Greetings and Salutations Everyone! Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Andrea. I am 34 & from Wisconsin. I have recently ventured into the bowyer’s art. My whole life I have been intrigued and interested in woodcarving and archery. For whatever reason, I was always a bit apprehensive to try either. Late summer of 2012, I decided to change that. After all, what was I waiting for? I purchased a nice used set of carving tools and borrowed a scroll saw. I discovered more of an immediate knack for scrolling but still took off with the hobby woodworking; mostly teaching myself. My first bow was bought about a month later - a used Ben Pearson Mustang. Since then I have been mainly trying to teach myself to hit where I am aiming on the target without losing my arrows or developing bad habits. My two hobbies are merging in a unique endeavor. This year at the end of May/beginning of June, I got a friend of mine hooked on traditional archery while she visited the United States for the first time. Her name is Fabiana and she is from Sao Paulo, Brazil. I had started learning Brazilian Portuguese through a website online and she was one of my tutors. We became friends four years ago and this year we finally got to meet in person for the first time. We've been friends for the four years exclusively online via Skype, MSN Messenger and emails. An archery friend and I took Fabi to a range to try shooting during her visit. Fabi took to it like a duck to water! She enjoyed it so much so, my bow pal and I are scheming to surprise her by sending her a takedown recurve and basic gear. The package will be sent to her for Christmas. I started checking out classifieds for a used takedown with lighter poundage for her but it was suggested that I instead build her one. I have never been one to turn down making a special project for my friends – especially in the woodworking arena – so here I am! I am going to be making a matched set of opposite twin takedown recurve bows. They will have opposite criss-cross accents. The bows will be 62” and made of Honduran Rosewood and Curly Maple with a Bubinga accent stripe. Clear glass on the limbs with Curly Maple veneers. I believe the correct phrase here would be “Go big or go home.” Haha! Fabi’s will be 30# so she can work on better form to start with. She is only interested in target shooting so the lighter poundage is not a big deal. Mine will be 40#.

I look forward to comments and suggestions. Glad to have you all along for the ride! ~Ange

Day 1

The cut veneers for the limbs

Cutting the limbs cores…

… and filleting them down.

Getting limbs cores down to the correct thickness

Planning out templates to aid in making the criss-cross pattern.

The curly maple wasn’t quite so tense to do.

Heaven’s to Murgatroyd, cutting the rosewood! Even with my woodworking I have never cut such an expensive piece of wood. I stood there a moment with the band saw running thinking, “You cut this and there’s no going back. You mess this up…*gulp*…”

Looking at an old comment from the thread "Pics of your best looking bow" someone had questioned if there were any female bowyers doing the same thing. :) I had to post my build along. I am up to day 5 working on the bows and have the criss-cross finished. I do have all my current work posted on a different site if anyone wants to check it out there only because this site take a bit to post pics and I have between 10-20 shots per work day. :)

Wow! That going to be quite a project .Keep us updated as you go. I can't mom wait to see them.Arrowchucker

Wow! That going to be quite a project .Keep us updated as you go. I can't mom wait to see them.Arrowchucker

Wow! That going to be quite a project .Keep us updated as you go. I can't mom wait to see them.Arrowchucker

Awesomeness! I will be watching this. Thanks for sharing with us.

Day 2 After cutting out and practice grinding the line templates…

…I got down to cutting out the real thing. Having zero woodworking experience besides my self-taught scrolling and carving – I made the "oops" of cutting “exactly” on the line instead of allowing myself the space to sand down the curve to match. Thankfully there was room to fix that error… and it was made on the maple. Whew!

Grinding down the riser pieces for the curves to fit.

Welcome. Keep us informed and keep the pics coming.

Interesting.

Wow, keep up the great work and keep us updated.

Thanks for posting. I am looking forward to following along.

OK! So I figured out how to combine my pictures with a photo editing program! That makes things a WHOLE lot faster :D I'll post Days 4 & 5 tomorrow. Thank you everyone for the warm welcome.

Day 3

After letting the wood rest for a couple of days so it finishes “moving” after being cut and ground, its almost set to glue. Before breaking out the “bow snot”, need to cut the wood for the accent lines. After much pondering and considering, Bubinga sandwiching black glass was decided upon.

