Wood and its harvesting

For a simple onion, almost any tree that grows in the central strip of Russia is suitable. Recommended:

• Maple
• Juniper
• Hazelnut
• Birch
• Ash
• Oak
• The elm

Workpiece: to cut the prospective stock in winter, in the frost (about 10-15 degrees).

The workpiece must not have large knots (growths, mechanical and thermal damage.

Length of the workpiece = length of the onion + 30 cm (15 cm on each side to cracks during drying, the occurrence of which is not excluded).

From the received "log" the bark is NOT TO REMOVE!

Cover the ends of the workpiece with oil paint. Drying of wood should be carried out evenly, to avoid the appearance of internal defects in the material. If this is not done, then the onion will not last long.

The treated billet should be dried in a vertical position at room temperature. The air should not be too dry, otherwise the tree will dry up and labor will be wasted. The drying time is 2-5 months, depending on the conditions.

Tip: look at your workpiece before winter, if you do not want to climb a few hours on snowdrifts.

Primary treatment

The resulting blank is a log (Fig. 1).

Our task is to obtain a board from this log (Fig. 2).

How to achieve this? There are several options, each of which is quite historical.
• Machining with an ax
• Using a saw
• By splitting with wedges (from a harder wood).

The thickness of the board is equal to the width of the onion in the handle (for the Slavic onion about 3 cm).

After receiving the necessary board, it is necessary to mark it.
Visually check it for the presence of a slant and other defects. In accordance with the results of the inspection, make adjustments to the thickness of the onions in the place of the defect of the material (increase it).

Figure 3 shows the layout diagram.

Please note that we have not removed the bark from the billet. Do not damage the outer part of your future onion

The extra part is separated from the bow by means of an ax (rough work), and then a knife and a plane (fine work). With this treatment, you get a side profile of the bow.

After the separation of the onion, begin the formation of its frontal profile (Fig. 4).

The ratio of the width of the handle to the width of the end of the arm is approximately 3/2. At these stages of work, be extremely careful. On the accuracy and accuracy of your work depends, will the shoulders of the bow work equally evenly or one will be more resilient than the other. At these stages, the bow can not be bent - this can lead to splitting of the preform and its spoilage.

The cross-section of your bow will depend on the thickness of the log that you have prepared. It can range from lentil to almost rectangular.

Steaming onion (final stage)

At this stage, the bow is bent. Some manufacturers resort to soaking the billet in various infusions and solutions. A steamed tree has all the properties we need.

For what, in fact, steamed onions? I will give several reasons to understand the production process:
• In the case of drying of the wood during the drying process (therefore it is not recommended to bend the bow before stripping).
• In the case where your primary procurement was not direct (which is not uncommon, and what should not be feared, the front profile of your weapon does not need to be direct.) This will not affect the effectiveness of shooting, except that it will be inconvenient for another person to use your weapon. The main thing is convenient for you!)
• If you make a relatively short weapon (Slavic variant 1 - 1.3 m).
• If you intend to make a bow with a backward bend.
• In the case where you make "light" (for example - game) onions.
• For the purpose of giving aesthetic appearance.

At the beginning of the stage, your procurement represents the following

You need, for example, to get here such a bend:

To do this, you need to steam off the shoulders of the onion (the steamed element acquires plasticity and easily takes the bend that you set.) Strip off the shoulder of the onion until you can easily bend it to zanyvolivaniya).

The following parts are stripped (shown in white).

Steam best at the same time, so that the shoulders of the onion are dried simultaneously and evenly.

After the pairing of shoulders, the onion becomes attached to a special, pre-prepared for this onion slug.

Black color shows the wooden bars, between which hot "bow" becomes attached. The number, shape and location of the clamping bars depends on the shape of the bow you need.

In this kind of slip the onion dries up to 1 week. After that, it is removed from the slipway, the ends of the bow are formed for the subsequent putting on of the bowstring (a place is prepared for the horny / bone tips or a "step" is simply cut out under the loop of the bowstring).

Notice that we did not remove the bark from the "back" of the onion! When stripping and swallowing in the slipway, a portion of the crust exfoliates from the back of the bow. Separate it with a fingernail or a wooden knife. ATTENTION! Do not damage the fibers on the back of the bow! If part of the bark remains, do not worry, gently grind it with a smooth skin and your onion will get a decent appearance.

The onions are almost ready. For the durability of the onion service, it must be protected from drying out or moisture. If you adhere to the historical and reconstructive trend in your work, I recommend impregnating onions with hot wax or melted fat (do not overdo it! Impregnation should be no more than 3 mm in depth, otherwise the onion will lose its elasticity), otherwise you can use the varnish, modern paints Or mastics.

Recommendations for use and care

• To put on the bowstool shortly before shooting, and shoot immediately after.
• It is not recommended to "shoot" from your weapon to other people, even if they are also engaged in archery.
• Sew the cover for the bow, so as not to damage it during transportation and storage.
• Store onions indoors with room temperature and moderate humidity in an upright position.
• Shoot from your bow at least once a month, so that he does not "wean" from shooting.
• Do not forget only that the bow, like any weapon, requires yourselves to be responsive and comply with all security measures. And the amount of pleasure directly depends on how the bow is made.

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