How to make a hunting bow with your own hands?

2024 Author: Sierra Becker | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-26 03:47

The bow is the first weapon capable of throwing deadly projectiles at great speed over long distances. Thanks to this invention, mankind could get the skins and meat of animals without approaching them at close range. This type of weapon was also actively used in numerous wars many centuries before our era.

Making a bow with your own hands is a laborious process that will require a person to comply with certain technologies. Only in this case you will get a reliable and accurate weapon. A well-made bow can throw arrows over long distances with incredible accuracy. At the same time, hunting requires a powerful enough bow to hit the game.

To take on the manufacture of a real hunting bow with their own hands at home is for those people who already have experience in making simple bows. However, if you follow the instructions presented in this article, anyone can make a powerful weapon.

Design of a hunting bow

To make a bowwith your own hands at home, you should find out that this is an ancient weapon that was used long before the beginning of the era. So making it in our time will not be difficult.

This product has two main parts: an arc and a bowstring. Real hunting bows fall into two categories:

1. Classic. Their peculiarity lies in the fact that the arcs for them have one bend, are made of a homogeneous material (wood or PVC). As a result, the finished weapon has the shape of the letter D.
2. Recursive. Such bows are more complex in their design. The arc is made of several components, the finished product has three bends. The result is an M-shaped bow.

Recursive weapons, in turn, are divided into two types: collapsible and non-collapsible. The former are made from a single piece of wood, the latter are assembled from several parts, they are called block weapons.

Previously, several materials were used to make bow components:

• wood, which is necessary for the manufacture of the middle part of the weapon;
• animal horns that are mounted on the ends of the bow;
• tendons that play the role of a bowstring.

This three-piece construction gives this ancient weapon excellent flexibility, accuracy, projectile power, and elasticity during aiming.

Many people ask the question: how to make a bow and arrow with your own hands? To answer this question, you should know that modern compound bows are made of high-strength materials thathave optimal properties. For example, hydrocarbon fiber or glass fiber, various non-ferrous metal alloys (aluminum and magnesium).

Many models of this throwing weapon are sold in specialized stores, but you can also make a compound bow with your own hands at home. This will require some skill as a gunsmith, as well as a little time and patience.

Making a bow from wood

The best material for making a bow with your own hands is yew, because it was from this type of wood that our ancestors made this dangerous weapon. It is very difficult to get such wood in our time, so you should find a suitable replacement for this material. Branches are used to make homemade bows:

• juniper;
• ash;
• hazel;
• cedar;
• willows;
• larches.

To make a bow with your own hands, you need to find a straight rod without cracks and knots. It must be at least 1 meter long.

It is allowed to use several bars of the same length at once, which must be securely connected to each other with electrical tape or fishing line in several places.

Wood preparation

Many novice hunters are wondering: how to make a bow with your own hands? To do this, you need to know that it is better to cook wood for the manufacture of this weapon in winter at a temperature not higher than -10 degrees. If you find a suitablebranch in the autumn, then you do not have to search for material in the snowdrifts in winter.

The bar must be cut from the tree. The size of the future arc of the bow should exceed the estimated length of the weapon by several centimeters. This reserve is needed, as cracks may appear at the ends of the workpiece during drying.

For drying, the wood should be placed for 3 months in a room where the air temperature ranges from 18-25 degrees. The bar should be hung on a thread so that it does not touch the floor.

Protecting wood from corrosion

People often ask the question: how to make an onion with your own hands and protect it from moisture? The bark from the tree does not need to be removed. It is advisable to paint the ends of the arc or apply varnish on them. This coating will protect the product from moisture. If the wood rod is slightly bent, it can be shaped by placing it over the steam. You can quickly dry a branch for an onion outside by placing a rod over a fire. The main thing is to carry out this procedure carefully so that the wood does not burn. True, the arc dried in this way will be fragile and short-lived.

Assembling the bow

When the rod is dry, it must be processed with a planer so that the shoulders (ends of the wooden blank) become flat.

The arc of a collapsible bow should consist of two separate arms that are attached to the handle from opposite sides. The handle of a throwing weapon is made of a bar or a cylinder with a thickness of 3 to 7 centimeters. An arc in the central part will always be possiblesharpen if the grip of the weapon is inconvenient.

Before assembling the bow, make sure that the upper and lower arms are the same in diameter and length. Only under this condition will the weapon be balanced, with the help of it the shooter will be able to throw an arrow exactly at the target.