So! I needed some Bubinga “filleted”…

… (while I’m cutting the slices, I also cut the rosewood slices for the overlays)…

… and then the Bubinga accents were ground down to the right thickness.

Now, let’s make a mess! Mix the two part epoxy until you think it’s mixed enough – then mix it some more! I thankfully avoided the pitfall of using the same spoon/stick/spatula for scooping both parts of the epoxy. I was given fair warning on that.

Clamping up the first pair.

One set is all clamped up (mostly out of frame, upper left) and I’m coating the last of the accent stripe for the second riser before clamping that up.

Done for the day while everything dries.

Great build along- those risers are going to be nice!

Day 4

Work kinda had to get in the way for a few days – no rest for the wicked. I was chomping at the bit to get back at it.

Alright! So to start the day I ground off the worst of the squeeze out and then squared up the blanks.

Then I started cutting the fussy cuts. Ignorance being bliss, such as it is, I think Ken was more nervous than I was. Don’t get me wrong, I was definitely concerned about messing it up.

I survived making the cuts then went to work sanding the pieces to fit.

Check out that grain. I have to be the only girl in the tri-county area that gets this excited over lumber.

And now, Ladies and gentlemen, if I may direct your attention to the center ring… Drawing up the final cut… now I was nervous. Make or break point.

Repeat process – Cutting, sanding to fit and checking for any flat spots on the curves. Did dry fit test run to check for gaps. After making some minor adjustments were made it was all ready for the glue-up!

Done for today – let it dry! Woot!

That riser is cray cray. I like it.

Your work is incredible. I am about to throw my first bow - a simple oak board bow - into the wood stove.

You are very talented. Looking forward to watching your progress.

That is absolutely awesome. Fantastic that a girl would have two hobbies like that. Your work is very good. Just to attempt making bows is admirable (for a male or female). I have never tried it. I'm sure these are going to turn out nice and will be "special" bows.

Skeet

They good great.

A fine job.

Will be following along.

Man when you jump in it's with both feet! I'm impressed!That's going to be a dandy:)

Very cool, will be watching with interest.

IMPRESSIVE: , don't think I could do it

Keep a going

pretty nice set up there You certainly dont look like a newbie. Great work

You go, girl!! There's a lot of men out here that don't have your MOXIE!!! I'm enjoying this thread immensely!

At Sir Misalots and Ottertails: I am being instructed as to how to build bows and being using my instructor's shop but everything is being done my me. We will discuss each step and what I need to do, what needs to be accomplished and then I go to it. Most times Ken will go work on something else until I hunt him down to check for "quality control", as I call it. :) These are my first bows. I somehow think not my last though.

This is post will have me up to current. Due to my work schedule it will be several days before I am able to get into the shop.

---------------------------- Day 5

I started with cleaning up the squeeze out, squaring up the blanks and getting them to appropriate thickness. The blanks are ready to be cut to shape. Wow. Even though I did the work myself I was still impressed with the finished blank. Next I cut the angles for the limb placement and squared them up by hand with much referencing to a 90* square to get it flat. Then they were ready for more glue! Slightly less mess than the criss cross glue up and they got wrapped in plastic to keep the mess contained. Next I cut and shaped the limb wedges. I was watching the details so close and keeping the wedge braced square on the table with my thumb that I wasn't paying attention to how close my thumb was to the belt. I road-rashed it a bit from the tip to the first knuckle. Good thing I am not a manicure kind of gal. After completing “Wedges 101” that was a wrap for the day. There was a little bit of discussion on another side project but that will be a topic for a different thread. This one is all for my first build… and a good friend’s Christmas present! :D

Excellent job, cannot wait to see it finished.

Some of the best threads are build alongs, this one is no exception. Thanks for sharing you're passion and skill, will be watching for sure!

Wow Andrea! Nothing like starting with something simple like a solid riser or straight stripe! If you can pull that riser off everything else will be a breeze! Great job and thanks for sharing!

AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Welcome to the world of Traditional Archery!

