DIY white Oak Longbow Using Handtools 

Thank you! Thats a great compliment 👊👊 I am very much a beginner myself, but I followed some plans on a website (link in description) that explained everything very well. Thanks for watching!

Thanks! I absolutely learned quite a bitmaking this bow, it was my first 'real' bow that wasn't make from a stick i found in the woods :'D Next one will be better! Thanks for watching!

@@RobinCoomans a little string follow smooths out the shooting, improves grouping, is more forgiving on release and lengthens the life of the bow. All that for the price of five pounds of pull. If you take it into consideration in the original poundage, and make your 55# bow 60# to start with, it will sweeten up at around 45-50 pounds and pretty much stay there. I make mostly crossbow prods and string follow is a fact of life for a thirty inch or less bow. I brace them at three inches or less and get on with my life.

Thanks! yeah, I am pretty happy with the result :)

Thank you!!

Thank you! Well.. I am definitely no expert but I'll try to anwer your questions! Good luck 👊👊

You got er down brother ✌

Sure! I really thought at every step this one could break, the wood was not really idea.. But it worked out fine in the end. Thanks for watching!!

Bob Tom Gold ok thanks

bluebarnworkshop Thanks! It was my first in a veeery long time time. So it is not perfect, but it works for sure! 👊👊

Randall Natomagan Thanks! If you take your time it's not that difficult. And to be honest this one is far from perfect.. but it works, that's for sure. Good luck!! 👊👍

SuperIliete Thank you very much!!!

I've got a link to a website that I followed for this bow, he mentioned several backing that can be used! Thanks for watching!!

No just a block I think I cut it at 10cm (4") or so. Just to check for an even gap. If the gap changes, the curve is not smooth and some material needs to be removed. Thanks for watching Joshua!

Hi, I just used some regular black spraypaint. Nothing special. Thanks for watching! 👊

Yup, it was to see if the bow was bending the same everywhere. If the gap between the bow and the block change, the bow is nog bending evenly. Thanks for watching!

Thanks!

Good luck! It's a fun one :)

+john kendall just regular white woodglue, 3 layers of the tape. For more info take a look at the tutorial (not my own) I link to in the description! Thanks for watching!

THANKS so much for asking *that* question😉 okay let's do it!

You should leave the sapwood for a selfbow if possible, for example in a English longbow it is very important! Because I used a stave from the sawmill I didn't have that. The drywall tape fills that role in this case. Thanks for watching!

Thank you!

Hi, I don't know the epidermix brand. I used some 3M epoxy that changes colour when it cures, but I can't recommend that either. The glue I used for the tape on the back is just regular wood glue. Thanks for watching and the best of luck next time!! 👊

Yup, it's fiberglass drywall tape. A backing is not necessary if your wood is good. In my case it was far from perfect tbh.

Ok thanks

can't say for sure. I think +-4 hours of actually working on the bow. But I left the glue for the backing dry for almost a full day. So in total 2 days from start to finish. Thanks for watching!

Robin Coomans thats not too bad! I might have to give it a try!

Try it! It is not too difficult and it is a lot of fun when you can shoot a couple of arrows afterwards.👌

Thanks Dylan!!

Afiz Slumbr 👊👊👌 It's a lot of fun to make and to shoot! Just try to find a better piece of wood than what I used lol. I'd love to see the result!

Check the poorfolkbow link in the description! It's not my work, but this is the tutorial I followed for this bow. Good luck and take your time for the tillering!!

+yukishiro honoka Thanks!

No I'm sorry, I already gave it to a friend.. but anyway thank you for asking, maybe the next one 👊 Thanks for watching!!

You earned your cuppa.

Haha that's a great set of initials you've got! ;)

Hi Daniel, Iused a piece of white oak. Thanks for watching!

I don't know a whole lot about bows to be honest. I think for the most part you just deal with the set in a bow.. perhaps you could use some heat/steam to straighten all wooden bows I don't knw if this is common practice or not. If the bow has laminations don't even think about the heat/steam, as the glue (epoxy usually) will let go. I think that back in the day, as well as today, you should look for a good piece of wood and take some more care making the bow and when it is in use obviously. The set does indeed reduce the power of the bow. In my case it was not all bad as my little sister likes to shoot it :) If you are interested in some beautiful self-bows take a look at the archery section: paleoplanet69529.yuku.com/directory#.WUFLoJDyhPZ Thanks for watching!

​ Robin Coomans Be careful not to tiller it too far too soon. That can cause set. You should try to achieve your target draw weight at every step of tillering. So if your target draw weight is 40lb, then pull to whatever length get you to 40, then tiller, then pull to 40, then tiller, etc until you are at your target draw length. I know this in theory just from reading but not in practice so take with a grain of salt!

