10 Ways to Make a Bow: Clamps, Vises and Workholding for Bow Making

[@eroot1302]

Great video I'm glad someone is making bow videos as most videos are years old.

[@DanSantanaBows]

Thanks man, I’m having a lot of fun making these and I’m just gettin started. Can’t wait to get to work on some of the bigger ideas I have planned

[@paulsangiorgio3093]

Looking and sounding like Keanu Reeves, been thinking this for a while. Love the video and love the slightly different presentation of each video

[@DanSantanaBows]

haha I wish! I had a lot of fun making this one even though it took a couple failed attempts. So how’d that wood haul go? end up cutting any of those trees?

[@aaronwebster3014]

Great job using "b roll"! Great topic too!

[@DanSantanaBows]

Thanks man, I had a lot of fun with the time lapses

[@MirkoPribanic]

Editing getting better and better Keep it up

[@DanSantanaBows]

Hey, thanks. I’m just trying to learn something new every video and have some fun

[@paulsangiorgio3093]

@@DanSantanaBows What editing software do you use? I use Adobe Premiere for my videos.

[@DanSantanaBows]

fcpx

[@HeandIare1]

Dan, I want to thank you for sharing the knowledge and insights. I'm 64 and was about to try my hand at bow making, but I had a stroke and that has slowed things a bit. It will be a challenge I plan to overcome! Keep the videos coming! God bless ya real good! Jim

[@DanSantanaBows]

Let me know when you get started and I’ll coach ya through it

[@Gauchooriental]

That is great!!! Sometimes getting working methods organized is just what we need!

[@DanSantanaBows]

Thanks again Omar! I know i definitely would have used more quick clamps if I’d found out about them sooner.

[@davidwsmith316]

Great video. 👍 Thanks! 😊 I built my own shave horse 🐎 using mostly scrap boards and raw wood 🪵 pieces.😎 I looked at a variety of shave horse design videos on KZbin. We even saw two authentic shave horses at a heritage village museum. I finally decided to build a direct and simple shave horse design that uses mostly motise and socket friction fit connections, no glue or screws, by a British bowyer, Mick Grewcock.

[@stevew2347]

Beautiful scenery. I use an old workmate ratcheted to an upright support pillar in my basement. Works for me.

[@DanSantanaBows]

Thanks Steve. Those workmates are super handy, great option

[@olgamiranda5112]

Great job ! Beautiful farm you have everything you need right there.

[@DanSantanaBows]

Thanks Olga, abraços a todos!

[@48920jeff]

Beautiful cinematography

[@richardhoule4389]

Awsome I've been wanting to c how u set ur vise up👍 I got lucky, was working in tolland and a road crew cutting trees saved me a couple decent pieces.. still wanna check the farm out when I get sum free time! As always great vid man

[@DanSantanaBows]

that’s one of the best ways to get staves. bow makers are suspiciously friendly with arborists and road crews :)

[@sarangunya]

More, more, more, we need more vids like this...keep up your great work...but i would like to see much more vids from you...

[@DanSantanaBows]

Thanks Saranguya! I took a pause from releasing videos to learn some skills, but I haven’t stopped working on them. I’ve been making one main video all summer, a 1hr detailed board bow buildalong, plus a written guide and new website. I’ll be launching that and some written tutorials this week. And then I’ve got a few more videos filmed that I need to edit including a mini skane crossbow, how to make a 55# pvc recurve, and tiny wooden assassins crossbow. Keep an eye out for that stuff and let me know what else you’d like to see

[@sarangunya]

@@DanSantanaBows definitely. I will keep an eye on that. Thanks for the info.

[@gzartuche]

Nice, stumbled upon this while looking for vises and clamps. I started a board bow couple days ago. Now I know I need to learn how to sharpen my hand tools and probably obtain some sort of holding method. For now i might just rasp out the rest of the bow.

[@ThatFeralChile]

I love what your doing and the content you put out!!! we are practically neighbors too.

[@eddieberry8450]

Your videos are very artistic and pleasant to watch besides being super informative. Thanks!

[@TheBearGrylz]

Nice to see your work holding techniques. Cool barn. Love the work bench.

[@ppaooh]

Masterpiece of bow!

[@christinenorriss9675]

Thankyou and greetings from Aotearoa New Zealand. I have just disco ered your channel and find your videos easy to watch and very informative. I am just starting to get the hang of bowmaking, I have just completed two board bows, one from hard maple and on,e from oak. Both have turned out very well, they are 51" long and pull 50lbs at 28", which is the first time I've managed to acheive, both are backed with deer rawhide which I love, even if only for doing some artwork on! I am starting on an ash bow, 60" ntn, I think I will attempt a recurve this time. I hope you keep doing your videos, you have much to offer and I wish you all the best..

[@DanSantanaBows]

Thanks Mike and Christine. I’m working on a big board bow buildalong for the next video. Lots of stuff still to come. Thanks for the kind words and best of luck with the recurve. If you need a tiller check post on r/bowyer and I’ll help out

[@christinenorriss9675]

Thanks for that, might take a bit longer now as a friend wants me to make him a 51" oak bow! I havent attempted a recurve yet, I'll check your vid if I need help..

