A new bow

WhistlingBadger

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Where the deer and the antelope play
Raised this one from the ashes of a failed project. It was supposed to be an antelope hunting bow, backed with dogbane fibers. Those unfortunately proved a failure as bow backing. So I steamed off the backing, backed the wood core with pronghorn rawhide and rattlesnake skin, and made it into a nice kid’s bow.
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Home-tanned, elk leather grip, held on with elk sinew, with antler arrow rests.
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Antler limb tip overlays
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The arrows are made from phragamite reeds, fletched with pheasant primaries and held together with elk sinew. 60 grain bodkin target points.
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Hickory heartwood is beautiful stuff.
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Draws 14 pounds at 23 inches, and really zips out those little reed stem arrows. ☺️ There's no way I can sell this for anything like it's worth--not without a road trip to Jackson, anyway--so I plan to donate it to the local Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation chapter to raffle off at their fundraising supper this month. Hopefully it will raise some money to preserve elk habitat, and make a kid happy too.
 
It's snake skin. I like those easy questions. :lol: :lol:
Prairie rattlesnake, Crotalus viridis, to be exact. The snake wasn't using it anymore.

I wasn't sure you could use that on a bow limb, I thought it would be damaged by the bending when in use.

It gives a really, really nice "organic" look :)
 
I wasn't sure you could use that on a bow limb, I thought it would be damaged by the bending when in use.

It gives a really, really nice "organic" look :)
Thanks! I like the look of it, too. I've only learned how to use snakeskin in the past year or so. It's weird: It's brittle and tears easily by itself, but it becomes flexible and stretchy once you adhere it to wood.

I have a couple of big bull snake skins that I plan to use on the next couple projects. Stay tuned...
 
(Bull snakes have really nice skins. Look at these guys.)
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Despite their desirable clothing, they're pretty good to have around, and I generally let them be (over the objections of Mrs. Badger, who believes that all snakes are evil and should be destroyed, preferably with large bombs from a great distance).
 
I had an iguana once, it was a little awkward to pet, But he was a good guy. Even the cats liked him.

So theoretically, He wasn't "that" Evil.
 

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