Birch for a Longbow?

Joe(thebow)M · Birch for a Longbow?

Today at work I decided to walk out to our lumber building and take another look at some of the one-by boards we sell. I was looking at the Birch boards and noticed that all of them had what I have learned and would consider (in my very short career thus far of building selfbows) to have very good lines.

In the; Tradititonal Bowyer's Bible - Volume One, page 160, it is said that any kind of Birch is a good wood to use and gives good cast, and can be done without any backing, therefor a selfbow.

Any thoughts here on using Birch? I'm sorely tempted to give it a try and thought I might make the following selfbow longbows; 60", 66", and 72"... I would be very interested in the results?

I have not accessed any good Hickory as yet, but I do feel the Maple and Ash have proven itself as quality hardwoods not needing backing. I'd like to see if I couldn't slip the Birch into this catagory? If I could achieve the following from these Birch bows, I would be very pleased. I'd like to finish them in the following;

Birch 60" Longbow - 35# @ 28"... Birch 66" Longbow - 40# @ 28"... Birch 72" Longbow - 45# @ 28"... I would settle for plus or minus 3 pounds up or down in pull weight with any of the three suggest above.

What do you think? Might make a good winter project?

Steve B

That would make a great project Joe, and I am sure that there are plenty of us that would follow your progress with interest. But you must remember that the rate you are doing these those 3 bows will only take about week

I was under the impression that Winter lasted longer than that ...

Joe(thebow)M

Dawn

I don't know how long your winters last Joe but at the rate you are making bows you could arm an army

Great to see how you are getting on though

Joe(thebow)M

Winter has always been my least favorite time of the year and unfortunately where I live it won't get nice again until April, and then we still stand to have a snow storm... It did snow last night. Not much, about an inch, but it's cold! Monday it was near 78 degrees, and as they say in Nebraska, "if you don't like the weather, wait five minutes and it'll change!"

I wouldn't mind having a good stock of bows on hand. Who knows, with some extra bows on hand I might even be able to get some of the locals involved in longbow archery. That would be nice!

Steve B

So from this I can see you are going to start a club and provide the equipment, ready made source of customers that way

Joe(thebow)M

I'd be happy if we just had a local archery club!

Maybe someday?

Dawn

Sounds a good plan Joe

Joe(thebow)M

Whether it's a good plan or not remains to be seen...

It was a very cold 6 degrees this morning when I got up to get around for our thanksgiving turkey day. I did go out in my workshop so I wouldn't be under foot in the kitchen as my wife prepares the feast... I'm better at eating then cooking!

While out in the shop I decided to take this little 1.25" x 54" piece of ash and see if it had a bow in it? I thought it had some potential so a shaped one out of it then just a few minutes ago brought it in the house and ran some cold water over it and let it stand in the shower. My thoughts on doing this is that I don't want the wood to lose any moisture content while in the (to hot) heated house here... Don't know if that was right or wrong to do?

segolden

That's going to depend on the original moisture content of the stave before exposure, and the humidity within the house. Hotter air with higher moisture content collects near the ceiling or rafters, so hanging the stave up there will not completely dry out the wood while still "curing" the wood, old Indian trick. Unless you're constantly airing out the house during the winter (not very likely in Nebraska), and the stave was obviously drying out beforehand, direct exposure to water shouldn't be necessary.

Joe(thebow)M

Thanks for the info, Segolden

Actually I chucked this latest piece of wood. After roughing out the shape and examining the lines closer, it just didn't look right to me. I felt it had to much potential to develope a split or two between some of the growth ring lines where I needed to work the wood on the limbs more. Not a big deal on the time spent roughing out the shape as I can always use the practice. This piece of ash is now three spare tent stakes...

I do need to get one of those moisture content readers. Any idea where a person might order one of those from?

kirk

Joe, is this what your lookin for.

http://www.3riversarchery.com/Pro...c=49&s=217&p=0&i=5700

They have some great kit for the budding bowyer.

Joe(thebow)M

Thank you Kirk!

That is exactly what I'm looking for!

kirk

No problem mate, keep up the good work.

Joe(thebow)M

I finished a Birch Longbow last night. It pulls #38 @ 28" and is 72" long.

I had finished a birch longbow last Friday night that pulled up to #54 pounds and broke at 31 1/2" on the tillering board. The overall length was 73 inches... It showed no signs of breaking when I reached a 28" pull (#48 pounds if I remeber right) and I believe it would have lasted a long time had I never went beyond a 28" pull since my longbow pull is only 27 1/2 inches. Live and learn from it I figure.

It would seem that Birch and Maple longbows take a very similar set which is alright even though with the set they take I lose a few pounds of pull over the period of them taking a set, but after this they seem to retain their pull weight.

kirk

Nice one jim another bow for your arsenal, your going to have to start making bow racks soon.

I built a bow a few years ago from mountain ash, lovely thing to, i shot it for months 40#@27" never had a problem with it, then one day i leant it to a friend. Big mistake he drew it to 29" and bang.

It just goes to show you have little tolerance on draw length with selfbows.But the fact that one broke means you can make another.

