http://www.instructables.com/id/Red-Oak-Pyramid-Bow/

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Red Oak Pyramid Bowby Tool Using Animal on March 19, 2010

Table of Contents

Red Oak Pyramid Bow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Intro:   Red Oak Pyramid Bow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Step 1:   First, a confession . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Step 2:   Select your wood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Step 3:   Laying out the bow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Step 4:   Cut and thin the limbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Step 5:   The handle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Step 6:   Now the scary parts start . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Step 7:   Tillering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Step 8:   Attach the nock wedges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Step 9:   Finish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Step 10:   Addendum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Step 11:   Just an Update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Related Instructables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Comments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

http://www.instructables.com/id/Red-Oak-Pyramid-Bow/

Author:Tool Using AnimalI'm a graduate of the University of Central Florida with a degree in Mechanical Engineering, I am currently working on my Master's. Otherwise, I enjoybuilding things, designing the things I'm going to build, and fishing.

Intro:  Red Oak Pyramid BowI'd been involved in archery and bowhunting when I was younger, shot an old PSE wheel bow, chased deer around the woods of New Hampshire. But life intervened andarchery took a backseat. Anyways, some how I got a bug in my backside to build a bow over spring break.  I did a great deal of reading over at paleoplanet, tradgang andprimitive archer, and I'd suggest anyone who chooses to follow this instructable do a fair share of reading over there before proceeding.

So, let's begin, shall we?

Step 1: First, a confessionThis wasn't the first bow. No the first bow was built using these old Pop Mech plans. However, it was powerful weak, only 20lbs at 28"s. So after further research i foundthe description of pyramid bows. Not wanting to design another weak bow, I entered the dimensions of the Pop Mech bow into Solidworks and recorded the displacementunder a 20 lb load. I then designed the the new bow in Solidworks such that an applied load of 50 Lb resulted in the same displacement as the other bow.

Step 2: Select your woodThe easiest wood to begin with is red oak, as it's available at any hardware/lumber store. I selected a 1"x3"x8' board with the straightest grain I could find, as well as thewidest growth rings and greatest weight relative to other boards in the stack. You will have to dig through the pile, you might need to visit several stores, it's worth it, badwood, bad bow, bad injuries.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Red-Oak-Pyramid-Bow/

Step 3: Laying out the bowBegin by inspecting the wood, check for any splinters, cracks, knots, if you can work around them great, if not, go get another piece. Slice a inch off one end and then cuta 70 inch portion off, that will leave a 25 inch section.Take the 70 inch portion and locate and mark the center of each end, snap a line, or use a straight edge to make a line down the plank between these points. Now markthe center of the board. Label the center very clearly. The bow is symmetrical so layout is easy.

The handle is 4 inches long, one inch wide and centered.The "wedges" are 2 inches long and 2.5 inches wide.The limbs are 30 inches long and go from the wedges to a width of 3/8ths inches.

Got that? Pretty simple.

Image Notes1. Handle2. Wedge

Step 4: Cut and thin the limbsCut out the limbs, i made a simple jig and used my table saw, took two seconds. Now thin the board down from the stock size to 7/16ths inch. I used a surface planer, youcould use a hand plane (yuck) or a table saw to split the plank to thickness. 

Don't cut out the handle area yet.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Red-Oak-Pyramid-Bow/

Image Notes1. Thick

Image Notes1. Thin

Step 5: The handleas is, is too thin, your bow will break there. So we are going to make it thicker, but we also need a smooth transition to the limbs.Start by cutting the saved 25 inch piece to 9 inches. Now using your table saw carefully feed the piece back an forth across the blade while raising the blade in smallincrements. the feather edge should be tangent with the highest point on the blade. you can make a simple sliding jig to ease the process, I didn't, but would recommendit. Also I used a 7 inch blade, a 10 inch would have made nicer fades.

Don't worry about getting a perfect paper thin edge, but get close, now you can glue the handle piece to the bow and let it dry at least 24 hours, and then cut out thehandle.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Red-Oak-Pyramid-Bow/

Image Notes1. Clean up the squeeze out

Image Notes1. Freehand Jigsaw style

Step 6: Now the scary parts startRight now you have a bow shaped object, and you have to start working it into a bow. Start by easing all the corners, this will help prevent "lifting a splinter" when youstart flexing the bow.  After that, cut a couple of thin wedges from scrap and lash then one inch from either end of the limbs.Now make a heavy long string from some cord and we can start working the bow.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Red-Oak-Pyramid-Bow/

Image Notes1. Love me, love my toes

Step 7: TilleringHere's where it really get's scary, we are gong to start bending the bow to get a smooth curve. We need a tillering stick, i just took a 3 foot piece of 2x4 and cut slotsevery inch, suboptimal, but workable.

