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+5
Lee Slikkers
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    Central European, in Black Walnut

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    Post by stoneagebowyer Fri Mar 02, 2012 9:24 am

    Central European, in Black Walnut Finishing0142Central European, in Black Walnut Finishing0152Central European, in Black Walnut Finishing0172Central European, in Black Walnut Finishing0112Central European, in Black Walnut Finishing0082Central European, in Black Walnut Finishing0062Central European, in Black Walnut Finishing0022Central European, in Black Walnut Finishing0012Central European, in Black Walnut Finishing0092





    Hi, gang.



    Some of you may recall that disaster I had with the central European tiller for my latest project. And as sound as the idea was of splicing in new wood and creating a new tiller front area, I don’t have those skills. So, off I went to my local hardwood dealer, found some amazing black walnut, and built me a new tiller.



    The black walnut was a pleasure to work with, and is eye popping when finished, with, in this case, tung oil. It was a bit splintery, which caused some issues during the inlaying procedure, but overall, I am happy with how it looks. Heavy stuff, too! This is by far the heaviest crossbow I have built, which hopefully will help when shooting it.



    More details later, but overall, I am using dried gut to lash in the rolling nut. It is not completed, but the photos will convey how it will look. I am making a brass bolt clip, which I dated 2 2012 (should have perhaps been 3 lol, but saying this weapon was done on leap day is kinda cool) using hand metal stamps looks a bit crude and cool, sort of a steampunky aesthetic, perhaps. I relied on Mac’s data and drawings for lashing on the prod using heavy 8/6 linen thread, and used Henry’s suggestions to being wrapping at the figure 8 area near the prod rather than around and around at the binding hole end. I brushed some hide glue on when I was done.



    The basket woven rawhide method I really like for attaching the stirrup. I don’t particularly like how heavy this rawhide is, and feel it looks kind of crude and heavy. I am going to keep this on, but for next time, much thinner stuff will be used.



    This was my first go at inlaying bone, and it came out okay. The walnut was somewhat crumbly at times, and that caused me to modify how I inlaid the bone pieces. But overall, I am satisfied.



    Now, I am going to be making some strings and testing the bow. I will of course post then. Wish me luck!
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    Post by Gnome Fri Mar 02, 2012 10:19 am

    Looks awesome! That's how to get back on the horse.
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    Post by jds6 Fri Mar 02, 2012 12:11 pm

    Very nice indeed! From the pics it seems to be very long. What is the over all length?
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    Post by stoneagebowyer Fri Mar 02, 2012 1:16 pm

    Thanks, Gnome. As usually happens in these sorts of situations, the end result is much better.

    Jds6, thank you. The total length of the weapon is 32.25" long, measured from the end of the tiller to the butt along the top. Maybe it is pretty slim overall, which gives the appearance of it being longer than it is. I took to heart a comment Mac said about how modern crossbow builders seem to have much fatter tillers with more wood than then historic builders. I could have gone much slimmer than I did, and the overall dimensions fit my body well.

    I just screwed on the bolt clip, a sweaty bit of work, as I was envisioning splitting the bone as the screw went in, but it came out well. I also managed to mangle one finger a bit while making a string tensioning jig - amazing what a single screwdriver coupled with wandering attention can do lol. I will live, though.

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    Post by Basilisk120 Fri Mar 02, 2012 3:32 pm

    Glad to hear you weren't mangled too badly makine the tiller, if you don't bleed its not a real project Razz



    But the blood and sweat that have good in to have so far paid off well. That is one fine looking crossbow. And I agree that Black Walnut is one good looking wood. Seem to make everything look better.
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    Post by Lee Slikkers Sun Mar 04, 2012 6:04 pm

    Gosh that's a real Beaut! Cool
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    Post by Ivo Sun Mar 04, 2012 8:31 pm

    What a sweet bow. +1 Very Happy Very Happy Very Happy

    I've been looking at it on my phone, but on a big screen it's really looking smooth. Haha, in real life it's probably even better. Way to go on the comeback man. cheers

    Interesting how yo will go about that string, think natural colored B-50 would look sweet. (If yo need some, I'll take some off the spool and drop it in the envelope.)

    Best,

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    Post by stoneagebowyer Mon Mar 05, 2012 3:02 am

    Central European, in Black Walnut Clip0032

    Lee, welcome aboard!

    Ivo, thanks, I think it came out okay. And thank you, but I have plenty of B50 lol. Black and yellow are my two colors at this moment, plus black serving thread.

    My little jig works great, thanks to you for the vidoes and ideas. No, it is not pretty, but I don't think anyone minds. Here is a shot if it, with some linen I was messing around with to see how it all worked, or if it worked Smile

    Right now, I am following Payne-Gallwey in an end serving reenforcement suggestion, but not sure where that is leading me. We will see.

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    Post by Michael Sat Mar 10, 2012 9:51 pm

    Dane: Mike here what is that jig used for. And how does it work. Is it fore making bow string? Very interesting.
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    Post by stoneagebowyer Sun Mar 11, 2012 6:09 am

    A sting tensioning jig. It is mainly useful for center serving. It was easy to build and use, but I do have to modify it a bit. To tension the string, you simply tighten the nuts with a wrench. The thread about strings is here https://thearbalistguild.forumotion.com/t567p15-string-and-brace-again#5054

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    Post by Geezer Sun Mar 11, 2012 9:58 am

    Re: Stoneagebowyer's new walnut bow.
    Geezer here with a tip: Your new bow is beautiful, very nice work, with one caveat: You've made the bolt-rest at the front pretty tall. It may work fine, but in my experience, taller rests sometimes impart a porpoising flight to your bolts. If you run into such a problem, just make the rest lower, so the bottom of the groove barely clears the table. That should take care of it.
    But remember, depending on details of geometry, sometimes a taller rest will work out fine, so don't go butchering something that doesn't need fixing. Have fun! Geezer.
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    Post by mac Sun Mar 11, 2012 11:34 am

    Dane,

    I think Geezer is on to something there. The rest does look a bit tall. The ones on historical bows look more like they just *steady*, rather than *elevate* the bolt.

    Shoot it a few times, and look for porpoiseing. (you know the "shooting through a sheet of paper" trick...yes?) If there is trouble, you can fix it with a bit of careful filling.

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    Post by stoneagebowyer Sun Mar 11, 2012 1:22 pm

    Thanks to both of you. I will be testing soon (this weekend got away from me), and will report the results. Part of this game is learning as you go. I do know the sheet of paper trick, thanks, Mac. BTW, the bolt groove in the rest is incomplete as of yet, and will be formed as I test it.

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