# PVC Bows



## pilotmill (Dec 10, 2008)

I made one of 3/4 pvc schd40 water pipe about 48" to use as a form bow. I practice pulling through my clicker and my shot sequence. It has about a 10# pull and you can play with the shot sequence and not worry about getting tired holding the bow. I also hold on the target and let down over and over to break any tendency to snap shoot. Keep it in the den and use it often. Might make a great kids bow to get them started. PVC and some duct tape and off you go. Gar.


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## BLACK WOLF (Aug 26, 2005)

Swamp Phantom said:


> Any of you all tried one?


Yes. I made one about 15yrs. ago as a dry fire form bow. I still have it and use it still today. It's a cheap and effective training tool.

Ray :shade:


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## bearauto11 (Apr 7, 2010)

They're what my youngest started with.


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## WindWalker (Jan 23, 2005)

PVC bow is what I initially taught one grandson on and now teaching another on. Good training aid for form and release. Not my idea. Simply copied what my original instructor used as a training aid back in the 60's. However, then the training bows were made of bamboo cane poles. 

I use hardwood dowel sections glued into the ends for limb tips, and wrap the center with tape to form a grip. I insert a felt piece under the tape to make an arrow shelf.


Check this one: *60lb PVC bow* :smile:


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## bearauto11 (Apr 7, 2010)

I made this one: http://www.scbowhunters.org/Kids_Corner.html


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## Swamp Phantom (Jan 18, 2011)

Alright! Had no idea if you all would think this was goofey or not. Sure appreciate the responses.

Really appreciate you all mentioning building one as a Practice Draw Aid. Great idea.
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Hey Bear, Nice link. I zoomed in on the first flick and can see where some of those have the Dowel Rod in the center section that he mentioned. Looks like the kids are indeed having a fine time with them.
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Hey WindWalker, That was the exact link that had caught my attention.:thumbs_up I especially liked the Tip he mentioned about cutting a lengthwise groove in the 1/2" Pipe so it can be compressed to fit inside the 3/4" Pipe. Simple solution. Seemed like everyone on You Tube had a different solution for an Arrow Rest.

Doubt that I could use the 60# Draw Weight with anything resembling comfort or control. But, by leaving the center Rod out which he showed, it should get the DW down enough to make it where I can handle it.

I mentioned it to a couple of buddies and they seemed interested in building 1-2 just for grins.
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The link Bear provided mentioned using Dowel Rods for the Youth Arrows. I'm kinda leaning toward the solid fiberglass 5/16" Driveway Markers(< $2 at Lowes or Home Depot), without Fletching. May glue a 223Rem Case on the Tip to give it a bit of protection and use a regular Glue-On Nock on the Tapered end(already tapered to stick in the ground).

Not concerned at all about the Super-Duper Tuning, just something to mess with. So, would you all stick with the Dowels or go Driveway Markers?


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## Warbow (Apr 18, 2006)

One quick note.

PVC pipe is not made for this purpose. It is not a shatter proof plastic.

That generally shouldn't be a problem for a bow of reasonably long length, but the amount of flexibility in PVC pipe varies from manufacturer to manufacturer and region to region, with no specific standardization. So YMMV.


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## WindWalker (Jan 23, 2005)

> PVC pipe is not made for this purpose. It is not a shatter proof plastic.


True. Good for kids using low draw-weight to learn what form is and get an idea of how to release... and for some light plinking, but I don't think I would want to pull 60# on PVC.


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## Swamp Phantom (Jan 18, 2011)

Excellent point about the PVC has the potential to be Brittle. One of my buddies picked-up on some of them wrapping the PVC with Duct Tape in the You Tube Videos. We speculated that would help retain the pieces rather than having them just shatter and go everywhere.

Plus, some plastics can embrittle just from being in the sun for weeks at a time. So, I doubt the PVC Bows will put any of the BIG manufacturers out of business.


