I've watched your videos for years, you coached me though my first board bow, and now I'm making beautiful glass backed bows in various forms with all different varieties of wood. Thank you for continuing to pursue the passion of bow making and thank you for sharing with all of us! I'm also a lefty, welcome to the dark side 😂
Can we also have a series That is called 'We bow until it Bows' ? For example, what would it take to make acrylglass bow? It is always fun to watch you make exotic bows!
Kramer, I would put a half inch thick or so wood stave covered in packing tape over the top of the seat belt material prior to winding the string on to clamp the belt to the bow. This will compress the belt more evenly and flatter over the stave, and the tape (with a little paste wax on it perhaps) will prevent any string from sticking to the bow face. You might get a more even distribution and penetration of the glue in the belt material. Just a thought.... Joe
i just saw The return, a movie about odysseus and the trial he faced when he arrived home, and in the movie they have the bow of odysseus depicted as a bow made from what it seemed to me to be two whole antelope horns joined at the middle with a piece of wood, do you think that such construct could even bow?
No you saw a Hollywood theatrical piece designed for an audience by writers that didn't understand. The physics and engineering behind building a bow. when left whole in a cylindrical form the horns don't flex or bend like you need them to
I'm actually surprised the seat belt didn't slow the bow down more considering it is just extra weight on the limbs. I know that the true advantage of backing with sinew (and it seems like seatbelt) is that it enables much longer draw lengths that a pure self bow despite being heavier/more dense than wood. So if you need a 66" self bow to draw to 29" without breaking, you can make a 58" sinew backed bow and pull it back to 29". However, if you make both bows 66" and pull both to 29" at the same draw weight the self bow will generally be faster since it is lighter/less dense. Its the same thing with horn quite frankly but under compression. It's like 2x as dense as wood, but can bend beyond 90 degrees and spring back. It only truly becomes advantageous if you pull the bow back further than you could if it was purely a self bow. And that is only if you have a bow 60-70+lbs draw weight, otherwise horn is simply too heavy of a material and the bow will probably be sluggish. I'd actually love to see you make a "modern" composite laminated bow, where you use a wooden core, bamboo on the belly (as a more lightweight horn substitute), and seatbelt on the back (as a sinew substitute). Conceptually, those different materials should behave similar to their traditional analogs. Particularly if you aim for a shortbow, say 55" NTN given your 29" draw length
Well. This is convenient timing. I'm building my first bow now. (Yes, largely thanks to your videos.) I'm cutting the profile now and thinking hard about backing material. Something like this would be great. Not changing the properties of how the bow shoots, but adding resilience to breaking. Very interesting idea.
I have had one for the series using some kind of flexible epoxy as the backing replacing the fiberglass on a laminate bow. The theory is that there are some epoxy resin bows are used like a cheap fiberglass on some of Chinese made English longbows in both 1 piece and 2 piece that end up working just on own so the thought is one could do the same for a regular laminate longbow using enough resin going thick enough then removing some of the epoxy layer to be flat yet still be a backing making these limbs for the one piece model, just seeing if you can replace fiberglass with a flexible epoxy.
The nylon strap webbing material made for such a good backing because the material is made for impact like a seatbelt is used in a car or for impact as a ratchet strap for holding items down while moving. Of course, this nylon strap webbing was going to be a good material becuse it is designed to flex as needed provided it worked for the forces in play, the quick in and out vibrations that a bow can have, once this webbing was proven in repeated shooting, I knew the bow would work.
KRAMER, I've had some ideas for a while and you're the only person I know that's crazy enough to test them. PVC PIPE could it be a good cheap hard backing? Taking the pipe, flattening it, and cutting a slat out of it. You could even mold it to your bow with heat. ALSO could you make a tri lam bow with these slats? Budget way to get into making tri lam??? Maybe, PVC pipe is very strong, I just made a 90lbs horse bow out of just pipe. No core added. 1in schedule 40 PVC.
Interesting backing idea. The caveat for us garage/backyard bowyers will be getting it properly adhered to the wood. I wonder as well how much of the result is due to having soaked that stuff in CA. CA reacts with different plastics and the seatbelt is essentially plastic. Maybe any nylon strapping will work. You can by the stuff by the foot at outdoor outfitters. It's typically nowhere near as wide as a seatbelt so you'd not get the back of the bow completely covered. But you might not have to cut into it along the edges so you'll have a prettier neater job. I'm thinking even half as much seatbelt or nylon strapping material would have still made that bow ... shatterproof!
Super interesting. That could be the perfect apocalypse/survival bow when you need that bow to perform every time and neve worry about breaking and be shot by multiple people with a large difference in LOP. Cheap to build and unbreakable.
If you truly want to break the bow move the bow holder on the wall up another 8 to 12 inches. But you may just be pulling the string off the ends of the bow.
I love your videos, especially when you nerd out. I would love to see an English longbow build, most of what you are building seems to be American longbow. I would like to see how you have to change you techniques to tiller the more D shaped cross section rather than the flat American style.