On Aug. 9th. and 10th. The Rib Mountain Archery Club

is hosting the state traditional archery shoot. Come

and join the group!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Again Good Luck!!!!!!!!!

Already had requested off to attend the shoot on the 9th & 10th! :) See ya there!

Looking great! Those curves are incredibly difficult to match by hand, aren't they? Especially when you cris-cross them. I would say you are taking to it quite well. Welcome to trad.

-Aaron

I know it isn't part of the bow build but it is part of the gift package, so I wanted to share.

I was given some used arrow shafts which I cleaned up, replaced the nocks and custom fletched them this evening to go with Fabi's bow.

I put arrow wraps on that are a tropical flower pattern and the feathers are in the Brazil colors with the cock feather being barred.

I like how they turned out. :)

very nice.

bow making is somewhat addictive, as you will soon find out !

Great work, and excellent photos. Thanks for sharing.

Wow a woman that carves builds bows and arrows and has all those tools and can use them, geezs lets you and me Elope and live happily ever .

i'm jealous as heck of those tools you got. That's really cool. God Bless

Omha2 - I'm flattered, thank you! I'd show off some of my hobby woodworking stuff but it's not archery related for this site.

WV Mountaineer - The shop is my teacher's. I've got a nice hobby shop setup but I don't have his big tools... yet. :)

After these twin bows are done I have a Howatt Hunter that someone had put snake skins on and did a crummy job refinishing so I'm going tore-refinish it to fix it. The snake skin is going to go - I like it better with just the black glass anyway. The grip is going to get tweaked a little to make it more comfortable for my hand while it's "in the shop" as well.

I had purchased a Samick Nighthawk and while it is serving it's purpose, Ken - my teacher, says we can fix that one as well. better grip, DEFINITE better finish. It's gonna look gorgeous with a good finish.

And last in the "fix-it" category. I had picked up a garage made bow cheap not knowing any better at the time. That is going to be a big makeover. Right now that bow is jokingly call "the 2x4", because it's like holding a 2x4.

My next "from scratch" project will be a longbow for myself. I've only had the opportunity to shoot a longbow once and I did eventually want to add a longbow to my collection. As I'm learning the craft I just can't see buying one instead of building one that is "exactly" what I want with the added bonus of being able to say, "I made it myself!"

Thank you, again to everyone for the kind comments. The encouragement is truly appreciated. ~Ange

Welcome! So nice to see you making bows. Enjoy. Jawge

Excellent work!

Day 6 AH! It was good to be back to it! Work...sheesh... I tell ya...

So Anyway..... Today’s work started off with sanding down the veneers to the correct width with a nice clean machined edge.

Next while everything was in the hot box warming through, the shiny side of the fiberglass got a protective coating of tape to reduce the amount of cleanup later. Then the fiberglass was all set to be cut to correct length.

I started the glue-up for the limbs for my bow. Fabi’s will get put together later. This way I get some practice to do it right on my bow first.

I had one side of veneers on the glass and coated with glue and was placing the last of the second pair in the next couple of pictures.

The glass, veneers, cores and wedges all placed on the forms over some plastic wrap to contain the squeeze out and taped down with pressure tape to aid in holding everything tight till the form is all settled in place with the pressure applied.

Next I got the air hose settled into place and began airing up the hose in small increments.

Parting shot for today is everything pressed tight and ready to cure overnight then go in the oven tomorrow. (Thanks for doing the baking, Ken) Next day I am up, my set of limbs will be ready for the next step and I can repeat process with Fabi’s limbs.

I thought I recognized that shop... if so, you are learning from one of the very best.

:) Ken is a really good teacher and I am enjoying the lessons immensely!

Welcome, thanks for taking us with you on your adventure.

Great thread. Impressive work. Please keep posting.

I'll keep posting as I get the work done. :) I have another day available later this week.

Day 7 Hey Everyone! Happy weekend to all! Didn’t feel like I did all that much this day at the shop but self admittedly, I don’t feel I was on my game. More focus next time! I made the decision I am going to finish going through the process with my bow so I know what each step entails and I get a practice run before doing Fabi’s bow. One at a time instead of doubling up each step.