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## grantmac (May 31, 2007)

If your going to actually shoot it rather than build a PVC dry fire bow then I'd recommend building a bamboo bundle "panda" bow.
Just buy a package of bamboo garden stakes in the length you want to bow to end-up. Cut them to various lengths and tape them together in a bundle with the handle having the most stakes and the tips tapering down to one or two.

Makes for a much snappier bow then you get with PVC, the cost is less and it doesn't have the potential to fragment. Probably the best survival bow design if you are in a location with bamboo.

-Grant


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## Swamp Phantom (Jan 18, 2011)

Hey Grant, Do you have any flicks or a link to one? Have you tried one? Always interested in stuff like this.


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## BLACK WOLF (Aug 26, 2005)

Swamp Phantom said:


> Hey Grant, Do you have any flicks or a link to one? Have you tried one? Always interested in stuff like this.


Watch the first Predator movie with Arnold Schwarzenegger in it :wink:

Ray :shade:


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## grantmac (May 31, 2007)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLBBRu47Gv4

This one shows it well. Bamboo will last longer then sticks but the principle is the same.

-Grant


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## Swamp Phantom (Jan 18, 2011)

Thank you both. 

Spoke to my buddy Quagmire last night and he mentioned the same movie "Predator", but I've not seen it. 

He also mentioned lashing Cane together 55yrs ago to make some Bows in his youth. He also mentioned they would have lasted longer if they had coated them with any kind of preservative. Said they would cut the Cane, tie a bunch together at the end, throw the rope over a limb, let them Air Dry so they were straight, and then lash them into Bows. They were left out in the Florida weather all year and needed replacing every year due to that.

Thanks again.


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## Swamp Phantom (Jan 18, 2011)

Got two started. Took a 10' stick of 3/4" and 1/2" PVC and cut them in half. Then I split the 1/2" PVC lengthwise with a Circular Saw, sprayed it with Silicone and drove it into the 3/4" PVC with a Rubber Mallet. They seem to have plenty of strength by just flexing them, without adding the center Solid Rod -for me. Haven't gotten any farther though because of other things which needed doing,
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But my old buddy Quagmire made one(in about 15min total after finding the pieces) and has shot it. His 3/4" PVC piece is 66" long and he centered a 2' piece of split 1/2" PVC on the inside by driving it in with a piece of 1/2" Conduit. He center-drilled a hole on each end down 1"(64" apart) and used a piece of Catfish Trot Line for his Bow String. Said he was surprised that the Nocks "Snapped On" the Line because it just happened to be close to the correct diameter.

He said his Brace Height ended up being 7" and of course I explained how that would NEVER work properly. :wink: After we got through laughing :set1_rolf2: he told me that he spotted a Bottle Cap about 18' away and hit it with the first shot. And he tried to see just how far it would toss the very old Bent Arrow he was using and said it went about 83'.

Then we went into the nuiances of Arrow Spine, Balance. Tip Weight, FOC, etc. :jksign: And he said he had thought about trying to put the Arrows in a Vise and straightening them a bit(maybe). Plus some of the Feathers were not attached real well and said he wasn't sure if the "Snake Flight Movement" was due to the Bent Shafts or perhaps the partial Feathering. 

He mentioned he might split a piece of 1" PVC and slide it down over the 3/4" one to make a handle. Then fabricate some kind of Arrow Shelf. Said it dosen't want it too fancy. 

As an after thought, he said it might be 20#-25# the way his is right now ""BUT"" it does not snap back as quickly as a regular Wood or Composite Shaft Bow does. That makes sense if you think about it being PVC. He thought it would be strong and quick enough to Stick-some-Fish though. :cheers:


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## Viper1 (Aug 21, 2003)

Swamp -

This may not be what your intention was, so just take it as another slant on the topic. 

The PVC bow is an old trick, but there are other, and in some ways, better methods (at least for adults) to train with:

1. You can attach a length of elastic cord, the diameter of std para-cord, to each end of your strung, regular bow and dry fire to your heart's content. This has the advantage of holding the weight and grip of your real bow.

