you. There is still lots of moisture in the sinew and the bow wood. I'll add sinew to the voids then see what it looks like.

[Buggs]

Very cool!  How long does it take to lay down a layer of sinew?

[Pat B]

 Phil, if everything needed is handy only 30 minutes or so, maybe a bit longer.

[Pat B]

I went back and filled the voids left after the sinew dried. Once it dries again I'll check for any voids that may still be there and fill them too. I think this will be all of the sinew I add except for filling the voids. After it all dries well I'll sand the back some, size the sinew with more glue and add the rawhide covering. I use hide glue for that too. I'll give it about a month, maybe 2 to dry more then it will be time to check the tiller once more and adjust. I'll shape the tips(levers) and the handle then too.
Here are pics where I filled the voids...

[Roy from Pa]

Sweet...

[Pat B]

By 2:30 today the gap filled sinew were dry enough to blend in. That's why I prefer to sinew back bows in the winter.

[Pat B]

I can tell the sinew is working this morning. Even only one day after adding the sinew to fill the voids and only 2 days after adding the bulk of the sinew I can slide a piece of paper under where the tips rest on the uprights of the form. The tips are lifting off the uprights. There is no pressure there at all. As the sinew continues to dry and shrink it may come off the uprights even more.
 Since this is the first time I've made my own sinew glue I was worried about how strong it actually is. I won't really know until the bow has been shot in but so far I'm very encouraged.