How to Make a Hickory Recurve Bow!

[@CMGOUTDOORSADVENTURES]

Steaming hickory works alot better than direct heat. I tried many different methods before I got it rite. My recurve hickory has been around for 3 years now and still living!!LOL! But as we all no a wooden bow with no backing can break at any draw!! Great video!! Thanks

[@SurvivalSchoolHouse]

Great tip thank you!

[@andygossard4293]

I really enjoyed this. Thank you for providing a complete step by step. A lot of other videos on this topic seem to assume we know all the steps.

[@SurvivalSchoolHouse]

Thank you! Glad it helped, if you have any questions let me know

[@andygossard4293]

@@SurvivalSchoolHouse What would you say would be advantage of hickory Vs. Red Oak per se as every other recurve builder on here seems to go that way

[@SurvivalSchoolHouse]

@@andygossard4293 sorry I didn’t see you replied! Hickory is more forgiving of tillering mistakes, it’s more pliable compared to other species with less mass than oak which can create a little more arrow speed but usually negligible for beginning bowyers. However, oak works great as a bow wood and would use that if I had good boards laying around. Have you made any bows by chance?

[@OCALION1]

Good job !!!! Enjoy this !!!

[@SurvivalSchoolHouse]

Thanks!! Appreciate the comment

[@OCALION1]

@@SurvivalSchoolHouse thnks !! I apreciate your lesson !!! I am from Uruguay !! And I bought a hickory board for to buildy first bow !!! Oh my God !!! I hope.... It will be fine !!!

[@E-E.ADVENTUREGEARS]

COULD YOU PUT THE MEASUREMENTS IN THE DESCRIPTION PLEASE

[@crazyoldhippie]

How did you fix the split in the limb or did you start over.

[@SurvivalSchoolHouse]

That was a different Bow and I was able to stuff wood glue in there and wrap it with an artificial sinew nylon thread, and it held together fine.

[@4estral]

Can you explain how you fixed the crack in the handle fade area?

[@SurvivalSchoolHouse]

Oh yeah, that was from another bow, I opened the crack carefully by bending the wood, and forced wood glue in the crack then wrapped it with artificial sinew, it held up great until the bow broke in another spot from the tiller not being perfect lol.

[@arnaulpujol8439]

Esta bueno que madera es muy bueno el modelo saludo de Bs As

[@SurvivalSchoolHouse]

Hickory is very tough! Thanks for watching Arnaul

[@sterlingmoore6032]

Nice work!!!

[@SurvivalSchoolHouse]

Thank you, more bow building to come down the road!

[@maximinosanchez7922]

soy de mexico, y me pregunto si los vendes ?

[@shanenewcomb3498]

Do you think this particilar bow would be good for deer hunting?

[@SurvivalSchoolHouse]

No doubt it would kill a deer or elk, I my use it but I'm working on other ones that I may like better.

[@ridetillidieharleyyamaha4063]

@@SurvivalSchoolHouse you can read the first 3 of your words 2 different ways

[@seanjorgenson8064]

You have to put a piece of wood bettween bow and clamp.

[@SurvivalSchoolHouse]

Yes that would help, good advice, I've had more luck steaming or boiling in the water put here with hickory since our wood moisture content is so low, around 5%

[@passionateoutdoors7217]

Awesome build dude! U def need to make more bow making videos I enjoy them, gave ya a sub! Working on my first self bow hopefully I can get my video updated to my channel! Keep up the work dude!

[@SurvivalSchoolHouse]

Hey thanks so much! I'll work on editing more bow videos, I'll watch yours too, we can learn from each other

[@passionateoutdoors7217]

@@SurvivalSchoolHouse that’s awesome! Idk if ur going to learn from me I haven’t read the bowyers hand book! I’ve just been subscribed to Clay for over 10 years and he has inspired me to much to want to attempt this! But I only have this stave! So incase it fails and so far fingers crossed it hasn’t but I was looking at maybe a hickory board bow is out I found you! Keep it up dude I’m learning from ya

[@SurvivalSchoolHouse]

@@passionateoutdoors7217 clay has taught me so much as well, if your stave breaks oh well (easy to say), there's always more close by somewhere, cut all over and it won't feel so bad if one breaks, save the good one for later and you can practice on a board then go back. I've found hickory is so forgiving that it doesn't break easily, it just takes a lot of set.

[@SurvivalSchoolHouse]

What part of the country are you in?

[@passionateoutdoors7217]

@@SurvivalSchoolHouse this stave I’m pleading for it to work! I harvested it myself and everything! Osage trees grow here but they r hard to come by! It’s been drying in my building over a year so without buying one I’d have to wait another year! I’m in West Virginia right along the Ohio River! I’m in the tillering process right now yesterday I reflexes the limb tips tomorrow have plans to cut string groves and glue some tip overlays from an old shed I found in the same public land forest I cut the Osage! I’m strictly down to tillering with my card scraper taking it slow and easy!

[@seanjorgenson8064]

I think you should take the middle of the board and work the growth ring in the cuped hardwood the edges of that board are sap wood. You should cut off.

[@SurvivalSchoolHouse]

Thanks, I'll keep that in mind for the next one.

[@aaronschwingel3330]

thats true for many species, but in the case of Hickory the sapwood is actually better for bows than the heartwood. I thought the same thing until some expert bowyers set me straight recently.

[@peterking1270]

Boil in water for half an hour, bend easy as.

[@SurvivalSchoolHouse]

Good tip, I've started doing that and works great

[@djacaro]

😂🏹

[@SurvivalSchoolHouse]

It will get the job done, more bows to be made down the road!

[@charlescox6608]

Don't take anymore off,you can shoot it !!!

[@peterking1270]

b

[@roguepowersports3576]

I have only made it to when you ripped the board on the table saw. Don't ever wear gloves like that when using tools like that. Even though you were using a push stick gloves are super dangerous especially with table saws. You catch that bulky glove in the blade it's gonna pull your hand into the blade worse than with no glove. I've been a carpenter for over 20 years and I've seen people lose damn near their whole hand from wearing gloves. Big no no. Okay I'm back to the video now. Just looking out for ya dude.

[@SurvivalSchoolHouse]

Great tip, I’ll lock it up and won’t do that anymore, definitely a hazard.