2. You can get a length of stretch bands and practice BT, alignment and releasing with that, instead of a bow. This has the advantage of not needing a full length "bow" and can be done pretty much anywhere. It also allow a full follow-through, which the next one doesn't.

3. There's the Formaster, it's pricey but can be home made for a few dollars. It has the disadvantage of not allowing a full follow-through. Not a good idea for new shooters, since in a lot of ways, the follow-through defines the release. 

4. Mental rehearsal, Probably one of the best training methods, but the most difficult to do correctly.

Viper1 out.


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## Swamp Phantom (Jan 18, 2011)

Thanks Viper 1 for all the good info(as well as your other posts too).:thumbs_up I've not shot a Bow in a bit over 30yrs, so I'm just getting back into it. Things have sure changed a lot since the `70s. The smoothness and accuracy of todays Bows are just amazing to me.

I got a *Mission **Craze *back in December and Tim at the Gun/Bow Shop gave me a Non-Firing Draw Device so I could practice Drawing and Aiming over the Winter with no chance of an accidental Dry Fire. Hard to believe how steady that has made me when I get in position.

Once I get going with the PVC Bow, I'll probably end up with one of the commercial Bows. Thought about a Greatree Firefox, Samack Sage or the Hoyt Excel, but for $5 I can have two PVC Bows to mess with.
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We are just doing the PVC Bows(and probably the Bamboo Bows) for the fun of doing it. Quag called yesterday and said he found a "Perfect" Arrow Rest for his PVC Bow - an old Rusty Hose Clamp. He clamped it to the Bow and just bent the Tag end out for the Arrow Rest.:set1_rolf2:


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## Viper1 (Aug 21, 2003)

Swamp -

Things haven't changed as much since the 70's as you might think, at least not in the stickbow world  

Thanks for the kind words,

Viper1 out.


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## Swamp Phantom (Jan 18, 2011)

Welllllllll....., you won't believe this! I just made the *Skippy's PVC Bow Pro Staff* over on Bow Fishing Country.com :shade:


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## Swamp Phantom (Jan 18, 2011)

Time for an update. I did get the 5' PVC Bow made by splitting a 1/2" Schedule 40, spraying it with Silicone, and driving it into a 3/4" Schedule 40. Quag sent me a piece of Cord which snaps right into an arrow nock and come to find out it is cloths-line.

Decided to wrap the handle area with some Foam Pipe Insulation. I had some for a 1" Pipe and figured I could just trim it to size. But when I wrapped it around the 3/4" Pipe, the overlap appeared to make a nice Arrow Rest. Had to reverse the overlap so it would be going with the Arrow Flight though.

Almost Taped it in place but remembered some DAP Contact Cement I have. Put it on the PVC and inside the Foam Insulation, then let them dry for about 30min. You have to get it in place the First Time because the Contact Cement will not let you reposition anything. Once the drying time was done, I managed to stick the Foam on just as I wanted it.

That came out better than I expected. Haven't been able to shoot it anymore though because of the weather. It probably pulls 40#(+ or - a few).
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Welllll...., I did get to shoot the PVC Bow in it's current configuration. Stayed fairly close about 4yds and "managed" to hit the Target.

Probably important to mention that I am(apparently) Left Eye Dominant and shooting the PVC Bow as a Lefty and Instinctive. 

Backed on up to 10yds and put a Kid Skin Glove on my Left(String Draw) Hand. No need for one on my Right(Bow) hand now that I have the Foam Arrow Shelf/Grip. (The Over-Lapped portion of the Foam fits perfectly in the Crease my hand makes when I fold my hand at the Knuckles.) Still managed to hit the Target(24"x24") which kinda surprised me. Using 1-Up and 2-Down without an Arrow Nock. Put some Red Magic Marker on the White Bow String(Cord) so I could see if it shoots different as I move up and down the String.

