care of all wood bows

[dougedwards]

What would I need to know about the care and handling of an all wood backed with bamboo longbow?  Some have told me that you do not shoot them more than about 20 arrows per day.  Is this correct?

I live in the very humid climate of Virginia.

 Doug

[Boomerang]

I think you can shoot as much as you want. Just unstring it when you are done.

[JohnI]

Shoot it all you want, unstring It when you are done and don't overdraw it. If it was made to draw 27" that's it. A good coat of wax now and then is also a good idea.

[Wannabe1]

Yep, rub it down with a coat of Johnson's Paste wax, lightly buff and you are good to go.

[Sal]

You can shoot it as much as you want.  

Here are a few musts:

-don't leave it in the car on a hot sunny day, it may delaminate on you.
-don't leave it strung, as soon as you are done unstring it.
-don't dry fire it, good for all bows.
-don't let ANYBODY draw it, no one.
-dont bang it around specially the back

[dougedwards]

Wow....they do require some special care.  I am glad that I won't be restricted to a daily shooting limit.

 Doug

[Sam McMichael]

I pretty much agree with Sal. Just care for it reasonably and shoot it all you want. I don't like to get mine wet any more than I have to.

[Arkansas Osage]

Do not nick the bamboo backing on anything. Even a hairline crack in the bamboo, lateral or longitudinal can cause the bamboo to split apart the next time you draw it. If you hunt with it make sure the limbs do not whack any tree limbs or parts of your deer stand. If you slip and fall hold it up and do not drop it or lower your arm to break your fall, if that bamboo hits a rock or something on the way down its over with. Leroy Buckley of Two Rivers Longbows makes a reflex defex BBO (bamboo backed osage) longbow and I'm sure he could answer any questions.
815-488-8136

[Eric Krewson]

I have made a bunch of BBOs over the years, all that weren't trashed by house fires or other accidents are still shooting as far as I know.

You can treat a BBO just like you would a fiberglass bow, leave it strung all day, shoot it until your fingers bleed, just unstring it when you are done shooting

In my opinion BBOS are very durable, don't worry about dents or nicks in the bamboo. On the other hand there is bamboo and there is bamboo, some lasts forever, some is prone to failure. The problem is you never know which is which when you make a bow, it all looks the same.

The good thing is, simple cracks, splits and raised splinters in a bamboo back are fixable with super glue and a thread wrap. My personal BBO started raising a few splinters after 4 or 5 years of heavy use, a little superglue to hold the splinters down and a superglue soaked thread wrap and I am back in business, no problems since.

 

[dougedwards]

That is very good information.  Thank you.

 Doug

[dougedwards]

Now I have a different problem.  This Vinson Minor Cane Dragon longbow was shipped to me on Thurs May 16th in a trade from Montana to Virginia scheduled to arrive on Monday May 20th.

Both bows shipped USPS Priority with tracking.  Mine got to it's destination on time and USPS stopped tracking the longbow coming to me on Saturday.  The only explanation that I get is that sometimes the postal offices forget to scan the items which results in no tracking of the item.

How can a USPS customer service person even say that with a straight face?  Sometimes they just forget??

If I ran my business in this fashion my competitors would eat me alive.  But of course USPS is not worried about competition.....our tax dollars keep them up and running.

Sorry for the rant but now an insurance claim must be made and I will have to wait another 21 days to see if the claim will be reconciled.  

USPS never again!

 Doug

[dougedwards]

The post man came late to my place of business today and dropped off a long tube that was busted open on one end.  Although the tip of the bow was sticking out there was no apparent damage done.

This longbow is really sweet.  It is really quiet at release but seems a little on the slow side compared to my 45 lb Martin Hunter.  The Cane Dragon at 40lbs@28" is a smooth draw and hold and I did string it, flexed it for a short while and unstrung it until I got it home.

My biggest problem with USPS is not that they are slow on delivery or even that they lose things. They seem so nonchalant about the fact that they sometimes just don't bother to scan the items making tracking impossible.

If they just had a sign in their local offices or on their web site that said that they offer tracking but don't go out of their way to scan the items at each stop more people would know not to be swayed into paying extra for a service that may or may not be helpful at all.

 Doug

[dougedwards]

Cool looking bow though
         

[LimbLover]

Looks beautiful!

I used to worry about this a lot. Especially after making my first bow. I've broken several while making them now. I've never had one break in my hands from shooting it, but I'm sure it will happen someday.

I've heard a lot of self bow guys tell me that if a bow is well tillered and crafted from a good piece of wood, it should last you. If a bow has a tillering flaw, it will be revealed in time by failing.

I also read (something by Dean Torges maybe?) that a bow should be strung and left strung for at least 8 hours after it is "completed". That is essentially a hard day of hunting. If a bow can't take the duration without taking substantial set, you have problems.

Regardless, there is no point in coveting bows. If a bow is going to break, it is going to break. Hang it on the wall and get another one.

A bow is only as good as the memories it makes anyway.

[dougedwards]

Very good points thanks.

 Doug

[Bjorn]

Maybe it is the pics but that brace looks high to me. You may find the bow will perform better at a lower brace-and that string may not have enough twists to be long enough. If you don't make your own strings have one of our sponsors make you one for that bow.  

[LimbLover]

I agree with Bjorn. I don't know why, but I make the brace height as low as possible on all my self bows. Just enough for the fletching to clear the riser.

[dougedwards]

This bow seems a little bit slow for a 40 lb bow but I don't have a lot of experience and don't have much to compare except for my 45lb Martin Hunter which is MUCH faster.

Could the string or the brace on this bow be contributing to this characteristic?

 Doug

[LittleBen]

A wood bow can have very comparable performance to a glass bow, but only if its extremely well made. Also, the more performance you try and squeeze from a wood bow, the more it is going to be prone to failure ... you're pushing the limits of the materials.

[Sal]

An all wood bow at 40# will usually be slower than  a laminated recurve bow at 45#.  

It's not the fault of the bow, the bowmaker or the brace height they're just different animals.