The wood I used was far from perfect, the tape prevents the back from splitting when the bow is drawn. Thanks for watching!

Ik used regular woodglue (pva) still holding up just like it was on day 1! Thanks for watching!

Mario De Jesús Alpuche Santander Looked like fiberglass tape. Any hardware store should sell it. I don't think it's necessary or that beneficial though. The advantage is that it will make the bow less likely to splinter or snap from the back. The big disadvantage is that wood is much stronger in tension than compression, so the back will overpower the belly, lose speed and take set.

Yes it's fiberglass tape for drywall. If you use a good piece of wood you won't need it. The wood I used was not really good for bow making.. so I went with the tape option just to reinforce the back. (Because it was used in the tutorial I followed) The spray is just some cheap black spraypaint. Thanks for watching!

JSYK. you can also cover the back and belly with cotton strips cut from some old blue jeans and glue on using 2-hour epoxy. Thin the epoxy slightly with acetone just a little to make it creamy. Coat the bow, then the blue jean strip and apply, Cut a short piece of 1 inch round dowel to roll back and forth until you get a good smooth surface. After it sets, you can coat the outside with another thinned mix. Be sure to 'till' your bow first at about ¾ draw length first. Then you can trim the side tapper to finish getting a good curve to the bow. Look up 'tilling a bow' on youtube.

Thanks, I think a rasp and maybe a spokeshave might be a good place to start for now making. Thanks for watching and good luck!

@@RobinCoomans could you attempt to make a crossbow?? I know it would be a lot of work but I know for you it'd pay off 🙏☯️😊

Never measured either to be honest.. it's on the lighter side though. I might check tomorrow. Thanks for watching!

All bows do that, the amount depends on the species and quality of the wood. Thanks for watching!

Sure! At first I actually wanted to try the paper, but I had this tape and it looked like an interesting choice too. Thanks for watching!

JSYK. you can also cover the back and belly with cotton strips cut from some old blue jeans and glue on using 2-hour epoxy. Thin the epoxy slightly with acetone just a little to make it creamy. Coat the bow, then the blue jean strip and apply, Cut a short piece of 1 inch round dowel to roll back and forth until you get a good smooth surface. After it sets, you can coat the outside with another thinned mix. Be sure to 'till' your bow first at about ¾ draw length first. Then you can trim the side tapper to finish getting a good curve to the bow. Look up 'tilling a bow' on youtube.

Adrián Hlina No doubt! And they look a lot better too. But Iwanted some arrows quickly and they seem to do the job :) Thanks for watching!

I use vinyl aisle marking tape for fletching my crossbow bolts. It is thinner and smoother and much lighter than duct tape, and there is no 'glue squeeze'. One big roll is essentially a lifetime supply.

I could definitly make a working bow in the woods with just a knife. Thats what I used to di a lot as a kid!

RowanBows Oh really? I don't know a whole lot about bow woods. But I had some red oak too and that seemed to be a lot more brittle. That being said, the piece I used definitly needed the backing!

I think you mean to say "red oak is only oak usable for selfbows", in the US lots of good woods Hickory, Osage, Ash, Chokecherry. Hickory is probably the most forgiving for beginners. Lots of older books say white Oak is not very good. My philosophy is try it and see. If you are not making a high draw weight bows, lots of woods yield a bow that works, might not last forever.

Yes! I actually have a couple of ash staves that are drying at the moment. That's my mindset on these things as well. If it did break .. well big deal, I'll do it better/different next time! I had this wood lying around so I tried it, made it pretty light too just to be on the safe side. Thanks for watching!!

I never really measured, but it's pretty light. I'm guessing in the 30 pound range. If i don't forget I can probably measure tomorrow. Thanks for watching!

Robin Coomans sinceramente me gusto mucho el video y pienso tenerlo junto a mi mientras realize el mio. Por último, he buscado y leido manuales durante hs en la web pero no encuentro la respuesta sobre cómo dar mas potencia al arco, ya q busco uno de 60libras, puedo lograrlo acortando el arco y ensanchando las paletas ? la capa de fibra de vidrio le aumenta la potencia?

Hi, You can make a heavier bow by making the limbs a bit thicker. I would not make the bow any shorter, I feel like that would lead to the bow breaking (with the wood I had). For a heavier bow, I would use some different wood that is more suitable for bows.. I can't really help you with this as I don't know a whole lot about this to be honest. I suggest you do a search on some bowyer forums! In this case the backing is drywall fiberglass tape and prevents the wood from splitting, it does not really change the draw wheight (maybe a tiny bit). I followed this tutorial: poorfolkbows.com/oak.htm ps: I hope I answered your question sufficiently, had to translate with google translate! Edit: Take a look at these sites forums for example, those are some of my favorites! www.tapatalk.com/groups/paleoplanet69529/ , www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php?PHPSESSID=d041i7ivl6nlj4v3s44616sek0&

muchas gracias Robin, aprecio mucho que te tomaras el tiempo de responder y ayudarme, voy a continuar buscando hasta dar con la info! thanks u and good luck !!

