How to Refinish a Vintage Bow

Refinishing a Vintage Bow

by Larry Vienneau

 
Normal wear and scratches on a Vintage Bow are not a problem. Most dings and scratches can be buffed out or polished. Most bows don't need refinishing, to polish your bow finish try; Renaissance Wax
Amazon. Renaissance wax  Ebay Renaissance wax
 However, if you have a bow that has a peeling, crazing, or cracked finish you should consider refinishing it. Always have a professional inspect your bow if you are unsure if it is safe to shoot. Having some basic knowledge of woodworking is very helpful before you decide to rework a vintage bow. Most fiberglass bows are fairly simple to re-finish, however, if you have a vintage “Woven” fiberglass consider having a professional rework your bow. This type of early fiberglass actually has a woven look to it and was used in the late 1950 and early to mid-1960. I bought a nice Herter’s bow and it had woven glass. I refinished it and was excited to shoot it. When I strung the bow I heard this slight crackling sound and noticed the belly of the bow was showing compression cracking. I decided to chalk it up to experience and never attempted to bring the bow to full draw. 

My #60 1970-71 Ocala X17 requires a new look

Ocala X17 limbs show stress fractures but these are not a problem. Nock needs TLC

The bow I have used for this article is a 1970-71 Ocala X17 60-inch AMO. I knew it was in rough shape when I bid for it on eBay, but it was a 60-pound bow and I love the Ocala, I have a beautiful #45 1967 Model. You can never have too many bows!

The bow arrived and it was in pretty poor shape. It had a cracked and crazed finish as well as paint spatters. It was a perfect candidate for complete refinishing. Miraculously the limbs were in perfect shape with no twists.

• If you want to refinish your bow you should put a few layers of masking tape over any logos, medallions, or markings that can identify your bow. This will protect the bow markings. It isn’t a perfect method but it does keep the original logos and serial numbers intact.  The problem is the poor varnish is being saved in that area of the bow with the identifying marks. It isn’t a perfect solution to saving the logos but it works. I am not fussy about taping because I usually try to lightly sand the taped area when I am ready to refinish. I try to blend out the edges with the sandpaper.

•  Stripping is a last resort. If you can avoid a paint stripper use a “refurbisher” It will soften the old finish and will eventually repair minor flaws. If you must strip the old finish, don’t use a harsh chemical paint remover. I prefer CITRISTRIP a non-hazardous water soluble stripper. It takes a bit longer but it won’t damage the bow glues. Work on one section at a time. I start with the riser, then work on the upper belly, then back, lower belly then back. This method will take about a day to strip the bow. Don't rush, take your time to do it well. Use a stripper after wash and then a couple times with a damp cloth. 

• You should use a plastic scraper until you get used to scraping off old varnish. I use an artist’s pallet knife because it is thin and flexible. One important rule- the scrap direction should be from the riser to the nocks. If you scrap from the nocks toward the riser you run the risk of lifting the fiberglass.

before and after, fiberglass striped finish

• Sand with a rough grit if needed but I usually start with 220, then 400, 600 then triple 000 steel wool. Avoid too much sanding on the surface of the fiberglass. Super glue is a good filler for nasty scratches or stress cracks. and it can be sanded.

• I recommend a spar varnish for the bow finish. Spar varnish was originally developed for coating the spars of sailing ships. Spars formed part of the masts and rigging, they were flexed by the wind, battered by sea, punished by weather, and also suffered from UV exposure to sunlight. The ship spars needed to be flexible and required a varnish that was durable yet flexible and elastic. Spar varnish is very flexible and will not crack – a very important quality in a bow finish.

• You can use satin, semi-gloss, or gloss depending on your bow, it is always good to match the original finish. I usually use a semi-gloss but I also like the gloss which has a harder finish and can be dulled if you want it less shiny.

Before and After

• I prefer a spray spar varnish (I like MINWAX Helmsman) but hand applying spar varnish is OK. One rule of application- thin multiple layers are better than a couple thick layers. Thick applications risk sags and runs.

restored riser Ocala x17

restored riser, limb, and nock

• Another nice finish is “Wipe On Poly” by Minwax, Ez-Do, or Watco. This is much thinner polyurethane and it dried faster. You can brush it on but there is the chance of sags. I like to use my finger and rub a controlled thin layer. I like this for the risers.

Be patient. Let your bow dry for at least 24 hours before you use it. 

My GROVES SPITFIRE DYNA-STRESSED LEFT HAND 2 PIECE RECURVE BOW-

 I bought this bow about a year and a half ago. I wanted a real beater to see how well the Loctite 420 method worked for fixing risers and de-laminations. When I bid on this bow I thought I know what I was getting myself into, the seller did an excellent job describing the many problems with this bow. Someone had used a belt sander to sand the bow leaving gouges and irregular surfaces. They had also added a thin layer of wood to the sight window. I have no idea why it was added. Perhaps someone felt the sight wind was too thin? The riser is not wood; it is a tough fibrous resin. The added wood was sloppily glued and sanded. There was a small split in the riser. The upper limb is severely twisted. When I attempted to straighten the limb I realized that the twist was a result of a delamination. There were also some nasty nicks and scratches over the bow. The bow was a disaster and was the perfect bow to resurrect.  

I have been working with bows for decades. I have made several bows and I felt confident that I could repair it. I am not Rick Rappe, Bow Doc, or Rich Lopez but I enjoy a good challenge.

The Loctite 420  worked better than I could have imagined. This method can be found in many archery forums.  http://tradgang.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=090682

http://leatherwall.bowsite.com/TF/lw/thread2.cfm?threadid=245971&category=88#3374865

It involves injecting cracks with Loctite (super glue) and clamping the distress area, repeating until cracks are filled. Loctite 420 does like to run so watch your fingers.   I straightened the limb and braced the bow with good eye protection and with my son’s Taekwondo sparring vest, pulled the string waiting for the crack which, fortunately, never came. Fiberglass was an older type of parallel glass. It was very stringy and wanted to separate from the bow. I decided that some of the dings and scratches could stay because I feared removing too much fiberglass. I can live with the battle's scars. I have shot over 300 arrows with this bow and it is fine. Groves are excellent bows and even though it is only 38 lbs, it is quite fast, an excellent target bow

Enjoy your "New" bow!!

For bow refinishing, I Recommend: http://www.classicbows.net/ This is Rick Rappe; author of “Vintage Bows 1 & II” - you will be in good hands. His email: yorktown5@comcast.net     Rick is no longer doing restorations

Rich Lopez is also a great bringer of life to tired bows:
http://droptinetraditions.com/php/ 
droptine59@gmail.com

Here is another: The Bow Hospital

http://bowhospital.com/

https://www.facebook.com/JR-Bows-Bow-Hospital-390871224262574/

 

If you want to replace your decals contact
Alan Harford of "Al's Decals" does not have a website, here is his email - acaah@aol.com

also a new decal source: arrow.wood@seznam.cz    Jaroslav Kejval, Czcech Republic

this post is meant as a guide. Always seek professional advice before reworking any bow. Use this guide at your own risk.

© Copyright, Larry Vienneau Jr.

All rights reserved.