So put the bow on the stick and start pulling it back, you want a smooth even curve, you can see my outer limbs are too stiff, so I'll scrape the belly (string) side to thinthem. Keep working until you have a tiller you're happy with.

If at ANYTIME you hear cracking, STOP, get a new piece of wood and go back to step one.

Image Notes1. Weaker2. Stronger

http://www.instructables.com/id/Red-Oak-Pyramid-Bow/

Step 8: Attach the nock wedgesI liked the nock wedges over cut nocks on narrow limbs like these, so being chicken, I spot glued the nocks an inch and a quarter from each end, lashed with hemp twineand soaked with titebond glue. and they still moved when I first strung the bow!!! Fortunately just a 1/16 and symmetrically so I didn;t have to fix it, but that gives you anidea of the forces involved here.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Red-Oak-Pyramid-Bow/

Step 9: FinishAfter finish sanding I coated the whole thing with a wax finish I use on my firearms called variously "gunny paste" "one third finish" etc. a mix of BLO, beeswax andturpentine. Finally, you can wrap the handle with hemp twine, but I like the bare wood..

Very pleased with the result.

Step 10: AddendumMany people have commented on "backing the bow', this involves gluing a fabric such as linen, burlap, denim, silk, etc or rawhide or sinew to the back of the bow. Withthe exception of sinew, these backing do not improve the performance of the bow and are more an insurance policy that if the bow fails it will not result in a catastrophicdetonation. So, having said that, if you feel uncomfortable with the risk attendant to an unbacked bow, by all means apply a coating of titebond, lay on a layer of fabricand two more coats of titebond wood glue and then trim when dry.

And now for something completely different, fruit at 8 paces.

Step 11: Just an Update

So, it's six months on.  The bow has held up well, I've been hunting with it several time, unsuccessfully, but that's not the bows fault.  After all this time it's developedabout an inch of string follow, nothing to worry about. The weight is still up there above 50lbs, I measured it before the season just to be sure. I did have one smallproblem, the first day of hunting was ninety degrees and one hundred percent humidity, I sweated so much the grain raised on the handle, that was a quick fix with a bitof sanding.

I also added a "razzle dazzle" bit of camo by zigzagging painters tape on the bow, and rubbing in burnt cork, followed with another wax coat.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Red-Oak-Pyramid-Bow/

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Comments

50 comments Add Comment view all 218 comments

 bertotrumpet says:  Apr 7, 2010. 2:38 PM  REPLYTry 3 layers of fiberglass drywall mesh tape. works great , but not very attractive unless painted or backed over tape with linnen.

 steadfast1984 says:  Jan 15, 2011. 1:53 PM  REPLYi bet 2 layers of Carbon Fiber would work good as well as look amazing. The best way to do this is if you can get a professional to do it because theyhave a a special vacuum press they could put it in to get good even pressure forcing the resin into the fiber.

 MR.builderguy says:  Mar 2, 2011. 4:27 PM  REPLYWhat about a few layers of Duct Tape?

 steadfast1984 says:  Mar 2, 2011. 5:50 PM  REPLYthat could work as a temp backing. but you can easily get fiberglass resin and fiberglass sheets at any auto-part auto-body store. its actuallyreally cheap to. not a big deal.

 koga95 says:  Dec 25, 2010. 7:49 PM  REPLYim 15 and confused as crap.

 MR.builderguy says:  Mar 2, 2011. 4:31 PM  REPLYthats pretty confused.

 nufdes says:  Mar 1, 2011. 3:44 PM  REPLYDo you need to attach the nock's to do this?

 Tool Using Animal says:  Mar 1, 2011. 4:32 PM  REPLYYes, but not permanently, just whip them on real tight with some no stretching cord.

 steadfast1984 says:  Jan 15, 2011. 6:40 AM  REPLYanother question, when its done, is it just your hand that supports the arrow on the handle, or is there anything you can buy that glues on? what kind ofBowstring do I buy that fits this 70" bow? thanks. do you just twist the bow string to ajust its size if there is only one kind of string to buy?

 Tool Using Animal says:  Jan 15, 2011. 9:34 AM  REPLYYep, I just shoot off my hand,can be a little dangerous if your arrow has a splinter. Once got an inch of fletching embedded in my finger. You can justmake a small shelf from wood and glue it on, or buy a cheap stick-on rest, or wear a calfskin glove.

