Branch Atlatl

Today I roughed out a new atlatl made from a branch. I'm not making the same mistake I made last time by making it too short. If anything, it's a bit too long. I'm using green wood this time. I'm not sure what kind because it is a branch I found on a walk one day. I thought it might come in useful someday so I propped it up against my house. I'm making it on the bow bench, which I didn't have last time I tried to make one. I'm not using any power tools. I'm using a drawknife, a Shinto rasp, and a scraper.

But it is pretty hot today, so I put it away until tomorrow. I'll work on it at an archery event we are vending at tomorrow. We still have to load half the truck, and then get an early start in the morning. But I'm getting a headache from the heat, so now I'm sitting inside sipping iced tea.

New Bowyers Gathering Paleoplanet OC Branch

Greetings all. I'm announcing a new gathering.

I was going to call it the OC Chapter, but 'branch' seemed like an appropriate moniker if we are going to be making bows out of branches. This idea has been kicking around in my head for nearly a year, but it finally seemed like the time to launch it. For those of you who can't make it to Pasadena or who want to work on your bows in a group more than once a month, we are going to start a gathering at Mile Square Park in Fountain Valley (Orange County) CA. It will be the first Sunday of each month, barring schedule conflicts, starting on August 1, 2010.

I'm hoping to have it half way between the street and the archery range. Those who want to shoot arrows can take the short hike to the range, and those with heavy benches, tools and rock to haul will be sprawled out under the shade trees outside of the range (since the range itself has almost no shade). Mile Square Park is a regional park so if you park inside it's going to cost you. Happily though, there is usually street parking, which is free. I've already got 6 or 7 people that said they'd come out and join us.

This group isn't to replace the Pasadena one in any way, but to spread the joy of primitive skills and make it available to more people.

I'm also hoping Marianne will merge her Stitch and Bitch group with us as well, since half the group seems to be going to the Paleoplanet gatherings already and she lives in Fountain Valley. That park also has 2 small lakes, and other things for families to do. The parking is better earlier in the day, so if you need to be close, come early. The range is free but every once in a while it's reserved for a private event by the SCA or boyscouts, so be flexible. It's not like all of us don't have many other things to do, right?

More details to follow as August approaches.