How to shape an arc

During the assembly of the arc, it is necessary to give it the desired shape so that the bow has an M-shape. In order to do this, it is necessary to heat the arms over the steam, and then fix them in a bent form on a special slipway, which will fix them in the desired position. If you do not have such a tool, do not despair, because it can be made from a board, securing it with several thick bars. Shoulders should be kept in an arched position for at least 7 days.

When the arc is assembled, it is required to make notches at both ends. It is in these places that the bowstring will be tied. Notches will not allow the fishing line to move from its place. Next, you need to braid the handle with tape. Then the places of the braid must be treated with wood glue to ensure a secure fixation of the material. Also, the adhesive can be applied to the places where the bowstring is tied.

Ski Bow

Often people ask the question: how to make a bow with your own hands from skis? Sports equipment such as skis is an excellent material for making an arc for projectile-throwing weapons. If you have an unusable pair of skis in the garage or on the balcony, then there is no need to waste time preparing arcs from tree branches.

For makinghunting bow, you can use both wooden and plastic skis. However, the latter option is preferable. Material such as PVC is the most flexible and reliable.

To assemble the bow, you need to saw off both ends of the ski so that a piece no more than a meter long remains in the middle. A weapon handle can also be made from skis. To do this, cuts of the same size (15-20 cm long) should be fastened with glue. Then they need to be processed with a planer to get a comfortable grip.

After all the materials for assembly are ready, it is necessary to fix 2 shoulders to the handle with self-tapping screws. After that, you can tie the bowstring, and then proceed to the first weapon tests.

People often ask the question: what should be the dimensions of a do-it-yourself bow? The size of such a weapon is about 1.4 meters. If the bow is larger, then the power of the weapon may not be enough to launch an arrow.

Composite bows

Also, many professionals make bows composite, that is, consisting of several different materials. This is a more complex and time-consuming process, however, such weapons are made according to the same principles as prefabricated items for throwing arrows. If you follow the entire technology of preparing and assembling the product, a bow made by yourself will last a long time.

Making a bow from slats

To make a bow with your own hands, you can use lamellas from upholstered furniture. Such elastic elements can be found during the dismantling of a bed or sofa. Their lengthvaries from 60 to 140 centimeters. When choosing the length of the slats, start from the total length of the bow, which should correspond to the height of the owner of the weapon.

The thickness of the slats is approximately 15 centimeters. If the workpiece is much thinner, glue them together using epoxy glue.

To make the shoulders for the bow, the lamellas need to be cut obliquely. Both parts of the arc should be processed together so that the parts are symmetrical. Next, you need to make a shelf for the bowstring on your shoulders. To do this, with a sharply sharpened knife, it is necessary to make grooves 10 deep and 5 millimeters thick.

You can use lamella trimmings as a handle. Having gathered them together, it is necessary to glue them so that the thickness allows you to comfortably grab the bow.

After the bowstring is fixed on the shoulders, it is necessary to lubricate all the wooden parts of the bow with wood stain or ship varnish. After waiting for the coating to dry completely, you can start test firing.

Making a compound bow

To make a collapsible bow, you will need to prepare the following tools:

1. Sharp knife.
2. Hacksaw for wood.
3. Planer.

To give the bow a sufficient bend, it is best to use a slipway. It can be purchased at the store or made independently from one thick board and four bars. The role of the arc will be performed by a PVC pipe or a wood stick. We also need a strong rope or fishing line for making a bowstring. To prevent the bow from slipping out of your hands while aiming, you mustmake a handle. To do this, tie the center of the arc with a thick rope or thick ribbon.

The bases of the arc should be reinforced with a metal frame. To do this, pick up two metal pipes. They have to be put on the ends of the arc so that they fit snugly against the tree. After that, the bowstring should be tied to metal pipes that reinforce the frame of the bow. When testing weapons, make sure that the arrow is sent to the target due to the force of the arc, which quickly straightens immediately after being fired.

Bow shells

Many people are interested in the question: how to make a bow and arrow with your own hands? Ammunition for throwing weapons are sharply ground wooden projectiles - arrows. To make them, you need to prepare wooden straight sticks from 30 to 60 centimeters long, depending on the size of the bow. The blanks must be processed with a file and sandpaper so as not to get a splinter during use. At the base of the arrow with a knife, you need to make a hole 2 mm deep. It is needed to fix the projectile on the bowstring. The opposite end of the arrow must be sharpened with a knife.

Arrow upgrade

To make a projectile for a bow heavier, nails are often used, having previously cut off his hat. After that, it is necessary to drive a metal product into the front of the projectile to a depth of 1-2 centimeters so that the sharp end sticks out.