how to make a take down recurve bow. With tips on wooden riser design, and wooden arrow making.

[@michealshaffer6223]

It's beautiful definitely top shelf.

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Thank you for the kind comment. Ken

[@christrophercooper5663]

Absolutely beautiful bows. Great workmanship!

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Thank you for the kind words, Ken.

[@ellynbraun517]

Stunning work Ken! really inspiring!

[@sickwilly1171]

The bow is beautiful. Excellent craftsmanship!

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Thank you very much! Ken

[@tibbar1000]

Thanks for the tips you included on riser design.

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Glad it was helpful! Ken

[@anthonyforfare7223]

Just subbed, as I’m just starting my bow making adventures. Thanks for sharing your experience and knowledge/wisdom! God Bless you and your family 🙏👍❤️🏹🎯

[@stur.7502]

Kenneth, will you be doing a video on building Sitka tapered arrow shafts? Thanks!

[@matthewyu3531]

Hi Kenneth, In this video, you drilled the holes in the limbs & riser using bingham's jig, would you kindly tell me in details: 1) What are the diameters of the two holes you drilled in the riser? 2) What are the diameters of the two holes you drilled in the limbs? Thank you very much.

[@joseluishernandez1961]

Muy buen diseño y técnica excelente arco me gustaría saber que tipo de pegamento usa y los grados y tiempo para que el pegamento fragüe

[@zaraf]

that bow is a masterpeice

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Thank you for the kind words. Kenny

[@Arctus_]

What a Beautiful Boww, Stunning ✨✨!!

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Thank you very much! Ken

[@HappyPappynKatyTX]

Sir, your artistry and skill level are at a whole other level. Bravo

[@kennethpaul6859]

Thank you for the kind words. Ken

[@matthewyu3531]

Hi, your bow and your wood arrows are so fantastic! I love the wood arrows too. But unfortunately I can't keep my wood arrows straight so that I can't shoot my wood arrows accurately. Would you kindly tell me how to keep the wood arrows straight? Your help is greatly appreciated.

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Hello, thank you for the comment, getting the arrows as straight as you can to start with is half the battle, I use a combination of hand bending the shaft or flexing it to straighten out the long curves and using a small pull wheel to compress the wood fibers on the high side of a short bend. I also breast my arrows, that is to say the the 9/16” shafts taper to 5/16” at the ends, 10” taper in front and 12” taper at back. This puts more mass in the center which makes the arrow recover quicker from archers paradox, and I feel that it helps keep the arrow straight. Wood is always trying equalize it’s moisture content with the environment it is in, no matter how well you seal the arrow it will still exchange moisture, so traveling from a dry area to a more humid location will have an effect on your arrows and you may need to make some small adjustments. Having said all that, I still seal my arrows as best I can to at least somewhat control wood movement. After staining the shaft, I dip the shaft in wipe on poly urethane (gloss), hang them to drip dry, then lightly sand and restraighten if needed, then wipe down with denatured alcohol and dip in poly again. I hope that this helped you. Ken.

[@matthewyu3531]

@@kennethpaulwoodworking6404 I deeply appreciate your help.

[@bowhunterelite7317]

Subscribed! Thanks for the tip about the cutouts for the riser. As someone who is about to build their first laminated bow, I can guarantee that I would have screwed that part up. You saved me time and stress, I'm sure. lol

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

I’m sure your bow will turn out great, just take your time. I always love to see the creativity of other peoples projects, Ken.

[@mikebonom]

Absolutely gorgeous.... is there any way to take an older recurve and make it a take down bow? I have my father's old 1960 Shakespeare Wonderbow RH100 and the limb tip is broke. I'd like to save the bow and give it new life.

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Hello, thank you for the kind words. As for your father’s bow, it is unlikely that it can be made into a take down bow, bows that are designed to be take down are built with larger risers with more mass to be able to secure the limbs. However, it may be possible to have the limb tip rebuilt and relamiinated with new glass if the damage is not too extensive. I would post photos of the bow on one of the bow building forums, you may find a bowyer that can save your bow.Ken.