I’m a rank amateur with a question for anyone knowledgeable. I have a bow a fellow made for me from a piece of oak, with a sinew backing. Basically a primitive bow, but with a modernish cut out for the arrow. He shoots split, me 3 under. I noticed that it’s a little uncomfortable on my fingers when I release, but if I shoot split it’s more comfortable. So question, should I knock it a little higher than it came, or will that throw the whole thing off?
can you make a bow out of a fallen old barn? we have one i drive past each day. I've been thinking about asking the owner for a couple pieces. weathering is intense on this barn, but the wood feels firm. its old growth lumber
Looks like you accidentally found a really good backing! Definitely worth further exploration. Maybe you could build a shorter bow, maybe between you 35 40 pounds, and again just maybe, lefthand? Asking for a friend 😂
I wonder if using a similar technique you could increase the draw weight of a bow? Like if there was a fantasy civilization that made you a bow when you started training and you would continually add layers to it as you achieved certain parameters. So that you could tell the experience of the archer based on the appearance of their bow and how many layers it had, similar to belt colors in martial arts.
I've watched your videos for years, you coached me though my first board bow, and now I'm making beautiful glass backed bows in various forms with all different varieties of wood. Thank you for continuing to pursue the passion of bow making and thank you for sharing with all of us!
I'm also a lefty, welcome to the dark side 😂
Can we also have a series That is called 'We bow until it Bows' ? For example, what would it take to make acrylglass bow? It is always fun to watch you make exotic bows!
thats actually a solid idea
Love this! “Until is Bows!”. Skis. Snowboards. Skateboards. Leather belts, tires, paper. The list goes on.
Third this idea!
Kramer, I would put a half inch thick or so wood stave covered in packing tape over the top of the seat belt material prior to winding the string on to clamp the belt to the bow. This will compress the belt more evenly and flatter over the stave, and the tape (with a little paste wax on it perhaps) will prevent any string from sticking to the bow face. You might get a more even distribution and penetration of the glue in the belt material. Just a thought.... Joe
Would Kevlar not be an alternative? It works as a bullet stopping fabric, because of it's high tensil strength.
That would be a nice test. Testing Kevlar next would be a great watch
I bet it wouldn't be as cheap as the seat belt though. It cost $3 and you can back 3 bows out of a $10 roll.
I'd love to see you try to fire harden a board bow like oak or something common like that wood
That bow is proof that wearing a seatbelt can save your life ^^
i just saw The return, a movie about odysseus and the trial he faced when he arrived home, and in the movie they have the bow of odysseus depicted as a bow made from what it seemed to me to be two whole antelope horns joined at the middle with a piece of wood, do you think that such construct could even bow?
No you saw a Hollywood theatrical piece designed for an audience by writers that didn't understand. The physics and engineering behind building a bow. when left whole in a cylindrical form the horns don't flex or bend like you need them to
I'm actually surprised the seat belt didn't slow the bow down more considering it is just extra weight on the limbs. I know that the true advantage of backing with sinew (and it seems like seatbelt) is that it enables much longer draw lengths that a pure self bow despite being heavier/more dense than wood. So if you need a 66" self bow to draw to 29" without breaking, you can make a 58" sinew backed bow and pull it back to 29". However, if you make both bows 66" and pull both to 29" at the same draw weight the self bow will generally be faster since it is lighter/less dense.
Its the same thing with horn quite frankly but under compression. It's like 2x as dense as wood, but can bend beyond 90 degrees and spring back. It only truly becomes advantageous if you pull the bow back further than you could if it was purely a self bow. And that is only if you have a bow 60-70+lbs draw weight, otherwise horn is simply too heavy of a material and the bow will probably be sluggish.
I'd actually love to see you make a "modern" composite laminated bow, where you use a wooden core, bamboo on the belly (as a more lightweight horn substitute), and seatbelt on the back (as a sinew substitute). Conceptually, those different materials should behave similar to their traditional analogs. Particularly if you aim for a shortbow, say 55" NTN given your 29" draw length
Well. This is convenient timing.
I'm building my first bow now. (Yes, largely thanks to your videos.) I'm cutting the profile now and thinking hard about backing material.
Something like this would be great. Not changing the properties of how the bow shoots, but adding resilience to breaking. Very interesting idea.
You absolute mad lad. Love the vid 🤘🏿
I have had one for the series using some kind of flexible epoxy as the backing replacing the fiberglass on a laminate bow. The theory is that there are some epoxy resin bows are used like a cheap fiberglass on some of Chinese made English longbows in both 1 piece and 2 piece that end up working just on own so the thought is one could do the same for a regular laminate longbow using enough resin going thick enough then removing some of the epoxy layer to be flat yet still be a backing making these limbs for the one piece model, just seeing if you can replace fiberglass with a flexible epoxy.