We’ve got the limbs ready to come out of the form. Next is me removing the limbs from the form.

Then I went to the grinder to clean up the squeeze out – Careful, the broken edges are sharp! I managed to get away this time with no cuts but…

After that, I ground the riser pads to flush with the riser wood. Grind INTO the wood – hollow sound from the fiberglass is BAD!

A dry fit to glue the limb pads in place was done first then the limb pads were all glued into place and ready to dry. All I can say at this point is thank god for saran wrap to keep stuff clean.

Um... Can anyone tell me why my Day 7 post that I just posted at 11:20am on Saturday Aug 2nd is coming up dated "Aug 1st"? Weird.

You are doing a wonderful job. Thanks for sharing the process with us. I've been looking forward to seeing your continued posts.

TBB

Enjoying your buildalong, great job by the way. If you sneak in a few pics of other projects I won't tell. Carl

So this post is just for Carl... Everyone else turn your head and look at that great big 10 point buck walking past the window over there. :)

So these have been some of my best "other" woodworking projects. Most have been gifts.

There is the walleye cribbage board, a gift for some family friends - the pegs are real stick bobbers that store inside the red and white bobber.

A Maple leaf bowl carved from a 2x12 from Home Depot - in another life it would've been a floor joist!

Ying yang wolves wall hanging - gift for a friend and his fiance since they both LOVE wolves.

Fretwork clock - retirement gift for our exec secretary

Fretwork box - commissioned by a friend as a gift for her husband

Custom designed mailbox - gift for my best friend. Purposely did NOT carve the house number so he could use stick on numbers... in case he moved again so he could take it with him.

Monitor stand - built for an archery pal in trade for some used arrows and some walnut wood he had for carving/scrolling (See this is archery related! Haha - I know, I know, I'm stretching for that one.)

And my personal favorite - Curly maple fretwork Bass box - Built as a Christmas gift for a very special gentleman friend of mine. He didn't think I was getting him ANYTHING for Christmas and he got this. I arranged with the restaurant hostess to bring the wrapped gift to the table. I've never seen him so surprised. :)

What a cool project. Your friend will cherish that bow.

Now, I thought that shop looked familiar. The picture with that blue painter taped wrapped bow stringer clinched it. You've got a great mentor working with you.

Chris

Very nice wood work Andrea! Do you use a scroll saw for those projects? I especially love the wolves! They look like they were engraved with a laser! I ribbed you on another site about smiling while glueing up your first bow. Now I can see why you can smile. Bow building must be childs play after crafting some of those objects! Hardest part is probably cleaning your hands after wards. A quick warning now that you have the limbs ready to profile-resist any temptation to run your hand along the edges until you have them sanded. Those fiberglass splinters hurt! Keep up the good work! Mike

Nice work!

Nice work. Welcome . I will look forward to seeing more of this bow.

Andrea/Silveraven - you are a very talented woodworker! Thank you so much for posting. Fabi is blessed to have you for a friend. This is very inspiring. Looking forward to following your progress.

You've got some skills, very nice projects. Thanks for the pics. Carl

WOW!

I think you got my share in the talent gene pool. Your friends are lucky people. Thanks for sharing. Shawn

A heart felt thank you everyone! I was worried I'd have folks a little up in arms straying from the archery. Happy I shared. :) You guys are all great!

Bodork - My weapon of choice is a Dewalt 788 Scroll saw. The wolves are cut through 1/4" baltic birch plywood then CAREFULLY glued to a 1/2" backing. Have to be very careful with the glue to avoid getting excessive build up in the frets. Put a veneered edging on the sides and viola! I am hopefully going to get some instruction in the carving venue to build my skills there. Met an amazing woodcarver who said he'd give me some lessons once things quiet down some from the busy summer craft show season. This fellow it totally amazing! He carves bird feathers so realistically from wood that DNR wardens have attempted to fine him at craft shows fro having bald eagle feathers. Totally bakes their brains when they find out it's wood!

very nice.

Awesome work Silveraven, keep posting

I know that there are more technology/advanced ways to do that type of work now but definately not as skillful or rewarding as doing it yourself by hand.

