My first shooting turkish bow

veki · Post by **veki** » Thu Jul 16, 2015 8:06 pm

Hi all,

after three years of trying to make a turkish-kind bow, I finally succeeded,
But I don’t think I could have make it, if I didn’t find Adam’s book and this Forum.
I have been reading your topics hier maybe one year now, you all have helped a lot.
So actually this is my third try, two first one’s were broken before getting them stringed.
So, this one is a three-bit core (maple), 123cm nn(a bit too long, I guess), 400 gr, and 42 lb’s by 25 inches( I am still afraid to draw it full), so may be it would have something like 48 lb’s by 28(?)

But anyhow, I am shooting with it, great!
I will try to load also pictures of it.

Any comments are welcome!

Jenes · Post by **Jenes** » Tue Jul 21, 2015 7:34 pm

Your bow looks pretty well, congratulation !

mikekeswick · Post by **mikekeswick** » Wed Jul 22, 2015 7:16 am

Congratulations! That looks like a fine bow

Have you got a picture of you drawing it by hand?
I seriously need to get back to working on some cores I have prepared. I'm getting bitten by the bug again and I still haven't made a fully working Turkish bow.
Again congratulations.

veki · Post by **veki** » Fri Jul 24, 2015 2:03 pm

Thanks Jenes,mikekeswick

Ok, I arranged a fotoshooting

I had some problems finishing the bow. I tried to put a birch layer on, but somehow it did not work. So I just made some coatings with schellack in alcohol and then put varnish(le tonkinois) on.
I cannot imagine, how you guys get them painted like Alessi Francesko and some others..
So, hier some more pictures:

J Menna · Post by **J Menna** » Tue Aug 11, 2015 2:07 pm

Congrats Veki. I know feeling whit first bow. We have about same period for working and get ready.

And, can you make pictures smaller - 800pxl longest side and its more easy to look.

veki · Post by **veki** » Sat Aug 15, 2015 7:16 pm

Thanks J Menna!
Sorry about those pictures, I really thought, I would have made them small enough.

I just don't know, how to make them smaller afterwords, I guess, it doesn't work.
But anyhow, it was a big thing for me to succeed.
Gongrats to you also, J Menna!

Bytheway, I lost some lb's after trying to coat with birch.
As I sanded it away again, I now only have some 40 lb's by 26 inches.
But still fast, smooth and so nice!

veki · Post by **veki** » Thu Oct 15, 2015 5:05 pm

Hi all!

Now I think I need some opinions and help. Two days ago I was shooting in the evening as usual as it happened. After half a dozen shots it suddenly cracked and string was thrown away. Around the kasan eye, about 20cm length, horn and core were splitted up
I can’t see any really damage in horn , I think also not in core, it just splitted.
Maybe it was too cold, only 2 °C, maybe I should not have been shooting that evening....

So, Adam tells, the best way ist to soak this whole area with hot 10% glue and add some alcohol in it. How much is „some alcohol“ ? Could somebody tell me more exactly what amount should it be. Or could I do it just with thin glue?
The crack is really not wide and I wouldn’t like to widen it too much by trying to see what has happened inside.
I hope the glue would be sucking in just by bending this area up and down.

Any help is willcome!

A.Haydar · Post by **A.Haydar** » Fri Oct 16, 2015 2:40 am

Hi, did you use 'matching grooves' or just scored the horn & wood?

I'm planning to process my first bow's core before the end of this year, since I don't have yet the grooving tool.. I might opted for just scoring the horn & wood..

I wonder if its make a big difference..

veki · Post by **veki** » Fri Oct 16, 2015 12:06 pm

Hi, A.Haydar
yes, I did use matching grooves, for more security....
I thought, the grooves were really nice, and I really did not think something like this would still happen.
Ok, this is just learning..
I made my grooving tool out of a saw blade, with triangle file.
I am not that expert, but I do think it is better to make matching grooves.

A.Haydar · Post by **A.Haydar** » Fri Oct 16, 2015 12:25 pm

I'm no expert either but I think its glue failure as the wood & horn itself doesn't look damaged.. maybe the bow didn't sealed, so the glue become humid and loose its strength

One more thing I want to ask, if I plan to use 4mm horn + 4mm core (bamboo) + 3mm sinew backing.. how do you measure the materials before grooves? is it 6mm horn & wood before the grooves (I believe the recommended grooves depth is 2mm)? or is it 4mm include the grooves?

thanks in advance..

veki · Post by **veki** » Tue Apr 12, 2016 7:36 pm

Hi,
I just came home from shooting with my first shooting bow!
I was a little afraid to shoot it, but everything went good!
I have partly wrapped kasan and sal areas with sinew after I glued the splitted
part. OK, it does not look so good now, but it shoots!
Feels good!

pcoutin · Post by **pcoutin** » Tue Apr 12, 2016 8:51 pm

Niice! For how long did you leave it unstrung beforehand? How does it look unstrung?

veki · Post by **veki** » Wed Apr 13, 2016 5:58 pm

It's been unstrung about five months, I reglued it end of october and wrapped with sinew two weeks later.
I don't have a new photo of it(it's not that photogenic

) but the shape is still the same as it was.