Recurve restorations (Long post, lots of pics)

Discussion in 'Traditional Archery' started by Live2Draw, Oct 30, 2010.

  1. Live2Draw

    Live2Draw Die Hard Bowhunter

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    So, I have always loved looking at all of your bows, They are gorgeous, and pieces of art in and of themselves. I have lusted after schaffers, and Black widows, Shrews and others, And unfortunately could never justify spending the money. I do love my Kodiak, and was fortunate enough to have it given to me.
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    As of late, i have been perusing craiglist in search of affordable recurves, and have found a few. as one could expect, a 40 dollar bow is not going to be in the most perfect of shape, but as long as there is no separation or cracks i am happy.

    The First bow I found was a Plyoflex Condor
    I picked it up for 55 bucks, and the finish was a little rough and worn, so i redid it. Silly me forgot to take befores but this is the after
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    I picked up another 2 the other day, A Tristate jaguar and a pearson pony, all for 70 bucks.
    the pony is in great shape, just needs a string, and it will be good to go. Really neat little boy, Debating on gifting it to a cousin for christmas.
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    The tristate, on the other hand, has some tape marks, and finish issues, and some other things, And i thought that maybe i would make a walk through of how i restored the last one, As this one is a bit worse for wear, but a pretty neat piece of wood.
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    [​IMG] I do love the laminate tips
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    [​IMG] But the finish is a bit rough
    [​IMG] you can see where there was something stuck to it, or it was wrapped
    So first things first, I wtire down all the info off the Bow, as it appears on the bow. This bow did not have an AMO length, So i measured from string groove to string groove.
    I use a tailors Tape, they are flexible and easy to read
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    these are the things i will be using in the process
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    I taped the glass, as i dont want to be sanding on that, I should have goo gone'd first, but I was tired, and logic escaped me
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    Ran outta tape, so the new stuff was darker :violin: lol
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    Goo gone off the old adhesive from the plate and rug, I use a flat pick to get in the corner of the shelf
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    Starting with coarse 100 grit, I cut it into manageable pieces
    After sanding off the finish i give a quick alcohol wipe down, the fade line is gone, and it looks like it is going to be a very pretty piece of wood.
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    the Shelf side of the riser, only below the shelf is sanded.
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    there is some excellent grain in the wood, i really thing this is going to be an exceptionally pretty bow. I will post more as i progress :)
     
  2. Live2Draw

    Live2Draw Die Hard Bowhunter

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    progress.

    got all the sanding done, steelwool down to #0000
    just gotta go buy some automotive polish for the limbtips and the glass.
    then i am going to try to make some clear laminate stickers to replace the worn logos

    love the grain here
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    i put my first coat of finish on yesterday, will have to wool and buff and tack it agan, cant wait to see how it comes out. and sorry if my exuberance is too much, just excited lol
     
  3. Fitz

    Fitz Legendary Woodsman

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    Looks great man! I'll be building or restoring one some day I'm sure. another hobby to annoy my wife :busted:
     

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