[@mikebonom]

@Kenneth Paul Woodworking thanks Ken. The other options I was thinking was to maybe cut it down from a 66" bow to a 60"-62" and rebuild both tips. Worst case scenario, I will glue it and keep it as a wall hanger, but that's a last resort.

[@BrettDeemer]

You should definitely do a series on building a bow from start to finish I've always wanted to start my own little side business building bows just don't have any bowyers near me to teach the trade.

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Hello, I do intend to do a full video on my next bow, however until then I suggest you visit Bingham projects online. That is where I get my materials and where I got my first information on building bows. Kenny

[@jelau4851]

A real beauty indeed, you are a true Artist

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Thank you for the nice comment. Ken.

[@DayWolfArcher]

You do really great work on your bow! I have a some questions: @21:58 what do you mean by breasted when talking about the stika spruce? after that you mention about your 11.32 shaft being tapered 10 inches in the front and 12 inches in the back.......my arrow shaft is 23.64 and tapered 9 inches in the front and 9 inches in the back, my wood used is cedar for the shaft that is 30 and half inch long and 85-90 spine weight, the tips i use are 70 grains...I want to know that if i taper my shaft more the way you are can i then use heavier tips to fix the paradox?

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Hello, the term breasted for an arrow shaft refers to a shaft that is tapered at both ends with a longer taper at the back. I also use a 70 grain tip and I finish my shafts to about 74 spine weight. If you taper the shafts more the arrow will become more flexible and will need more weight at the back end. However I prefer to dial in my arrows flight by adjusting the arrow rest. I build my bows with the shelf cut well past center and then shim the arrow rest out to correct arrow flight as the amount the bows shelf is cut from center has the largest effect on arrow flight. Also I adjust brace height for arrow flight, a Lower brace height will make the arrow act like it has a lighter spine because the string stays in contact with the nock for a longer travel length, opposite for a higher brace height. Shooting bare shafts is the best way to help dial in your spine adjustments. I hope this helps. Ken

[@DayWolfArcher]

@@kennethpaulwoodworking6404 ty i will try this out

[@rotskrot]

I came across this video in the search of an understanding of how the wooden risers was made, in hope of designing my own but this is beyond my knowlage and avaliable tools. This was mimd-opening and wanted to say that your bow looks superb. A uniqe piece of art-work you got there. Realy nice.

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Thank you so much for the kind words, like you, I also searched the internet for inspiration when building a project. Ken.

[@ellynbraun517]

Hi rotskrot, agreed these are outstanding bows and designs. If you're like me, I'm starting just building a riser out of maple. This too is beyond my skill level, but I've toned it way down.....definitely some knowledge to learn from here and some inspiration though

[@IndianaBows]

Really nice work. Thanks for sharing. =)

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Hello, thank you for the kind words. Kenny

[@kurtcampbell2425]

Tuned in and love the information, setup, and your recurve bows. Being an amateur longbow maker (at the moment) and retired I have plenty of time and ambition in making bows and arrows...although it is a learning process. My next step is the takedown recurve bow, hence watching your video. Also I like your bow string making jig and stretcher...might just try to copy that if you don't mind. My mindset is to make everything with what I have on hand here in Oregon. Thanks for the information!

[@robbiecox5014]

A lot of good information. Thanks for the video. Got one question, what’s the distance from center bow to shelf?

[@vieuxacadian9455]

Bon travail

[@HadesTut0rials]

Stunning piece of art.

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Thank you for the kind words. Ken.

