ESEE AH-1 Flies Again

1066vik said:
If you start with a larger branch than necessary, you can actually remove stock from the grip area to make an arrow rest, especially if you reinforce with cordage and glue.
another option is to use a branch with a fork in the middle that you can cut to a stub as your rest. (tougher to get a decent weight bow without a LOT of work, because you'll need a bigger branch)

also - if you want the arms to bend equally, you need to tiller the bow -- this can be done with a simple forked stick that gives you an approximate draw so you can shave away from the limbs to get them to bend evenly while reducing the draw weight of the bow or it can be a chunk of 2-by with notches every 2-3" so you can fine tune the flex in stages until you get the draw you want.
here's a bowmaking site with a picture of a tiller with scale attached.

you're doing great -- keep up the good work and have fun!
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Thanks for the info, I have another piece of Ash that I will season for about a year to make a more elaborate home made bow. Trying to complete this one with items that might typicaly be carried in a day pack / survival kit. Of course I have added some fletching to this kit, can't say that is typical. Anyway, as far as the rest is concerned, I guess I sort of left that open by saying " I need to figure out something different for this" I was thinking of splitting a piece of bamboo longways and leaving a nub of a branch on at the joint. Lash this to the stave for a rest. This will also make for a smaller hand hold, which would be quite helpful. There is definitely more work to be done, so much of this is trial and error. Already I can see that my selection in wood was way to big for a simple survival bow. I would have starved to death if this was my plan for food procurement. Set traps and fish lines before working on the bow. :)
 
Decklin said:
Thanks for the info, I have another piece of Ash that I will season for about a year to make a more elaborate home made bow. Trying to complete this one with items that might typicaly be carried in a day pack / survival kit. Of course I have added some fletching to this kit, can't say that is typical. Anyway, as far as the rest is concerned, I guess I sort of left that open by saying " I need to figure out something different for this" I was thinking of splitting a piece of bamboo longways and leaving a nub of a branch on at the joint. Lash this to the stave for a rest. This will also make for a smaller hand hold, which would be quite helpful. There is definitely more work to be done, so much of this is trial and error. Already I can see that my selection in wood was way to big for a simple survival bow. I would have starved to death if this was my plan for food procurement. Set traps and fish lines before working on the bow. :)
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That last line nails it on the head.
get some food in you, then make the bow once you have some time.
Bamboo makes a decent "stick bow" as well.

a book you might want to look up is "The Bent Stick" -- good basic instructions for making bows.
 
nice work, now i have to get out of the house and screw around with my arrow heads. too bad i need snowshoes :D
 
That is pretty cool. I think I may have to try making one of these this spring while I am out camping. If it works out I might try shooting some rabbits with it this fall.


mlrs
 
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