The Flemish twist .

[Kevin the grey]

No this is not some esoteric term for an under the ribs heart stab . It is merely a means of making cordage . If I am not mistaken some modern polypropolene ropes use a bastardised version of it .

I have some triple ply Flemish twist jute . I do not know its breaking strain . Its pretty strong. I suspect it to be at least fifteen to twenty pounds . It may be more than that . I wrapped my hands around a length with a foot of cord in between . I exerted a moderate force which I estimate to be at least fifteen pounds . I couldn,t apply more as I have a bad shoulder . The sudden release of tension when the cord broke would have done naughty things to it.

Lets just say its a tough cord . I will do a better breaking strain test . I still do not think it will be high enough for what I need . If I took the flemish twist cord into three lengths could I flemish twist it again? There is a limit to how thick I can have the cord so the twist would have to be pretty tight .

Is there a way I could serve the cord to make the breaking strain higher ?
Is there any other way to increase breaking strain ?

 

[Sylvrfalcn]

Wouldn't waste my time with jute Kevin, to keep it from snapping you're liable to wind up with an awkwardly thick bowstring. What's wrong with B-50 Dacron? It's a proven performer, and there's good reason why it's #1 with traditional archers. Okay, I get you, you want a "period" bowstring made out of natural fiber cordage. Two words, Irish Linen, a 100 yard spool will set you back $9.25 (here's a source http://www.primitiveoriginals.com/irishlinen.html ) . The cheesy waxed linen thread sold in most arts & crafts stores comes from India, etc., and won't make a bowstring worth a crap (how do you reckon I know that?). But, Irish linen thread has been used by shoemakers and bookbinders for a long, long, time, and I'm guessing a pretty good bowstring could be twisted from it. Good luck and git 'r done.

Sarge

 

[Kevin the grey]

Sarge I have little against dacron . My main hunting string is made from that . I have one I made from Irish Linen . The Linen string was my first . it took me several tries to get it right as I was working from an incomplete tutorage .(sp)

I also have one made from artificial sinew . I want to make one from sinew . That is an art in itself I will learn as a prerequsite to making one from horse hair.

In the meantime I will make an endless loop string from silk . It is not strictly experimentation . I have to watch that as it sometimes causes me to throw the baby out with the bathwater . (I only did that once.)(Slept on the couch for a week.)

The jute is for fun and to make use of a small supply I got with a fairly high breaking strain . If it absolutely must be too thick for my standard nocks I will simply make a dozen arrows with wider nocks on them .

If that is the case I will put the jute string on my primitive bow . Its lighter poundage and would benefit from the look . There are even those I have heard from that don,t want even artificial sinew in a primitive bow class tournament . I usually give such flutterings a blind eye and say I won,t count my points . Its no biggie as I have not mastered my primitive bow yet anyway. "Its arrow spine says I" as my arrows fly hither and yon.(mostly yon.) Nonsense says my bowyer friend . He then proceeds to shoot my errant shafts with my bow one at a time into the bullseye at twenty paces .

Nah this natural cordage is jute for fun.(Thats a stinker.)

 

[Thomas Linton]

Kevin, I woulld't know a Flemish Twist from The Twist, but making cordage from string I have done. I have used this www.rope-maker.com/makingrope.html and other methods. It worked with nylon, but I had to hang it under weight for a time to get it to take a set.

Sorry if I'm "teaching your gran'dad how to suck eggs."

Tom

 

[Kevin the grey]

Kevin, I woulld't know a Flemish Twist from The Twist, but making cordage from string I have done.

Sorry if I'm "teaching your gran'dad how to suck eggs."

Tom

Tom I,ll let Granpa answer that one . I think I can hear him stirring in his grave as we speak .

Grandad was a mannered gent . Not much given to such barnyard antics .
Of course there was the time that farm implement saleslady came acallin' .

We had to pry that old girls hands loose from the lightning rod .

 

[jefptw]

Here is a quote from the Primitive Skills newsgroup:

As for the string, I get this question sometimes. I did not write an article about it because usually I don't make primitive Bow Strings and the the modern ones, while not that hard to make, are a bit hard to describe how to make. I use a sythetic string called (I think) B-52. I wind it around two thumbtacks stuck in a board, about 8 times. There is a formula for determining the number of plys you need. It has to do with the draw weight and the breaking strength of the cord you are using. For my draw weight - circa 50LB, I do 8 ply of this cord.

I do a serving of the same material to form a loop at one end. The serving is the bit that is hard to explain. There may be some articles on that on the web already. If I have time I will have a look. Basically you are wrapping the multi ply bow string with a string to prevent wear from chaffing. I serve a loop at the one end and tie the other end to the bow using a timber hitch knot. That lets me adjust the length of the bow string. Once I have the length right - one fist miele (fist with extended thumb) from the bow handle, I will also do a serving at the nocking point for the arrow.

Primitive strings can be made of rawhide. I have made them of sausage skins (intestine) that O bought from the butcher. In that case, you pick a number of plys, wet the material so its soft; twist it up splicing in new plies as necessary; and hang it to dry over night with a weight on the bottom to stretch it out. I have used a nail at the top of a door frame and a bucket with weights in it. This also helps you twist it up some more. You don't need to do reverse wrap. Just twist it. When it dries it will all stick together. I have made a loop at one end and a timber hitch at the other.

Hope this helps.

Jon

james woodle <sgtj41@yahoo.com> wrote:
Dear Sir, I have started my 5th self bow and am in need of you advise on a proper string for it. This is the 5th but the only one that has not broke in the tillering stage and i'm hoping that it with not brake in the brake in. Thank you for any advise you can give me.

I also recall some people recommending squirrel hides for primitive bowstrings. Maybe you could use the jute to make some deadfalls for the squirrels.

James

 

[Jutte]

You can make primitive bow strings out of most plants that have "stringy bits" to make cordage if you're that way inclined and got lots of time. Plenty of stuff on the web re "primitive bows/bowyers" etc. I'm just lazy and use b-50 dacron - which works for me. A lot of the long bow guys use flemish twist strings with alternate colours - which looks cool.

 

[leon.pugh]

Kevin try some spyder wire (braided fishing line) unbelievble strong. I the great thing about a flemish string is how much quiter the bow is than a endless string. I never did like making them for some reason though. A couple of years a go I got the Idea of using spyder wire and made a full cable & string set (endless also served with spider wire. Their are other brands that would work just as well. I would be willing to bet it is at least 4 times as strong as b-50.

Leon Pugh