No problem!! Good luck to you too!

Yup I took of a bit more than I wanted so it's pretty light.. but there is still some power left! I have no idea of the weight though. Thanks for watching.

Kids bow.

The fiber glass tape prevents the back from splintering under tension.

Where??

No! Wear a dustmask whenever you can!

@@RobinCoomans tnx

You can, but the tillering tree does make it easier! Thanks for watching

It did.

Bilal32155 I don't remember exactly how long it took. Maybe 2 - 4 hours of actually working on it. But it took way longer in total because of the drytime of the glue. I made it in a weekend. Thanks for watching!

ok thx

Miftah Rifan Susanto Depends on what kind of bow/ local species of wood. But ash is generally a great choice. Good luck and thanks for watching!

Robin Coomans What is the recommended site to buy a traditional bow or what is the recomended forum to learn how to make bow.. Thank you sir

I'm sorry, I have never bought a (traditional) bow.. so I can't help with that question. As far as learning how to make one: Take a look at these forums, those are some of my favorites www.tapatalk.com/groups/paleoplanet69529/ , www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php?PHPSESSID=d041i7ivl6nlj4v3s44616sek0& , the bow in this video was made from this tutorial (he has some others too) poorfolkbows.com/oak.htm Also look around youtube for some tutorials (real ones, with explantions. not like my video ;) for example Mick Grewcock: ru-vid.com/show-UCr_zw4hK5YIIcE59-iymfxg there are many more ofcourse. Show less REPLY

Thank's bro

Miftah Rifan Susanto No problem!

Thank you!!

Sure! I made a lot of bows at that age just from branches/saplings I found in the woods. This one is not that difficult either, just take your time and remove material a little bit at a time as you can always take more off. You might need some help with the initial dimensioning of the wood, depending on what you start off with. Good luck!!

thank you!

breyergirlZ: Dude, you can totally do this. All you need are some hand tools and a good piece of wood. Little saplings aren’t the best for bow making, they are weak because they haven’t had to fight the wind and elements. A good sized branch from a tree is quite a bit tougher and can make a simple bow.

breyergirlZ Remember, you can do what you want, never create limits for your self.

I am 66, At 12, I made two bows out of a trunk section ash tree my father cut down for firewood and being in the way of a garage project. Father was not confident of me. However both came out very good at about 35 pounds pull at my draw of 23 inches. I shot thousands of arrows from them. Mine were of the flat long bow at 2.5 inches at broadest point rather than semi round long bow. Both were fast and accurate. I killed many squirrels and rabbits and one small deer with them. But my favorite game was 'cloud shooting' in a long pasture next door when the cows were not around. So you most certainly can build your own bows. I wrapped mine with a good quality cotton twine to prevent splitting but I don't think it was necessary. No fiberglassing. You do need dry, perhaps 'seasoned' wood. Good luck, lots of fun.

It's oak, so it is ;) Thanks for watching!

Check the link in the description! It's the tutorial I followed (not my own design)everything is very well explained!!

A drawknife! I've got a video of me making that too ;)

Thanks men you are so amazing!!!!!

Jon Sands Yes, it was just meant to have a bit of fun. And does that just fine. Obviously the shot isnt very straight right out of the bow as there is no arrowrest. Thanks for watching.

Jon Sands it is posseble that the bow is to strong for the arrow. then a more stif arrow will do the job

On the outside. This is to reinforce the back of the bow, so no no pieces of wood split when you pull the string back. Thanks for watching.

Thanks

That really depends on the kind of bow man. This bow isnt the fastest most powerful bow and is using arrows that have bad fletching and are probably not even spined well. When u make a proper bow or buy one (the ones around 100 euros) and use good arrows u can use it at least until 50 meters. If you buy a even better one (200 euros or more) you can shoot much farther.

@@j.j.kuiper22 Wow, much further than fifty metres. A golf ball will average 250 with a weekend hack and you don't want one of them in the head, this isn't golf, but this is your opposition, take a minute and see the very windy other ones -more than 50M. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-C7OezI9c2Hw.html Where ever you are in the world friend, I hope everyone is corona free, God bless.

Yes that was little bit disappointing lol

I'm sorry to hear you die so easily! Please take care! xoxo

Haha yes, she is a retriever after all! :) Thanks for watching!

No, you're right.

Nope! It hasn't taken any more though. Thanks for watching!