What I found most interesting was that this backing not only salvaged a cracked stave but gave it equal performance. Nice experiment!
The nylon strap webbing material made for such a good backing because the material is made for impact like a seatbelt is used in a car or for impact as a ratchet strap for holding items down while moving. Of course, this nylon strap webbing was going to be a good material becuse it is designed to flex as needed provided it worked for the forces in play, the quick in and out vibrations that a bow can have, once this webbing was proven in repeated shooting, I knew the bow would work.
KRAMER, I've had some ideas for a while and you're the only person I know that's crazy enough to test them. PVC PIPE could it be a good cheap hard backing? Taking the pipe, flattening it, and cutting a slat out of it. You could even mold it to your bow with heat. ALSO could you make a tri lam bow with these slats? Budget way to get into making tri lam??? Maybe, PVC pipe is very strong, I just made a 90lbs horse bow out of just pipe. No core added. 1in schedule 40 PVC.
Interesting backing idea. The caveat for us garage/backyard bowyers will be getting it properly adhered to the wood. I wonder as well how much of the result is due to having soaked that stuff in CA. CA reacts with different plastics and the seatbelt is essentially plastic. Maybe any nylon strapping will work. You can by the stuff by the foot at outdoor outfitters. It's typically nowhere near as wide as a seatbelt so you'd not get the back of the bow completely covered. But you might not have to cut into it along the edges so you'll have a prettier neater job. I'm thinking even half as much seatbelt or nylon strapping material would have still made that bow ... shatterproof!
have you tried jean fabric?
My favorite bro, my like was number one lol 😂❤
Great video,keep’em coming
Love your videos.....and i love the bow you made for me!
I’d love to see you make a super 3ft short bow. It would probably need to be high poundage and very short draw length, but I’d love to see it done.
Super interesting. That could be the perfect apocalypse/survival bow when you need that bow to perform every time and neve worry about breaking and be shot by multiple people with a large difference in LOP. Cheap to build and unbreakable.
Very impressive mate 👏
0:10 - And all the crowds shout, "WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"
I’m in the middle of making my first ever wooden arrows
Are you using varnish od linseed oil and why or why not?
If you truly want to break the bow move the bow holder on the wall up another 8 to 12 inches. But you may just be pulling the string off the ends of the bow.
Full seatbelt micarda bow?
I love your videos, especially when you nerd out. I would love to see an English longbow build, most of what you are building seems to be American longbow. I would like to see how you have to change you techniques to tiller the more D shaped cross section rather than the flat American style.
great vid will it bow is my fav
To cover up the glue seepage,maybe put a foe snakeskin on it.
Have you ever made a replica english longbow?
Good info. Kramer. Fun too.
You should just think of the fluffiest as extra silencing. It’s practically a luxury.
I’m a rank amateur with a question for anyone knowledgeable. I have a bow a fellow made for me from a piece of oak, with a sinew backing. Basically a primitive bow, but with a modernish cut out for the arrow.
He shoots split, me 3 under. I noticed that it’s a little uncomfortable on my fingers when I release, but if I shoot split it’s more comfortable.
So question, should I knock it a little higher than it came, or will that throw the whole thing off?
That’s so cool awesome bro
can you make a bow out of a fallen old barn? we have one i drive past each day. I've been thinking about asking the owner for a couple pieces. weathering is intense on this barn, but the wood feels firm. its old growth lumber
Will it bow, now we know lol 😊
Dude, what's the speed at 36"? I'm surprised, you didn't test that.
But a nice find to be sure. Well done!
Next challenging idea...IKEA bed base bow?😊
Love your videos Kramer. Have you ever dabbled in war bows?
Looks like you accidentally found a really good backing! Definitely worth further exploration. Maybe you could build a shorter bow, maybe between you 35 40 pounds, and again just maybe, lefthand? Asking for a friend 😂
seatbelts save lives?
It saves bows, and i quote, he said: "It provides insurance". Thats a ba-dum-tss moment if i ever seen one.
@ exactly 😁
I wonder if using a similar technique you could increase the draw weight of a bow? Like if there was a fantasy civilization that made you a bow when you started training and you would continually add layers to it as you achieved certain parameters. So that you could tell the experience of the archer based on the appearance of their bow and how many layers it had, similar to belt colors in martial arts.
Ive been asking gor years!!! NEWSPAPER. Send it home return newspaper to wood!! Send it home!
For the record I wear my motorcycle helmet when testing bows. The whole time My kids and I are watching say Nooooo. Don't break the bow.
I'd still love to get my hands on that bow of at all possible.
Will that pink string make good bow string
it probably is - or was - B55 bow string.
👍
Micarta is very strong :)
My Left handed friend. The very fist bow I made was ambidextrous .
0:56
A crossover episode?
Go to a junk yard that allows you to pull your own parts and the seat belts out 10 cars for five bucks.
NNOOOOOOOOOOO
I'm a LEFTY
Put a snake skin over it