The string is 2 inches shorter than the nock to nock length. Yes you can use twisting to adjust the length.

I just bought a cheap 67" string off the net.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Red-Oak-Pyramid-Bow/

 MR.builderguy says:  Feb 5, 2011. 8:56 AM  REPLYWhat do you use for a target?

 Tool Using Animal says:  Feb 5, 2011. 9:14 AM  REPLYA cardboard box stuffed with cardboard.

 MR.builderguy says:  Feb 6, 2011. 8:39 AM  REPLYinterresting. I use a cedar shaving bale( wire-bound)

 steadfast1984 says:  Feb 6, 2011. 12:37 PM  REPLYthats what i did, a cardboard box stuffed with cardboard. got all the cardboard i could handle at the local grocery store. By the way. Finallyfinished my bow. works amazing. when i first tested it, i put a carbon arrow with a field tip through 4 pieces of cardboard and quarter inchinto the side of my garage. all that from about 120 feet away. (give or take 5 feet) it really impressed me. i couldn't believe the power itpunched.

 Tool Using Animal says:  Feb 6, 2011. 8:51 AM  REPLYI tried to get some hay bales, but couldn't find them, BTW nice looking bow!

 MR.builderguy says:  Feb 7, 2011. 4:28 PM  REPLYI went to Lester shingle Co. in Sweet Home, Oregon.(they have a website)It costs about $7.50.

 Tool Using Animal says:  Jan 15, 2011. 9:38 AM  REPLYI'm about 95% sure this is the string I ordered.

http://www.dalehollowoutdoors.com/triple-trophy-dacron-bowstring-16st-67-blck.html

 MR.builderguy says:  Feb 7, 2011. 4:29 PM  REPLYI ordered one off of Amazon.com. 58".

 MR.builderguy says:  Feb 5, 2011. 8:55 AM  REPLYMy finished bow!

 steadfast1984 says:  Jan 17, 2011. 1:42 PM  REPLYwhat is another type of glue other then Titebond that will work?

 Tool Using Animal says:  Jan 17, 2011. 2:21 PM  REPLYAny waterproof non brittle glue of decent shear strength.

super glue, bad choice.

Most yellow wood glues okhide glue okgorilla glue okepoxy excellent

 boredinclass94 says:  Sep 22, 2010. 7:58 AM  REPLYthinking about making this, anyone know what would be the best wood for this project?

http://www.instructables.com/id/Red-Oak-Pyramid-Bow/

 spooninbrian says:  Nov 30, 2010. 6:43 AM  REPLYThe best wood for making bows is dead wood, Oak is the next best thing.

 MR.builderguy says:  Jan 16, 2011. 9:59 AM  REPLYwhere might I get deadwood? what is it anyway?

 Tool Using Animal says:  Sep 22, 2010. 8:17 AM  REPLYread the comments

 steadfast1984 says:  Jan 15, 2011. 6:30 AM  REPLYWell Im at the stage of completion where all I have to do is noch the bow string mounts, *or lash on some nochs* I've got it tillerd, which was way easier thenI thought it was going to be. it didnt need much work at all, took about 20 minutes.Hours of finish sanding and rubbing down with steal wool, an I'm at the point where I'm ready to apply the finish. I believe I'm going to use tungoil and a rubdown of raw beas wax melted into cheese cloth.((melt the wax in a double boiler (pot with water in it, and a smaller pot that fits inside the first one. you can use a sauce pan and a steal mixing bowl.) foldcheese cloth into a nice palm sized square, 4 maybe 5 layers thick, or a 1/2 inch thick of folds, then soak the cheese cloth in the wax, saturate it as much aspossible, then let it cool off and solidify. now you got a ice block of reinforced bea's wax you can use to rub down your bow. its great because its nontoxic (soif you need to sand again, your not putting toxic wax dust into the air) and it comes off easy with some paint thinner or wood cleaner.))

 azurelupine says:  Jan 13, 2011. 11:04 PM  REPLYThree layers of fiberglas, and a final of snakeskin (your choice) - I'm gonna use copperhead, simply because you can't swing a dead cat around here withoutstirring one up! Besides, glycerin tanned copperhead is a beautiful piece of leather.

 steadfast1984 says:  Jan 13, 2011. 7:02 AM  REPLYWhat side should I decide to make the belly? you know how boards have a natural bow in them,(not warped but a bow, enough to slide a piece of paperunderneath, for those who don't know what I'm talking about) should the belly go with the curve or against the curve?