How are your bows going? I really want to see the progress.

Day 8 Ok! Here we go cool cats and kittens! My apologizes for the delay in posting. I attended my first 3D Trad shoot this past weekend and most of last week I was prepping around my job for camping there. Had a Great time at my first shoot EVER – Now onto the fun work!

So… Started the day cleaning up the overlay edges. The belly ramps were cut and ground down to prep for the overlays there. Then I got to drill the holes for the alignment pins and the bolt bushing. To allow for better seating of the hardware, the drill holes were chamfered. Next I was tapping the threads for the bolt receiver bushing. Finally it was all set to put the limbs on for the first time. Now with the limbs attached I drew the centerline for the limbs and then used the centerline to align the limb templates. Glued on the tip overlays and the belly ramp overlays and done for the day while stuff dries!

Day 9 I started off the day cleaning up the limb overlays and the belly ramp overlays. Then the limb fit was checked after re-drilling the holes through the overlays. Next I ground the limbs down to the template line. After that I filed in the preliminary string grooves and we strung the bow up for the first time. The boss says the tiller and timing was, quote, “Nuts on” and there was no limb roll at all. :) I’ll take it! The profile cut and ready for the overlay.Funny story about those overlays. Ken had something else that needed his attention so he told me what I needed to do and I was left on my own. I needed to make a piece of scrap match the curves of the profile for clamping. No problem, I’ve matched curve lines. Pride comes before a fall. It works a whole lot better if you don’t copy the curve itself but make the other side that the curve fits against. *eyeroll* It was easy enough to fix but that sure was a blond moment. Continuing… Lastly for the day was gluing the belly overlay and the tip overlays. (Notice the “correct” profile of the clamping block in the bottom left of the picture!) Time to let things dry.

Day 10 Two days in a row to work! Whoo-hoo! Not as much exposition for this one but the work I was doing I was nervous and concerned about fouling up. I started off with grinding the limb tip overlays even. Then filed the string grooves back in place. I connected the two grooves and last part of the day was shaping the limb tips.

Such beautiful wood working! I am enjoying the bow build too. Jawge

MAD skills!!

Day 11 Two more back to back days to work at the shop! Yea! OK! Let’s get started! Today began with tips. I was shown how to go through the entire process first and then it was my turn. I began by blending the tip overlays to the limb, being super cautious not to nick the glass with that grinding wheel. Also with the hand grinder, the tip front got shaped. Next I used the shoe-shine method to round, bevel and smooth the front of the tips. Back to the hand grinder to shape the back of the tip to look like the bow of a boat – like a deep “V” fisherman, not a shallow bass boat. Work in progress picture, getting closer – still working on it. More of the shoe-shine sanding along with some regular sanding in progressively finer grits to refine the shape and the rings. Not bad for my first attempt ever at tips. Mine is just a little long but it’s the bottom limb so it was close enough. The boss said he would accept that work. For whatever reason doing the tips and string grooves had me really nervous. I had a knot in my stomach the whole time. Moving on to even more nerve wracking things! Let’s cut the sight window out and then the back profile. Then I bolted the limbs back on and cut those to length. The day finished out with grinding the riser to shape.

Day 12

I made a point of getting up to get an early start on the project today. After all, TODAY IS THE DAY!!!! I got to fire my bow for the first time!

Before I could do that though, there was still some refine sanding that needed to be done. The sharp corners were removed from where the arrow shelf meets the sight window with a round file. Then some blending needed to be done with a curved back rasp. I also had to file in the rest of the string groove.

Here we go, Everybody! Strung and ready to let the first arrow fly. Holy fast arrows, Batman!!!! Oh. My. GOD!! I cannot believe how fast this bow is compared to the others I have shot. I also just can’t believe I made this bow. I was there – I have the photographic proof – but it still just amazes me that I built this. The bow’s performance certainly speaks well of Ken’s design and I tip my hat to him. It actually made me jump how fast those arrows hit the target compared to the bow I had been shooting. I stood there a second after firing that first arrow thinking, “Did that come from my bow?” Wow – just amazing.