Never having shot a Bow as a Lefty Before, nor Instinctive, I'm guessing most of the Group Size(more like a shotgun Pattern ) is due to my Trad Inexperience and perhaps the PVC Bow not having a Center Cut. The Arrows go into the Target with the Vanes skewed to the Right. Thinking about adding something to simulate a Berger Button, but that might just make it worse. Fun to mess with though and good exercise for my ancient muscles. 
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Noticed the Vanes were cutting into the Foam Grip Hand Rest right next to the PVC Pipe. Then Quag and I were talking one day and a Plastic Tie-Wrap happened to come up. He immediately said, "That would make an Arrow Rest worth trying!"

Put one on the PVC above the Foam Grip so it would "flex" forward and cut the Tag end off where it is maybe 3/8" long. Also added a Tie-Wrap to the fine Bow String(cloths line) and snugged it up - for a Nock. It is snug but I can slide it with a bit of effort. Also noticed the guys at Bow Fishing Country mentioned they Nock waaaay High to get their arrows to adjust properly, so I tried that along with a three-down hold.

Much better, but it still needed something. Kept looking at it and decided it needed something "similar to" a Berger Button. Another Tie-Wrap was put on above the first one, cut the Tag end off Flush and Filed the Tag end smooth with the Lock. This allows me to rotate the Fake Berger Button around the Pipe to adjust how far it sticks out. 

Ended up with them both directly to the side of the Pipe when seen at Full Draw. Much MUCH better. Arrows began flying straight and hitting without any skew. Kept shooting.

Bow is taking a small bit of curved set even though I un-cloths line it every time I shoot it. Poundage now feels about 32#-35#(maybe).

The PVC shooting is so much improved that it is difficult to describe. The arrows are impacting square to the Target and the old Pattern is becoming a Group. They tend to land in a Vertical Line now, which I interpret as probably just my Form needing a bit more Fine Tuning. Three-down is working pretty good because I can anchor my (Trigger) Finger at the corner of my mouth and my Thumb behind my ear.

Really enjoying the PVC Bow.


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## chwiej (Jun 27, 2005)

*PVC bow*



bearauto11 said:


> I made this one: http://www.scbowhunters.org/Kids_Corner.html


Just a few bows I made out of 3/4 and 1 inch schedule 40 flattened pvc pipe.The pull is between 30 and 55 pounds at 30 inch draw(depends on length of the bow).Speed between 125 and 164 fps with 10 gpi arrow.Bows on pics are unfinished with no paint or duct tape on it.Pvc pipe is safe to use if you don't let the bow sit in direct sunlight unprotected for long time(UV damage)or use it in very cold weather.If the pipe is in good shape it will only bend not shutter,which is easily fixed by heating the pipe over the stove or using a heating gun.If the pipe is old and damaged by sun/uv or used in very cold weather it becomes brittle and can shutter.Protect the bow by uv resistant finish(spray paint or duct tape)and you good to go.Bows are pretty smooth with little hand shock and fun to shoot.Next project will be a 70 to 80 pounds longbow out of 1 1/4 inch schedule 40 pipe.


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## Kevin Mathews (Dec 12, 2007)

chwiej said:


> Just a few bows I made out of 3/4 and 1 inch schedule 40 flattened pvc pipe.The pull is between 30 and 55 pounds at 30 inch draw(depends on length of the bow).Speed between 125 and 164 fps with 10 gpi arrow.Bows on pics are unfinished with no paint or duct tape on it.Pvc pipe is safe to use if you don't let the bow sit in direct sunlight unprotected for long time(UV damage)or use it in very cold weather.If the pipe is in good shape it will only bend not shutter,which is easily fixed by heating the pipe over the stove or using a heating gun.If the pipe is old and damaged by sun/uv or used in very cold weather it becomes brittle and can shutter.Protect the bow by uv resistant finish(spray paint or duct tape)and you good to go.Bows are pretty smooth with little hand shock and fun to shoot.Next project will be a 70 to 80 pounds longbow out of 1 1/4 inch schedule 40 pipe.


nice work


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## GPW (May 12, 2012)

I’ve built several PVC bows now and a couple for friends .... I Like em' ... None have broken ... all shoot just fine, no problems ... :thumbs_up Can’t beat the price , or the FUN !!!