Keep up the good work Jim i enjoy reading your posts

segolden

Just don't do what I did and stay away from the sport for thirty years. That whack on the head I got was enough to scare me off bows for too long.

Joe(thebow)M

Joe(thebow)M

Just came back inside from test shooting this new Birch selfbow/longbow (36 shots) and all I can think is; "Is Birch one of the best kept secrets of selfbows?"

Granted, 36 shots aren't many but it's enough for now when it's 19 degrees outside and snow on the ground. I figure I either have done my best work on this particular Birch Selfbow to date,,, or Birch is in fact a sound wood to use for Selfbows?

I didn't get good accuracy,,, I got 'GREAT' accuracy from 10, 15, and 20 yards, not to mention that my sinew string showed no more then 1/16" of stretch after the 36 shots. The bow showed no signs of jarring in the hand on arrow release, and the birch arrows (5/16th x 29 3/4" long with a 125 grain field point & 4 inch feathers) flew fast, smooth and straight. The set this bow took did not even effect it, which I think happens sometimes with the Maple ones I build?

All in all, a good Birch Selfbow and the knowledge that at least a 36 to possibly 48 pound self/longbow can be made from one-by boards of Birch if the moisture content is right and the grain of the wood is good.

I'm going to make another! I'm going back after that 48 pounder!

kathyg

From what I've been told, birch was a favorite of Northeastern Indian tribes for many uses including bows, and Vikings used it for bows when they couldn't get good yews. Maybe that's one reason why it's a national tree of Russia, from such Scandinavian heritage. Sounds like you stumbled onto something, Joe.

kirk

Great result Joe(thebow)m

I have read your posts on selfbows with great interest especially the fact that you are using alternative woods to the norm. Your resourcefulness and approach to your work is most inspiring

This may be of interest to you.

http://www.murraygaskins.com/abw.html

Joe(thebow)M

Thanks for the website, Kirk! I posted it to my favorites. I have thought about starting a backed bow but I think I'll wait until Spring when I can let the glue dry in my workshop without worry of it freezing overnite, or even during the day. Yes, I have a fair-weather workshop and it gets cold in there during the winter... I'm to cheap to heat it!

Kathy,

I was surprised that in 'Bowyer's Bible One' they make so little mention of Birch other then to say;

"I'd make a bow out of any kind of birch. I have made several bows using paper birch. The best of the lot is 66 inches long, unbacked, with limbs two inches wide. The cast is good and i shoot it often."

Of course maybe that is all that needs to be said?

Moving on; for my birch bow and for all the selfbows I've made so far of, Ash, Maple, & Birch,,, they are all of the R/D longbow design (except that one Maple bow that I wasn't quite sure what it was, but it still carries the longbow lines mostly),,, I have not went the 'wide' limb at all as suggested by the 'Bowyer's Bible' book series.

Please, don't anyone take this as me challenging those knowlegable folks who have done this bow building and experimenting longer then I, but I have not found their (Bowyer's Bible) findings of needing to use wide limbs as the only way to build a selfbow that fits 'my' needs and likes to be the 'only' way to make a bow. And perhaps they are not suggesting that at all? It may just read that way to me?

Yes, I've made my mistakes with over drawing an Oak LB that I backed with Ash, and over drawing my son's first 60" Ash bow, as well as the first attempt at using Birch on a 73" R/D self-LB, but when doing this it was attempts at searching out just what these woods have to offer and what they are capable of, so I was not overly disappointed or put off at their usage, at least not yet, and the Bowyer's Bible books have been a great deal of help regardless if my findings are not the same as theirs in some cases.

Of course I've always been one of those folks that if you say it can't be done,,, well,,, I just have to try and make it work...

Joe(thebow)M

Nothing really new here except the bow is made of Birch, but I thought some may like to see a picture of it any way. It really doesn't look any different then the other LB's I've made from Ash and Maple. Though I do feel it has better performance.

By the way, this one got a coat of tung oil that was allowed to set on the wood for 12 hours then it was wiped off and coated with the fast drying Amber Shellac.

kirk

Joe(thebow)

It looks just right,like a shooter. Nice color to.

NEXT

Joe(thebow)M

Thanks Kirk!

Say, I couldn't stand it anymore so at lunch time today I set about glueing a 3/16" piece of Ash onto a piece of Birch for the next longbow project. I used Tite Bond III. I understand this can be used for this purpose so why not give it a try?

I'm off this Wednesday and the weather they claim will be nice so I'm hopeful to get some shooting in, and also start some work on the Ash backed/Birch longbow and see how it goes?

I'm almost tempted to order one of those fiberglass backing kits I came across last night when checking some of my favorite sites I have saved to the computer. Now if I can just find that site again???

segolden

I can see this progressing into Howard Hill's designs already. Doing good, Joe!

kirk

Way to go, Joe(thebow)M.

Now't wrong with a natural progression, and just think of all the exotic timbers you can play with if you use clear glass.

As long as you don't try sticking wheels on one though.

Joe(thebow)M

Have gotten a few things done today and also with working late into last night in my workshop.