A minor adjustment was made to fit my grip better (Thank You, Ken – I really do love the grip on my bow) Then we checked the poundage (came in at 46# - were shooting for 40ish) and did some minor sanding to adjust the tiller.

I then went at sanding the limb edges rounded. When all was said and done, she weighed in at 43.5#. Done & done!

After the adjustments, she was test fired at a target in the shed (it had started raining). Darn it all, I jumped AGAIN at the speed of the impact of that arrow to the target. *shaking my head* Gonna take some getting used to. Ken may be right that I won’t shoot my factory bow anymore. Hahaha! Took a seat and started working the whole bow over with some 100 grit sandpaper. I have homework this week and brought my bow home to continue the sanding up through some progressively finer grits. In my hobby woodworking supplies I had a sanding sponge that was 320 grit so the bow was gone over with that.

Right now, unfinished, my bow feels almost like my one factory bow (a Samick Nighthawk) that IS finished! Next week we should be able to start spraying her down. I am going to ask for some opinions here. Fabi’s bow is going to get a gloss finish. I want hers to look incredibly drool-worthy when she goes to an archery range in Sao Paulo since archery is a bit of a “boys only club” yet in Brazil. My bow, however, I am torn whether to go with the gloss finish or a satin. ;) Is there a semi-gloss option? Just kidding. Seriously though, knee jerk reaction is to go gloss but practicality side of me says go satin. Decisions, decisions…

In my own woodworking, I am now using down to 4000 grit sand paper/sponges. It really does make a difference in the finishing process. Yes it does seem like "overkill", but I got the idea from a friend of mine who is a professional painter who does cabinet work for some very high end cabinet makers.

It will take a bit of time, but the benefits are well worth it. PM me if you want the source for the super fine grit material I use or I'm sure you can find some on line.

Great Job!!

TBB

You are doing a fantastic job!It's been fun to watch your progress.If it we're me I'd finish it in gloss,I think it really looks classy on fine wood. You can always put some wax on it un buffed for the hunting season if your worried about shine then buff it out when you done hunting.

Good job.

Wow, what a great job you have done on the bow! I look forward to seeing the continued progress.

Day 13 Not a lot to type today – mainly sanding in prep for the base/filler coat of finish. The finish smells like incredibly strong nail polish. Here we are with the coat on for everything to dry…

…And the filler/base coat done.

Nice bows. Also love the wolves.

Got the limbs for Fabi's bow glued up today! No new pictures for the moment - there will be more as I move along with her bow. I figured more pics of me spreading glue (making a mess)was a bit redundant. :)

What a great job, that looks super.

Day 14 Drum roll, please… With signing her, my bow is officially done!

And now to finish Fabi’s bow. I cleaned up the limbs and the belly ramps. I cut the pressure block to fit the correct side for the front overlay this time! And final task of the day was gluing on the front overlay – a pretty piece of bird’s eye maple.

Very nice looking bow, good job!

You've got skills! Nice work.

Great looking bow!

Well I am certainly impressed. It shows what patience and following directions can do.

I've been following this from the beginning. Just beautiful work and I love the ribbon effect in the riser. Where do we place our order?

Very nice work, you have got the talent, stick with it!

I'm very impressed! You do very fine work!

Bernie

Day 15 Today the limbs were drilled, tapped, centerlined, cut and the string grooves put on. Fabi’s bow weighed in at 31.5#. Pretty close to the 30# we were aiming for. Ken was hoping that one of the bows would be off that I would have some real work to do. Both bows had the timing and tiller right on. Personally, I think it speaks more to Ken’s design than my bow building. Next trip to the shop will be all tips, all day!

***

Day 16 was indeed tips. I was concentrating on getting that done and didn't think to pull my camera out for pictures. So unfortunately no pictures to show but the tips are done. I had some time left so the profile and sight window are also cut out. Next day at the shop will be shaping and sanding for the filler coat!

Serious talent!!

Very nice! Good to see. Jawge

Amasing talent theres no limits you are very gifted I see. Good luck in all that you do as you walk in grace.

Amasing thread.