 Tool Using Animal says:  Jan 13, 2011. 6:25 PM  REPLYIgnore the curve, pick the side with the straightest grain for the BACK of the bow. That side is under considerable tension and grain integrity is thepriority.

 steadfast1984 says:  Jan 12, 2011. 7:42 PM  REPLYI got a plank that is 1" x 2.5" x 8'I should be ok with half an inch thinner?the lumber store had their wood miss labeled and i didn'thave my tape measure with me.didn't know it was only 2.5" until after my first cut whenI started drawing out the plans.

 Tool Using Animal says:  Jan 13, 2011. 6:23 PM  REPLYBet it's not mislabeled ;-), wood measurements are based on unfinished size, once they surface the pieces,they are about 1/4 to 1/2 inch smaller. You'llbe fine.

 koga95 says:  Dec 25, 2010. 7:57 PM  REPLYhow thick are limbs at tips

 Tool Using Animal says:  Dec 26, 2010. 6:45 AM  REPLYThe bow is of constant thickness, 7/16ths inch

 koga95 says:  Dec 25, 2010. 7:46 PM  REPLYhow long are these blanks?!?!

 Tool Using Animal says:  Dec 26, 2010. 6:45 AM  REPLY70 inches

 koga95 says:  Dec 25, 2010. 8:20 PM  REPLYinstead of hemp cord use rawhide cord, gorila glue ends of cord to bow-maybe-(wet rawhide cord will titen(cant spell) as it dries)

http://www.instructables.com/id/Red-Oak-Pyramid-Bow/

 Tool Using Animal says:  Dec 26, 2010. 6:44 AM  REPLYI'm personally not a Gorilla Glue fan, if you check out my crossbow instructable, you'll find a much more attractive way to attach them.

 koga95 says:  Dec 25, 2010. 8:05 PM  REPLYwhat do you mean by 'Start by easing all the corners,'

 Tool Using Animal says:  Dec 26, 2010. 6:42 AM  REPLYI mean round them over, sharp edges result in what are called stress concentrations. If you round the corners the stresses are better distributed.

 koga95 says:  Dec 25, 2010. 8:21 PM  REPLYnot to shure of gorila glues effects on wood

 boredinclass94 says:  Sep 22, 2010. 2:08 PM  REPLYwould this bow be able to larp with?

 Tool Using Animal says:  Sep 22, 2010. 7:58 PM  REPLYYou'd need to thin it down, or use a "bad" wood, the weight is way too high to safely shoot at another person.

 boredinclass94 says:  Sep 26, 2010. 2:16 PM  REPLYso if i were to thin it down what should i aim for thinning wise?

 koga95 says:  Dec 25, 2010. 7:40 PM  REPLYwhat is 'larp'

 theiceman says:  Mar 27, 2010. 6:34 AM  REPLYgreat job with the bow... any thoughts on gluing several (maybe 3) layers of some type of cloth (silk, duck cloth) to the back of the bow to strengthen it andward off splintering/cracking... that having been said, I personally like the finished look of the raw wood...  thanks for a great inst...

 Alpvax says:  Apr 1, 2010. 8:51 AM  REPLYi am only 16 and know full well that my bows arent anywhere near as good. i make them from a straight hazel branch and as for backing... just leave theunder layer of bark on, none of my bows have ever splintered, although after time they weaken (not made well enough)

 koga95 says:  Dec 25, 2010. 7:35 PM  REPLYi was 14 when i used elder wood. made 2, first one i used as wetwood. second i put in shed for like 2 weeks(ish) and it (2nd) worked amazing, brokewindow with it. =P

 flashu says:  May 31, 2010. 8:54 AM  REPLYmy grandpa and I used to make hazel wood bows when i was a kid, found though that the branches are best for arrows, as they tend to looseelasticity after a while. Got a compound at the moment, but definitely considering making this. Oak and birch are the best option for me at themoment.

 Alpvax says:  Jun 4, 2010. 4:26 AM  REPLYyes, they lose elasticity, but our house is bordered by hazel trees, so when the bows weaken, just make a new one. find a long straight section,about an inch diameter, use that as the bow, remove the top, and you can make yourself some straight arrows. although i occasionally buy dowelto make arrows.

 shortw says:  Sep 14, 2010. 1:03 PM  REPLYWhen I was a kid we used to make bows from hazel. We would cut the hazel in winter for use in the summer, we dry them for a long time. wefound out the longer you dry them the longer they would last and do not peel the bark. I thought I would make one for my boy, but I amthinking of laminating it to prevent it to lose the elasticity and that should help.

view all 218 comments