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## IBOHunt3D (Jun 6, 2006)

Old thread, I know....but if you are into PVC bows or even thinking about trying one, check out the "backyardbowyer" on youtube. He literally wrote the book on PVC bows. Most of his designs use the flattened PVC technique seen above. From what I can see, it looks to make a half decent bow. Also, for the price of some PVC pipe and heat from your stove or heatgun, and about 30 mins of your time, seems to be a worthwhile endeavour. I am going to try one in the next week or so. If all goes well, I will post pics. And I may have found a great gift idea for the brother and sister in law.


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## drewsumrell (Dec 4, 2011)

I've made six or seven PVC bows in the past few months using the techniques learned from the Backyard Bowyer. They are pretty amazing bows for less than $5.00 of materials and a couple hours of labor. The Backyard Bowyer has even published several books. You can check him out on YouTube. The bows don't have the cast of a fine self bow or laminated bow, but for kids to learn how to shoot and for a light weight bow for form work, they're great.

A 1/2" ø 48" long PVC recurve bow will draw about 12# @ 24". A 3/4" ø 48" PVC bow will draw about 28# @ 28". Longer bows will have less draw weight using the same diameter of PVC. I made a 1" ø 60" bow that is a monster. It draws 50# @ 29" and shoots 55-60# spine wooden arrows really well. So you can make most any range of DW that you want. I've made several and given them away to neighborhood kids. They've been having fun with them. Even made my brother-in-law a left hand one.

I've only had one to break and I'm sure it was because I reheated to handle several times to reshape it and it got brittle........trying to get the arrow rest closer to center......just pushed the envelope too hard on that one.









When I shape the handle, I depress it on the widow side to help get the arrow a little closer to center. I make an arrow rest out of leather and then wrap the handle with a length of 3/4" wide leather. The strings are braided nylon chord that's rated @ 40#. The materials for a bow cost about $4.00 and it takes me about two hours to build one from start to finish. Pretty amazing for a piece of plastic.

Give it a try if you like making things. I've gotten several people started in archery for cheap!!!

Drew


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## Raider2000 (Oct 21, 2003)

I've made one out of 3/4" pipe about 4-5 years ago for my now 11 year old to shoot using an old article in Trad-Bowhunter.
Shoots pretty good for my first ever attempt but is nothing like what chwiej or drewsumrell have made, well my now 5 year old is shooting it & loves it even more than my old Jennings fiberglass bow.


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## GPW (May 12, 2012)

We’ve made several ... They are inexpensive , easy to make and shoot fine with the right arrows... performance depends on the design, care in fabrication, and diameter of the material ... usual bow principles apply ... Use freshly dated pipe , paint it for protection and decoration. Perfect for the "Fun per Buck Club “ ... of course the Snobs will howl and try to convince us how dangerous they are ... Sure it’s dangerous , it’s a weapon eh ???


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## TheLongbowShoot (Mar 23, 2012)

I made one and I shot it for ages. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_xlmUdNibQ&list=UUBGRt4TM2Lu3Rqt_hikiyYQ&index=18&feature=plcp


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## JohnClayborn (Jun 3, 2014)

*Some PVC Bows*

Hey all, I know that this is an old thread, but I just stumbled across it. I've been making PVC bows for a while. Ive made dozens and only had 1 "break", and even at that it just bent rather anticlimatically. Here's some of the bows that I've made. 

This one draws 40# @ 32""








This one draws 40# @ 28"








This one only draws 20# @ 30", but it was an experiment with shape. 








Here's a 40# @30" left-handed bow. 








And this beast draws 65# at 30"








My current record for draw weight on a PVC bow is 75 pounds, but I do know that Nick, (aka: the Backyard Bowyer) has gotten them up around 90.


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