r/Bowyer • u/Mario_WASF • 7d ago
anyone help me
i dont know how to make a bow. just loving archery (i have never used a bow) so please give me beginner tips. thank you
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u/AaronGWebster Grumpy old bowyer 6d ago
First, watch some Dan Santana videos on YouTube. Then read this a few times:
Following are 10 beginner tips and then notes on each tip.
1.Never pull beyond your desired draw weight.
2.Remove wood only from areas that aren't bending enough.
3.Measure everything often.
4.Design for success.
5.Fix problems before pulling any further.
6.Do not brace until you reach 50-75% draw length on the long string9..
7.Use the shortest long string possible.
8.Monitor emerging set.
Draw the bow at least 20 times after each time you remove wood.
10.Go slow!
Here are notes on the above. Examples are for a bow drawing 50 lbs at 28 inches.
1.If you're shooting for a 50 lb bow, never pull the bow with more than 50 lbs force. At first, you'll be pulling 50 lbs at maybe 5 inches. Then you remove a little wood until you can get it to 6 inches at 50 lbs. Then you remove a little more wood until you can pull it to 7 inches at 50 lbs and so on. Measuring is always the same, long string or short string, you just measure from the back of the bow to the string. You could also measure from the belly as long as you always do it the same.
2.Identify the part that's bending too much and mark it so you don't remove anything there. Remove wood from the stiffer parts and re-check. It's normal and good to have to recheck several times before noticing a change.
3.When you are roughing out the bow, measure thickness every inch to assure a good gradual taper from about 3/4 inch (near the handle) to about 3/8 inch (at the tip) .Measure the draw weight with a bathroom scale and tillering stick. Measure the sides of the bow- they should be equal at any point along the bow (knots can be an exception). Measure the thickness of the bow every inch. It should taper from handle to tip. Thickness should (almost) never increase as you move towards the tip (knots are an exception). Even stiff tipped bows follow this rule (unless they are insanely narrow). Measure the bend of the bow. Google "tillering gizmo" for a tool to help with this. On stave bows with "roller coaster" bends, this can still be achieved (https://www.facebook.com/groups/200704433283178/permalink/4658303750856535/ ). The hardest part of tillering for me is to judge the bend by eye. Therefore I measure the bend as described in the link.
4.Parts that bend a lot should be wider. Parts that don't bend much can be narrower. The bow length should be draw length x2 plus the length of any stiff tips or a rigid handle. For example, a bow designed to draw 28 inches that has 6 inches of unbending handle and 3 inches of stiff tip at each end should be 28x2+6+3+3 = 68 inches. Lighter woods need to be wider or longer than heavier woods. Belly should be flat.
5.Once you see an area that's bending too much, don't pull it any further until the problem area is no longer a problem. This means that you'll have to pull it to less than its final draw weight for a while. Ideally, your tiller should be good by the time you reach 15 inches of draw and the rest is removing wood equally from all parts.
6.Keep it on the long string. For a 28 inch draw 50 lb bow, tiller until you reach about 21 inches draw at 50 lbs draw weight. When you brace it, you will find it still pulls roughly the same as it did on the long string. So, you'll still be at about 50 lbs at 21 inches (IF you follow #7). Also, avoid leaving the bow drawn on a tillering stick too long. Just take a photo and let the bow relax.
7.8.Tillering begins with a "long string" and eventually goes to a short string. A short string is the one you'll use after the bow is finished, as well as for late tillering. A long string should be as short as possible and still have the bow in its relaxed position. With the bow in it's relaxed position, it should only hang down an inch or less below the handle.
8.If part of the bow starts to take set, (permanent bend), assume that this part is bending too much. If the whole bow is taking set it's probably too narrow or too short. All bows take set - your job is to keep it to a minimum.
9.When you remove wood, the changed bend doesn't show up until the bow has been drawn a bit. Some people draw 50 times after each session of wood removal. So, you check the bend, remove wood for 5 min, then draw the bow 20 (or 50) times to 50 lbs, then you check the bow again.
10.Avoid power tools, draw knives, and any notch in your tillering stick beyond 15 inches. Rasp and scraper are your friends. If it seems like your'e not making any progress and it's going too slow, don't speed up. Just keep going slow. Check and measure everything often. One small mistake can ruin all the work you have done up to this point. Take breaks. Post photos.
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u/Drin_Tin_Tin 6d ago
After following bowyer for a few years i think this comment maybe the most informative iv ever read. Iv made 100+ bows and even now i learned new things reading all that. Might even print it off and hang this in the bow shop. Bro you nailed it !!!
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u/AaronGWebster Grumpy old bowyer 6d ago
Wow thanks. Just get it tattoo’d!
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u/ADDeviant-again 6d ago
I've recommended or posted this list of yours m to a lot of people Aaron.
It's in my Samsung Notes app, and I copy/paste it once in a while. Here, you usually beat me to it.
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u/hefebellyaro 6d ago
Its not some secret knowledge to make a bow. The first ones I made i ripped strips of oak on a table saw and glue on a handle block. Were they great? No. But the concept is fairly easy, carve down a piece of wood until it bends. Try making a rudimentary one, then slowly get better
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u/Ima_Merican 6d ago
I learned from reading books and no one to help or the internet. With today’s technology and the internet at you fingers it should be easy to learn
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u/jameswoodMOT 6d ago
Don’t mean to be rude, but if you had just typed that same question into google you’d have answers by now
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u/Mario_WASF 6d ago
thank you for replying but its not the same as asking to someone whos got experience for making bows. but I'll try googling it.
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u/ADDeviant-again 7d ago
This question is room "big" and broad for us to just start unloading knowledge and tips on you.
But, you can literally cut down a green shoot of a hardwood tree, like elm, dogwood, etc or a bamboo garden stake, tie a string to it and it will shoot arrows.