First; I finished another Birch Longbow (selfbow) and it pulls #56 @ 28" and is 72" long. I expect after it takes a set it will be in the neighborhood of #52 - #54 @ 28" which is all right with me. It's setting in my work shop with Tung Oil on it. I think it's a good looking bow and I was smart enough this time not to over pull it to the point of breaking. I only pulled it to 30" on the tiller-board and I did not check the draw weight when I did that. I was just making sure it would pull the 30" and then I checked for draw weight @ 28" afterwards.

Second; I took that #36 @ 28" x 72" Birch selfbow out to my yard range this morning (the fog was trying to burn off, and it took forever) where I shot one of my Mini Yard Achery Matches (72 Arrows - 16 from 15 yds, 24 from 20 yds, and 32 from 25 yards) and I posted my best score to date with; 69 of 72 for 516 points & 5 Golds... Prior to this my best had been; 69 of 72 for 515 points & 5 Golds using my #35 Hickory Longbow (which I didn't build), so I'm happy with that. My first two shots from 15 yards were in the 10X!

Then I hit two 7's with the next two arrows.

Almost felt like I was playing catch up after the first four shots...

After this I decided to see if I could best my 300 Round score which was shot with the second Ash longbow I had built (#30 @ 28") and the score to beat was 220 points w/ 1 Gold - from 20 yards... This morning I scored 225 points w/ 1 Gold using the Birch LB, so I was happy about that!

The more I think about it I think I'll just stay with using Birch, Maple, and Ash for now, unless I would stumble across some good Hickory. I figure why rush to use Hickory if I can learn and get what I would consider good results from the three wood's I'm using now?

All in all I'd say the Birch is a good bow wood to use!

Anyway, back to the shop!

Kirk, this signature is for you,

Joe(thebow)M.

kirk

Joe(thebow)M

I should change my handle to 'Joe(thebow)M.'

I'd say it's a pretty safe bet there are a whole lot of others out there in this world that are far more deserving of 'thebow' title.

A man with your building tallents, Kirk, you should be building longbows my friend.

kirk

Hey Joe you deserve that handle, your passionate about what your doing and it shows, you have contributed some very interesting post.

It's not about who builds a better bow, point is they didn't build your bow and it's a shooter.

All those in favour of re-knighting Joe m say I

Keep it up Joe(thebow)m

Dawn

You get my vote Joe(the bow)M

I

I love to see the bows you are making

Have you see Kirk's Quivers and knives they are great work too

Joe(thebow)M

Dawn, Kirk, you're way to kind to this humble peasant.

I would love to take a look at Kirk's Quivers. Is there a quick link to them?

If not, I'll search the gallery.

Dawn

Joe(thebow)M

Look on the bottom of Kirk's post you will see www in a little box click it and you will go to his website

Dawn

Here is one of his knife projects

http://archersrest.myfreeforum.or...1.html&highlight=kirks+knives

I am sure there are some more just cant find them

will have another look tomorrow

Joe(thebow)M

Thanks Dawn! Kirk is a good bladesmith! Any ol' buckskinner like myself would be happy as a lark to have something like that to use! I'll take a look for the finished product here shortly. I'm interested in seeing it.

I'll take a look see at his (Kirk's) website. Again my thanks!

Joe(thebow)M.

couldn't resist

Joe(thebow)M

Kirk, nice leather work!

I took a look at your website as Dawn suggested and that is some very nice work indeed my friend!

Joe(thebow)M. o'kay, now you two have me doing it!

Steve B

Joe(the bow)M

I

You have my vote as well,. I have enjoyed very much being able to look at the bows you have been making and see the finished product.

As an aside if you want to look at some more stuff of Kirk's click here

Joe(thebow)M

Thanks Steve B.

I had no idea Kirk did knife and leatherwork until last night, and it looks like he does a mighty fine job of it too! The hip quivers caught my eye. I use an over shoulder back quiver sometimes, though mostly where I do my shooting I have PVC tubes in the ground at various ranges to put my arrows in. I do like the looks of those hip quivers to be sure!

Horace Ford shows a hip quiver (drawing) in his book, I expect dated 1850's or there abouts. I did not know they existed back then, but then again being from the midwest U.S.A. what I grew up seeing (movies, T.V., & books) was indians who always used nothing but back quivers. So I guess it was imbedded in me that hip quivers were the invention of modern man... Not so!

I thank you for the "I" vote my friend. Just being allowed to converse with you fine folks is enough for me!

kathyg

Steve put this up a while back, from a rock/cave drawing in Upper Egypt, thousands of years old; I understand there are others some 15,000 years old in the Sahara.

http://archersrest.myfreeforum.or...mp;filter=&page=10&order=

Joe(thebow)M

Thankis Kathyg! I remember seeing this picture somewhere, probably here is my guess?

I'm looking at some pictures & drawings in, 'A History of Marksmanship' by Trench, and an 1818 drawing of frenchmen archers indicate/show them using hip quivers. Also, there is an 1880's picture of lady archers wearing hip quivers over their almost ankle high dress.

Funny how a person can look at things and not notice the obvious. I guess my studying of the drawings and pictures are more concentrated on the bow type, arrow, stance, and shooting form. I will be more aware from now on of what I'm looking at.