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Main Boards => PowWow => Topic started by: J. Cook on August 26, 2016, 09:49:00 AM
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So I decided to try my hand at refinishing a bow. I have a late 80's model JK Chastain Wapiti. It's a custom t/d model when he used the metal block and metal dovetail attachment - I've never seen another one like it, as he moved away from that system many, many years ago. It's a great shooter but the finish was in really poor shape. Very yellowed, and even chipped completely off in some areas. The tips were the worst. My first mistake was not taking "before" pics.
I used an orbital sander, steel wool, and plenty of elbow grease to get the old finish completely off the riser. For the limbs, I was afraid to sand too much and the first attempt looked poor. So I re-sanded and got to the fiberglass - very slowly, and very carefully LOL.
I used wipe-on poly on the riser - I think 8 hand rubbed coats. Then I used the spray poly in "Semi-gloss" for the 4 coats on the limbs, and 4 overcoats on the riser. I'm very pleased with it. Not a show stopper, but honestly better than I expected the results to be.
Completely sanded riser and limbs...
(http://i1017.photobucket.com/albums/af295/WJCook/20160805_175517.jpg) (http://s1017.photobucket.com/user/WJCook/media/20160805_175517.jpg.html)
Riser after the wipe on poly (gloss) - look at the color it brought back!
(http://i1017.photobucket.com/albums/af295/WJCook/20160813_143712.jpg) (http://s1017.photobucket.com/user/WJCook/media/20160813_143712.jpg.html)
And the finished product...
(http://i1017.photobucket.com/albums/af295/WJCook/20160825_084240.jpg) (http://s1017.photobucket.com/user/WJCook/media/20160825_084240.jpg.html)
(http://i1017.photobucket.com/albums/af295/WJCook/20160825_084338.jpg) (http://s1017.photobucket.com/user/WJCook/media/20160825_084338.jpg.html)
(http://i1017.photobucket.com/albums/af295/WJCook/20160825_084210.jpg) (http://s1017.photobucket.com/user/WJCook/media/20160825_084210.jpg.html)
What do you think?
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I think you did well....... :thumbsup:
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looks great!
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:clapper:
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Looks real good! :thumbsup: :clapper:
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Nicely done!!
I've redone a couple bows from the 70's using a very similar method. Amazing how much brighter the wood is afterwards.
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Looks like new . :thumbsup:
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The black metal blocks on the riser for the dovetail are all scratched and marked up. No idea how to "smooth" that out to make it look like new as well. Any ideas?
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Good looking work, Jonathan! And a pretty bow, reborn! Nice job.
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Very very nice.
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You done good. Take a bow.
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Looks good from here!
Bisch
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J,
Are those blocks aluminum or steel? They don't look painted so anodized or blued?
I used my Lansky sharpening stones to remove some rather deep pitting on an old Win 54 barrel that looked much worse than your scratches. Aluminum or steel, there are products available to touch up or refinish either material. You could try them on an inside bare surface to check for resultant color. If blued steel there is a blueing remover so you can strip, stone smooth, and reblue (actually black) both to match.
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can you remove them? if their metal, sand them down and blue them, as in gun blueing or if you can remove them you could have them powder coated no matter what their made of!
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Nice job.
Looks good.
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yes sir, great job!
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Nice redo! You did well.
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Looks dang good! Nice work!
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Nice job!
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Well done, you gonna beat briars with it this season?
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That looks great.
On the metal, if you can remove them, cut sand paper into 1"-2" strips and use a piece of wood the same width as a backing stick to keep everything even and flat. Start at around 150-220 grit to remove the old finish and scratches. If it's steel, work up to 320-400 grit to get a nice smooth finish then finish with cold blue. If aluminum, leave at a coarser grit and get you a spray on finish like cerekote, which is sold for firearms finishing and typically available in a variety of colors. The bake on finishes will be the most durable, but there are others that do not require baking that would work as well. If you can't take them off, you can tape off the wood and still pretty well do the same thing, but the bake on finishes wouldn't be an option then.
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Didn't think about it until the mention of spray on coatings but I have refinished a rifle with Duracoat
non-bake spray coating that would work well for this application. They also have a primer base coat called Durafil that covers scratches and dings and eliminates the need to sand the metal which I also used. Duracoat is not as durable as a ceramic based product like Cerakote as mentioned but easier to apply and was designed for firearms that are handled more directly than your blocks would be.
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Real nice job.
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Looks great!