[@blasceras]

Thanks man, 10 great ideas here!!

[@thealonestargazer]

Thanks for the ideas, been struggling with the money just to get wood, speaking of which, how do you find bow woods like osage, yew, black locust easier than online orders.

[@DanSantanaBows]

I wish I had a good answer. Usually I harvest what I use but that’s been an issue with my bark allergies. Buying online is really hit or miss if you’re trying to save money. You can scour ebay for deals but in the end you get what you put in whether it’s time or money. Where are you located roughly? Do you have access to trees?

[@thealonestargazer]

@@DanSantanaBows just north of Philadelphia, in PA, All the good trees are located on farm preserves, do you hunt for trees in unclaimed land with a permit?

[@DanSantanaBows]

I usually cut wood here on the farm. The woods haven’t been forested so it’s a big mess of vines and thorns for the most part. Try to get in touch with the local arborists or anyone who does roadside cutting. There’s plenty of good wood that’s not on pristine wood lots, you just have to look a little harder

[@krownedklown420klik9]

Just poach a few saplings or trees 6 to 8 inches diameter. Just don't get caught 🤣🤣,. I'm practicing with spotted gum and what ever else I can find,. Draw weight don't matter to me ATM,. It's all practice with the draw knife and getting better at tillering,. So far I'm one out of 6,. And the one popped after 20 arrows due to me overdrawing it🤦🤦. It's time consuming but it's a shit load of fun.

[@fidenciovelasco8978]

Buenos videos gracias por su birlos

[@dougtuck1449]

Can you make a video on making the one with the slab of tree

[@Squarepeg57]

Your enthusiasm and the vibe of your videos is infectious and inspiring. I just ordered ‘The Bowyer’s Bible’ book one. I’m going to start my journey soon! Just have to work out which Scottish trees will work! Any advice? It’s largely pines, spruce and birch around where I live in the Highlands. All the best fro Scotland 👍

[@maciekzajac1652]

Wow! Nuber six will be next to do, I've got my Grandfather's XL vise screw ( very vintage, probably made somewhere in Lithuania early XX century) - have you got some photos how to? Absolutely in love with this one😃

[@DanSantanaBows]

I don’t have a guide for this but it’s very simple to make. Drill a hole through your bench big enough for the screw and then from the bottom carve out a mortise for the nut. Install the vise screw in a big heavy piece of wood for the jaw and you’re pretty much done. All you need at that point is peg that keeps the jaw from spinning around (that’s the bar on the left side) When you clamp anything, you have to stack blocks that are a similar size to the thing you’re clamping (left side on my vise) otherwise you can damage the jaw where it is screwed in

[@maciekzajac1652]

@@DanSantanaBows Thank you, I'll go your video in slow motion again and make some screens, thanks again!

[@denvergriffin5555]

Love this and all Dan's videos. Just finished my first hickory board bow, which was incredible fun and turned out well, using nothing but clamps holding the material to either the safety bars of my weightlifting power rack or a 25 dollar folding utility table weighted with a couple of 20 kg plates and covered with rubber drawer liner material. Draw knives, the farriers and Shinto rasps, and the irreplaceable card scrapers are my new favorite tools!

[@lkious]

What part of the country are you from? Beautiful scenery, reminds me of Iowa. Beautiful work. Thanks for sharing.

[@DanSantanaBows]

Thanks Lmkious. I’m on a farm in western MA

[@kerryschultz8503]

Can you add a video on straigtening osage staves before tillering?

[@DanSantanaBows]

Great idea! It’s on the list

[@dennismeko]

Thanks

[@gorillabum4182]

Amazing video as always, packed with information, hence I need to ask you something, I want to build a short guava bow, Maybe 3-4 foot long, do I need to back it or keep it selfbow?

[@DanSantanaBows]

AFAIK gauva doesn’t need to be backed. There’s this guy Manny from Hawaii who’s posted some awesome Guava self bows on primitive archer For a bow that short I’d go for a paddle like design, maybe something like this but since guava is better wood you can go to a higher draw weight if you want. kzbin.info/www/bejne/mGPOZmuBjcyAoLc

[@gorillabum4182]

@@DanSantanaBows Ok so I just need to make sure for the back of the bow to be one annual growth ring right? And also the wider the design the safer it is?

[@DanSantanaBows]

Pretty much. I believe that with guava you can use the outside of the tree as the back, so no need to chase a growth ring.

[@gorillabum4182]

@@DanSantanaBows also it will gives your bow a cool camouflage look because of the bark patterns, anyway thank you soo much for the information, I will try my best

[@gorillabum4182]

@@DanSantanaBows but if I leave the outside as is, it won't have a flat shape right? Is it ok??

[@cretudavid8622]

How did i miss this? Lmao

[@moldvox]

points for wearing crocks like you don't give AF.

[@DanSantanaBows]

with socks, no less ;)

[@bubstacrini8851]

😂 And Dan is not a man to let a belt constrict his thinking...never trust an artisan who doesn't favor suspenders!!

[@fidenciovelasco8978]

Buenos videos gracias por su birlos