[@michaellarocca4879]

Ive been looking for plans to build a riser for over a week. I just tried to find bingham and it says page not found 😢

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Hello, I am told that Mr. Bingham retired this year, however the online forum Tradgang.com is a great resource for finding the materials needed. Hope that helps. Ken

[@michaellarocca4879]

@@kennethpaulwoodworking6404 thanks. It seems he ran that business all the way from 1959 and was a huge name in the archery community, right up until a month before i took interest in it. Ive decided that im going to buy a commercially available riser that fits my needs and copy the design.

[@edwinmcnew4389]

Beautiful well done!

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Thank you for the comment. Ken.

[@SLmetalmania]

Hi are u still working on as such projects?i would like to purchase one customised bow like this if it is possible please let me know

[@scottadams9202]

Thanks for sharing

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Thank you for viewing.Ken.

[@matthewyu3531]

Fantastic! I have a question, did you fire harden bamboo splints used to make limbs?

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Hello, I purchase my bamboo already milled from Bingham supply, I do not do any additional hardening, I think fire hardening for bamboo arrows is good, but I feel it might make the limb tapers too brittle. Ken.

[@E-E.ADVENTUREGEARS]

LIMB PATTERN Can you please show us how to make one

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

I use bingham’s pattern for my limbs, but you can trace an existing bow and take thickness readings from that bow to have the same poundage, in general a recurve bow loses or gains one pound of draw weight for every one thousandth of an inch.Ken.

[@E-E.ADVENTUREGEARS]

@@kennethpaulwoodworking6404 thanks For the tip

[@nazariarchery]

Good👍👍

[@HandyL]

Oh my wow! That is gorgeous! Oh heck yeah I'm subscribing to your channel!

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Thank you for the enthusiastic post, Kenny

[@matabele]

Your bows are beautiful, excellent work! I can't get my head around the decorative strips of wood in-between the riser flares. They look like they'd just split and crack trying to follow the curves of the riser. How do you stop that happening when you glue the riser up?

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Hello, the maple strips are only about a 32nd of an inch thick and bend very easily, the segmented strip is less than a 16th of an inch thick, however the segmented strip is prone to breaking apart in two or three places while being clamped into shape, this is not a problem as the epoxy will glue the broken joints back together, the key is to make sure that even if the strip breaks apart at a joint, just make sure that the two pieces don’t become separated by maintaining pressure on the ends. Any small gaps created will be filled by the epoxy and will not be noticeable. Kenny

[@matabele]

@@kennethpaulwoodworking6404 Thanks for the explanation, I really appreciate it 👍

[@matthewyu3531]

You said that you had twice won the United States indoor traditional archery championship with this bow. Would you kindly tell me: How far was the target in the two archery championships?

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Hello, I won the USA archery indoor nationals in 2011 and 2012, two rounds of 60 arrows for a total of 120 arrows at a 40cm target 18 meters distance. I competed in the traditional recurve class. Thank you for the question, Ken.

[@matthewyu3531]

@@kennethpaulwoodworking6404 Thank you very much for your prompt response!

[@longbow5423]

Just a very well done video and absolutely gorgeous bows! Fred Anderson and John Strunk would be proud of the finish on the bows! Do you have a web site etc? Again thanks and a nice treat for the eyes. stay safe

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Hello, thank you for the kind comments, no I don’t sell bows, I make them for myself and friends. I put this video up to open up a conversation about building bows and to answer any questions anyone might have about bow building.thank you again and have a great day. Kenny

[@matthewashton5140]

How expensive in supplies do you estimate ?

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Hello, all the supplies such as the glass and tapers for the limbs and the smooth on epoxy as well as the take down hardware can be priced at Bingham archery, their online store will have all the current prices. Ken.

[@dusanpavlovic2201]

will one piece bow riser break and does this laminated bow riser mean more strength

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

A one piece riser is, if anything, stronger than a three piece layup. I make my risers in three pieces because I like the look, as long as you do a proper glue up of the pieces you will have no issue. I have seen many beautiful risers made of one piece. Ken.