My apologizes everyone – lots on my mind lately: changing jobs, friend had surgery – I COMPLETELY spaced on pictures while I was doing some of the shaping. :( However, I DID remember to get a picture of the first shot.Shoots really nice. Very smooth and pleasant to shoot yet still surprisingly fast for the light poundage. I know Fabi is going to love it! I spoke with her recently and she said she missed shooting so much she had looked at bows down in Brazil. Thankfully, she said they cost three times as much as here and are nowhere near the quality. Whew!! I told her to talk to me first to help her ‘pick out something’ before she actually bought a bow. I am by no means an expert of any sort but at least this way it will give me a way to stall until I can get her bow to her.

Speaking of shooting… My bow and I went out for an afternoon with the gentleman who sold me my first bow (thereby getting me into this wonderful sport. Thanks Ross, still love that Pearson Mustang!). It is the understatement of the year to say he was really impressed. When we were packing up to leave the park he admitted, “Ange, not trying to knock your woodworking skill but I was thinking as I was driving out here that it’s your VERY first recurve… how good could it be?” Sure showed him, didn’t I? :)

Filler coat is on! I took some pictures before I started scuffing it back up for the base coat. I won’t bore everyone with pictures of me sanding, so next time you see pictures will be signing Fabi’s bow and some nice final pictures of both twins side by side. A friend who does photography said he’d take some nice pictures of the two bows. :)

Great job !

You did a wonderful job. Especially for your first time!

TBB

After all the work and waiting...She finally got it!!! There was hiccup in that the Brazilian government charged her 60% tax on the amount I put down for insurance. I put enough to cover new supplies if I had to re-make the bow and to replace all the accessories. Fabi's bow and "stuff" made it to Brazil about Thanksgiving. It unfortunately and very frustratingly sat in the customs office in Sao Paulo till the day after Christmas. She had raised a dispute to see if they would waive the taxes. They did not AND they charged her a storage fee for the box while they reviewed her case as well as tax on the storage fee. *many colorful adjectives here*

REGARDLESS!!! She finally got her gift! We skyped while she was opening the package. Fabi was getting misty eyed when she first opened it and saw it was a pretty bow. My dad was there watching over my shoulder and said, "Tell her." I told her I made it and she started crying. When I showed her my bow and that they are twins I thought she was going to completely break down. She absolutely loves it! She logged off to go outside to try it out within an hour after getting it together! Mission very much accomplished. Thank you all for being along for the ride. I Still can't stop smiling. :D

I had to scroll all the way back to your first post to find out who Fabi is...she is a very lucky lady to have a friend like you...cannot wait to see what your longbow project looks like

DDave

Gorgeous bow! You,fair lady,have a wonderful talent for bow- making and wookworking. Fabi is very fortunate to have you as a friend. So when are going to start taking orders for bows? I seriously would buy one from you.

"Surprisingly fast for the light poundage"...that limb geometry at full draw say's one thing - SPEED! You hit a home run lady, nice job! Have a Happy New Year and best wishes for your future endeavors.

That is an outstanding bow! Jawge

Great build along, thanks for sharing.

Nice.

Cool....

You have got some talent there, job well done on the bow and the other items as well,,looking forward to seeing some more bows,, seems to me you you've got the skill for some "selfies" also.

You should be very proud of your efforts and bows.

beautiful bow......you are a very talented bowyer.....look forward to more builds and crafts....jeff/snake

Beautiful work, and gesture..Wonderful person you are Andrea..

U R MY HEROOOOOOOOOO!!!!

GREAT BUILD ALONG AND GREAT BOW!

THANKS SO MUCH FOR TAKING THE EXTRA TIME AND EFFORT TO POST YOUR WORK!

PEACE! CR

Great looking bow! You've got some great talent there and a friend who I believe knows how blessed they are to have you as a friend. Life is good!

Nice looking bows that you made. Must be a great feeling having the skills to make bows.

Great lookin bow!

Awesome job and great story! You truly are a gifted woodworker. Thanks for posting.

Very Nice! Thanks for taking us along!

Nice ending to the story.

Great work from concept to finished products!

Now that was a great gift!

Joe

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