Grassroots archery in the Tunahouse

Years and years ago I drooled over a thread here https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/build-projects-and-project-cars/grassroots-archery-making-a-good-longbow-on-the-ch/60020/page1/

I've wanted to do this for a long time, but like most hobbies (RC planes, cars, restoring the truck, learning guitar, volunteering at Church, volunteering at Trail Life, being a father of four, etc) I don't have enough time or money to throw at them. When Tunakid #3 got into archery last year, I saw a chance.

So I bought a stave of hickory from a known bowyer on Etsy, and started in.

I had Tunakid 1 sharpen everything after that, because my planes were hopeless and the new spokeshave wasn't great either

Then the shavings started to look right as I went through the inner bark

Now the whole thing looks like this, and I start cutting the belly on Wednesday.

I'm going to a bendy handle flatbow. Nice and easy for the first try. I have another stave, and I also think I can get two out of this one depending on the cut. Something in the 40 lb range draw weight for my ~30" draw length.

In reply to tuna55 :

Nice!

Random question:  Are you dressed like that when you're changing oil or wrenching on the car?

1988RedT2 said:

In reply to tuna55 :

Nice!

Random question:  Are you dressed like that when you're changing oil or wrenching on the car?

ha!

No, those are office clothes, fear not. The shirt is a thrift store find and the pants are Duluth, so they are pretty tough, and shaving wood isn't likely to hurt the clothes anyway. I don't generally change after work because I'd rather not double my laundry load.

In reply to 1988RedT2 :

Dont shame the guy for being sharply dressed. 
 

Tuna, I've been drooling over that thread for a couple years now. As you say, too many other things going on. Someday! For now, I'm happy to sit back and watch. 

barefootcyborg5000 said:

In reply to 1988RedT2 :

Dont shame the guy for being sharply dressed. 
 

Certainly not trying to shame him!  I was duly impressed!

This is one of the coolest things I have seen in a while!!!

Here is a new pile of not-the-bow

And I realize that I don't take enough pictures.

I have five wounds on my hands from sharp things, but the stave is now decidedly bow-shaped.

That's at 40 lb, obviously I have some work to do. Making the string was actually really tough. I had to make it twice, and it was still too short, so I added a small extension.

Your stave is starting to do real bow things! Keep up the good work.

A friend just recently took me and one of my kids to an archery range. It was the first time I've shot a bow since boy scouts. After getting home I immediately started looking online for basic info on bows, found myself back on GRM, and promptly falling down the rabbit hole of that thread... Now I can't help but want to make a simple board bow, if for no other reason than the absurdity of such a thing actually being a thing. 

tuna55 said:

Wow.  

Fueled by Caffeine said:

tuna55 said:

Wow.  

Wow, what? Wow good? Wow bad? Wow you have a purple wall?

The bow is much more bow like now, but I'm bad at taking pictures. 

I do plan on shooting Lefty. At any rate, I think it's time to switch to the shorter string.

Every time this thread gets bumped up, I always read it as Grassroots Treachery.

Fueled by Caffeine said:

tuna55 said:

Wow.  

Bow.

That's 40 lb. I'm still not totally sure how to measure the length properly. I think the strong needs to be shorter even yet. 

Driven5 said:

Fueled by Caffeine said:

tuna55 said:

Wow.  

Bow.

This is about 45 lb at my draw, I think it's ready to try shooting an arrow before finishing.

I shot on Monday evening with my son in the driveway. It was a little off because his arrows are way short for my ~32" draw. I still was able to shoot a few. It hurts. The bendy handle and unsanded corners snap in my palm. It did bow things, though.

Tuesday is archery day for the kid, so I brought my bow to show the coach. He let me shoot after the event was over, so I put five arrows (long enough to go to full draw) in the target. He's going to make up five arrows for me for practice, although I'll make my own someday. It did bow things!

I have a scrap square of leather to make a better handle on top of the bendy handle, and I have to handle the string service again (it fell off), but it's a bow!

Pictures to come. I made a leather handle grip, with a small arrow rest. It's just okay. I did some relief with the leather, and stained it with strong coffee, but it's a little bland. Sewing it on was tough.

The worst was when I finished. I drew it several times. Tunakid 4 wanted a try, and she undid the timber hitch somehow in her draw, and I tried to retie it, but I cannot get enough string to make the knot correctly. I have to make a brand new string, and I had just finished the string service, too. Booooooooo

With your long draw, what nock length did you go with for? 

The typical anchor points seem to be further forward on the face and could probably shorten your draw by 1-2 inches.

Making a string seems like a PITA.

This is cool.  You're doing awesome stuff

Driven5 said:

With your long draw, what nock length did you go with for? 

The typical anchor points seem to be further forward on the face and could probably shorten your draw by 1-2 inches.

Making a string seems like a PITA.

I'm still playing with that, and don't have a good answer yet. Yes the string is a pain. The new string is long enough but I can't make the string serving survive. I did shoot five arrows though, and it did well.