Took a chance

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stumper
Posts: 2688
Joined: Wed Sep 14, 2016 7:40 pm

Took a chance

#1 Post by stumper »

Today I did something I thought was unthinkable. One of my favorite shooting bows is a camo cardiac arrest made by Jose Miller. Soon after getting the bow I decided that I was not a fan of the camo and even talked to Jose about possibly sending it back. I just longed to see the beauty of natural wood while I was in the tree stand. For me hunting traditional archery is not just about shooting a stick and string but it's about liking the equipment you use. To me traditional archery is a Beautiful Romance between all things pure and beautiful. This camo bow EXCLUDED. I mean it's a well-made bow and I simply can't miss with it. I contemplated getting rid of it but I simply shoot it too darn well to part with it. I decided to ask Jose about refinishing and taking the camo off completely which he was nervous about because he didn't know what he put underneath and cautioned that it might not be what I desired.

Well today I couldn't take it any longer. I figured if it was ugly wood then I would just have some fun with it and maybe a rattle can. Sacrilegious I know but I figured I'd black out the handle with a dark stain if the wood was ugly. Within 30 seconds I knew something was up.
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Nothing clears a troubled mind like shooting a bow.

stumper
Posts: 2688
Joined: Wed Sep 14, 2016 7:40 pm

Re: Took a chance

#2 Post by stumper »

I honestly contemplated about leaving you all hanging for a week or more but decided against it. Like a miner who knows that he struck gold I started picking up the pace and sanding more fervently. Within a minute I had two thoughts one I cannot believe I didn't do this sooner and two I can't believe this was covered up with camo.
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Nothing clears a troubled mind like shooting a bow.

stumper
Posts: 2688
Joined: Wed Sep 14, 2016 7:40 pm

Re: Took a chance

#3 Post by stumper »

As I continued I literally struck gold as in the golden wood, a wood I have become all too familiar with... Osage. It didn't take me long to realize the other wood I was dealing with Bocote.....
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Nothing clears a troubled mind like shooting a bow.

stumper
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Re: Took a chance

#4 Post by stumper »

By this point I spent the next two hours in utter disbelief as I continued to remove, nay excavate this treasure from underneath
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Nothing clears a troubled mind like shooting a bow.

stumper
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Joined: Wed Sep 14, 2016 7:40 pm

Re: Took a chance

#5 Post by stumper »

The more I removed the happier I became.
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Nothing clears a troubled mind like shooting a bow.

stumper
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Joined: Wed Sep 14, 2016 7:40 pm

Re: Took a chance

#6 Post by stumper »

For now the plan is to just do the riser until I can figure out how to proceed forward with the limbs. The camo actually does not look bad at all with a bocote riser. For now my only intention is to do the riser and see where we stand. The limbs would be a lot more work and I'm not sure how exactly I would strip them to get the camo off without compromising the glue. But I have enough work to do with the riser to keep me busy for quite awhile. Now that the camo is completely off the riser I noticed in some places I went through whatever light stain was applied and some parts look a little splotchy. It is clear to me that I have hours and hours more of sanding to do. And then there's the question of what to finish it with. I know that I woukd like a hand rubbed finish but also know that bocote is an oily wood that does not do well with oil finishes. Any ideas would be appreciated. Going to take my time with this one and hopefully I'll have a really interesting looking bow at the end.
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Nothing clears a troubled mind like shooting a bow.

stumper
Posts: 2688
Joined: Wed Sep 14, 2016 7:40 pm

Re: Took a chance

#7 Post by stumper »

I'm almost at the point that I don't care if the limbs look like now that you can truly see what kind of bow it is with that new Riser attached. But we'll see maybe I'll become adventurous again at some point. Is bocote something you all would recommend using a sanding sealer on before applying a finish? what sort of wipe on finishes would you say would look good and would deal with the oily wood? Or perhaps since this bow has been built since 2014 is the bocote sufficiently dry to apply an oil finish.
Nothing clears a troubled mind like shooting a bow.

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Graps
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Re: Took a chance

#8 Post by Graps »

When I make a knife with Bocote, I coat the whole surface with Super glue and sand smooth after it dries.
Then the True Oil will work great.
But a bow riser is a lot of wood to do that with.
"Maybe the truly handicapped people are the ones that don't need God as much." ~ Joni Eareckson Tada

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Elkman
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Re: Took a chance

#9 Post by Elkman »

Wow Dave!
Very nice treasure you have came across there.
I think I posted this elsewhere here on the site but, I would use Rust-oleum Zinsser’s SealCoat. It is a shellac. It dries very fast and will create a base for your Tru-oil or any finish over oily Exotic woods.
You can use a good quality lacquer.
Thunderbird Archery makes a filler sealer that should work great. Zinsser in cheaper and you can find it locally.
You could even use it as your finish if you want although it's not as durable as a polyurethane finish. You can wipe it on with a rag to make it easy. 2 light coats. Be quick! It dries very fast and can get messy with a rag.
You could even make your own Shellac or should I say mix it.
Calling Elk - Awesome! !€

stumper
Posts: 2688
Joined: Wed Sep 14, 2016 7:40 pm

Re: Took a chance

#10 Post by stumper »

Elkman wrote: Thu Apr 04, 2019 11:13 pm Wow Dave!
Very nice treasure you have came across there.
I think I posted this elsewhere here on the site but, I would use Rust-oleum Zinsser’s SealCoat. It is a shellac. It dries very fast and will create a base for your Tru-oil.
Thunderbird Archery makes a filler sealer that should work great. Zinsser in cheaper and you can find it locally.
You could even use it as your finish if you want although it's not as durable as a polyurethane finish. You can wipe it on with a rag to make it easy. 2 light coats. Be quick! It dries very fast and can get messy with a rag.
You could even make your own Shellac or should I say mix it.
Great advice Tom everything that I have read his said shellac. The the more reading that I do on the particular wood bocote and other exotic woods I'm finding their natural oils are actually are protection themselves and many bowyers that make bows with these Woods simply polish them to the highest grit sandpaper available and leave them. After many many hours of internet reading I think that I will polish it as high as I can go and probably finish with some sort of wax finish. I have not decided on the particular either blend or type of wax yet. I have another bow my Mad Dog Prairie predator that I have refinished with wax which came out great despite being simple paste wax and I simply reply the Finish about one to two times a year. The Finish looks great is easy to reapply and actually has many moisture wicking properties. Between this and the already oily bocote I may just go straight to wax but have contemplated putting a base layer of shellac down to start. I really like the idea of a natural finish something that doesn't smell of high chemicals and that is easily reapplied. I relish the time of year that I re wax my Prairie Predator as it is just intimate time with me and the bow.
Nothing clears a troubled mind like shooting a bow.

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