[@dusanpavlovic2201]

@@kennethpaulwoodworking6404 actually one piece wood is not stringer just cutting one piece of wood and gluing it back up makes it a lot stronger

[@kennethpaul9685]

@@dusanpavlovic2201 while you are correct that in most cases adding a lamination into a riser will reduce flex, the man made woods such as diamond wood are so strong to start with that adding a lamination does little to increase it's strength. I apologize, in answering your initial question I should have been more precise in my answer, what I should have mentioned is that every time you add a glue up to your riser you are creating the possibility of a glue failure or a stress failure over time. If the lamination is done properly and with the proper adhesive the risk is very small, which is why I build my bows with laminations. However there are many things that can go wrong with a glue up. The surface may not have been properly prepared, the surface could have become contaminated , such as by oil or silicone. Many exotic woods such as Cocobolo are naturally very oily and must be prepped accordingly. The adhesive used must not cure brittle or with to much creep. The clamping pressure must be correct, to much pressure can lead to a glue starved joint. The age of the glue can cause it to be less effective. When gluing several different materials together the glue must be compatible with all the materials used. Many adhesives have limited work time and if the clamping process is not complete when the glue starts to set up a weak joint can occur. Many adhesives cure best under certain temperature and humidity conditions. A bow riser is subject to constant stress and the adhesive used must be able to handle this. Having said all this, yes I do agree that adding laminations to the riser can make it stronger, and many modern adhesives are up to the task, but a riser made from a good hardwood is more than strong enough to make a good bow.

[@dusanpavlovic2201]

@@kennethpaul9685 can i use wood glue for laminating bow, and can i use something else for limbs and now smooth on

[@kennethpaul9685]

@@dusanpavlovic2201 Hello, I would not recommend a regular pva wood glue like tightbond for the riser because standard wood glues have creep or movement over time, I would suggest using the same smooth on epoxy you are going to use for your limbs for the riser, don't forget to heat the riser the same as the limbs if you use smooth on. If not smooth on, I can recommend System Three T-88 epoxy for the riser, it is a structural epoxy that will not set up brittle like the epoxy you get from most home centers.

[@shreyasmathuria732]

pls mention the thickness of all laminates used for limbs. what max & minimum thickness of laminates can be used for kids bow & 40# adult bow| thanks

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

The thickness of the glass and wood layers to achieve a specific draw weight greatly depends on the design of the bow, in general recurve bows change 1 pound of draw weight for every one thousandth of an inch. For a first bow it is best to start with a known design, such as Bingham projects. That way they can supply you with the exact stack thickness you would need to achieve a certain weight with a certain design. Ken.

[@adamgumula6966]

do you sell the bows you make or are they just for yourself??

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Hello, I looked into making the bows for sale, but selling projectile weapons brought up my shops insurance too much. So I just make them for fun.Ken.

[@jonathanjr.8543]

This is great artwork it’s so beautiful and Irreplaceable handwork ! 👏👏👏, by the way can you explain how to painting the feathers (arrow feathers) What kind of paint is used to make it?

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Hello, I appreciate the kind words, the fletching I purchase from gateway fletching with the flame design already dyed in, they have many other designs. Kenny

[@jonathanjr.8543]

Thanks 🙏

[@deverdoo5228]

That is a thing of beauty

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Thank you for the kind words, Ken paul

[@andreypizarro9906]

hi Kenneth. Can you make me a bow? and shipped to Costa Rica? I love your work! Please, let me know if it is possible so we can share contact information. Regards!

[@wadesaunders583]

Impressive sir

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Thank you for the kind comment. Ken.

[@lewischaloner9437]

Hi Kenneth, beautiful bow. I am wondering if you have an email address i coild send some questions too. I am interested in your bow makijg process and would love to ask some more questions.

[@kennethpaulwoodworking6404]

Hello, my email is [e-mail] if you have any questions.

[@HappyPappynKatyTX]

Finalic, word of the day, once I figure out how to spell it.

[@kennethpaul6859]

Phenolic