Anyone else made wood bows?

I need two bows and I've never bent wood before now, so I figured this would be a good excuse to learn how.

I've seen the kooky traditional woodworker bend wood on his PBS show, so I've got a rough idea of how to do it... but I don't have a way to steam 45" lengths of wood.

Will simply soaking and then putting in a form do the trick? Also, how far beyond the 3 or 4 inches of bend should I shoot for, to account for spring back?

I don't think you'll have luck just soaking - steaming is the way to do this. Build a steamer - pipe, caps, high temperature hose and a kettle on a burner is how I've seen them cobbled together for home made chair building. Search woodworking sites for plans.

As for the over-bend, you'll likely have to make some test bends and allow the wood to cool in the home made form to make it right. Take a guess, make a bend, and let it cool. Check results, adjust jig. Lather, rinse, repeat. This will vary with different types of wood.

Make a jig of the desired radius, and bend them to it. Clamp them in that position, and let them cool overnight. They will then stay that way. Any time that I have wanted a double bend to be a certain fixed length, I have always relied on a double gig to get the space between the legs correct. You could bend one end at a time, but then do the second bend, in the double jig, to get the spacing just right.

Lee in Alaska

Roy Underhill RULES!

Why not just use treated softwood? It will just bend enough to work.

doghead said:

Roy Underhill RULES!

Click to expand...

He does. But I say kooky, because he does things unnecessarily primitive, alot of times. For bog's sake, he uses a FOOT POWERED lathe!

I admire his ingenuity and craft skills, if not his common sense.

eta: Of course, I'm talking about spending time and effort to build two wooden bows when I could more cost effectively just buy them. I do, however, place value on the learning process... so I guess from that standpoint, there is value in doing things the slow and primitive way. Hard to place a dollar sign on gained knowledge.

I have been watching the Woodwright's Shop since I was knee high to a grass hopper. I also have a complete set of the fox fire books, so that explains a lot about me.

You can build a sweat box with just cheap rough sawn lumber. Stuff rags in the ends to keep the steam and heat in. Use copper tubing to pipe the steam to the box. Go to your local Good Will and pick up an old pressure cooker; remove the pop off valve and attach your copper tube in its place, fill with water and set up out side on a gas grill or turkey fryer.

The jig will work best for you in bending and holding the bend. You can build it out of 3/4 plywood with wood blocks screwed to it to shape the bow around and then clamp to. Wear gloves, this stuff will be very hot.

I made up some uprights and bows with dimensional lumber from Home Depot that I think I ripped down across the width just a hair and cut to length after eyeballing the proper length and radius on the back of the truck. I drilled some holes for the bow connections and then fitted them in. I think they were Fir or some similarly springy evergreen wood (not pine) and they've lasted for QUITE a few years.

No need to steam/bend the wood unless you're going for real private hanging on the bows strength.

I make bows by stack laminating them. Make a quick form, and using 1/4 strips of wood and epoxy, glue them up. Much less fussing around than steam bending.

I did spend many years in the window industry custom making specialty shapes, but the laminating approach for truck and trailer bows is very low-tech.

Earth

Earth,
Could you give us a little more detail?
Like what kind of wood & epoxy?

Use West System epoxy. Available from boat stores. It is waterproof, and has gap filling properties

The laminate strips can be of a variety of species. I favor white pine. Strips that are 3/16 in thickness are going to give you negligable spring back with the amount of curve needeg for a bow. They need to be about 3/4in wider than the finished bow. They can be ripped or band sawed when you are using a gap filling epoxy.

Use an existing bow to determine the shape of the form. Lay it on a sheet of plywood that's a bit bigger than the bow. Clamp it down. Using a scribe, draw a line that is concentric to the bottom of the bow, and the thickness of 2 lamintes, away from the bottom of the bow. Take the bow off the plywood and set aside. Now, screw blocks of wood on 8 inch centers along the drawn line (below it). Blocks should be say 3 inches long, and the heighth of strip width. They could be less if your screws can't make it through the taller blocks. Now tack 2 laminate strips to the blocks. This is your form.
You now need the required number of strips, plus 4 extra, and a bunch of clamps. Tape wax paper to the form. Cover one face and the edges of one of the extra strips. Roll or brush the epoxy on the required strips. Stack them together. Put the tape covered strip on the pile followed by the 3 other extra strips. Fold the whole pile onto the form with the extra strips out and clamp away. Resist using too much clamp pressure as you will cause flat spots.

When dry, It needs to be dressed up. Use a jointer or electric hand plane to joint one edge smooth. I then rip it to width on the table saw. Sand and paint. You do need to give it a wipe down with a mild soap solution and a quick rinse as epoxy leaves an amino acid film on the surface that bubbles paint.

Hope this helps. Pm me or Email me if you want me to explain myself more.

Tom

Can someone tell me how tall the uprights are? im looking at making some and dont know how tall they are so the cover is the proper height.

thanks

I have found steaming wood isn't always the best way for outside in the elements . In S.C. Its most often very hot and humid. Moister & heat tend to reverse what it help to create. I've found that laminating thin strips about 3/8 of an inch thick with polyurethane glue and a good primer and paint will never fail or lose its shape even if its left free standing for days . I have a spare pair of bow front doors that have been standing in the shop for 3 years still holding their shape very well.

Thanks Earth!
Those are the details I needed. I've got a buddy who is retired, & a very good woodworker.
This will give him something to do.
Eric

Lamination is for sissies.

Roy Underhill would say cut down an Ash, season the logs in the loft, split out and shape you bow stock with a broad axe and a drawknife, steam and bend the most beautiful bows ever to days a deuce