Perches

[Peregrynne]

Anyone out there have any ideas on how to make a reasonable bow perch without knowing how to weld?

Just happens to be one of the few things I can't do with my hands.

[KenHawker1970]

Get your self a nice length of willow or a similar bendable wood. sharpen each end and run the spike over a flame until black. Get a nice piece of hard wood and drill the two holes as shown insert each end of the willow into the hard wood and secure it with a self tapper.
You can use the same pattern with metal.

[Shaun Byrne]

Or, a short length of railway sleeper and a piece of 25mm alcathene water pipe bent into a bow. Drill the sleeper to accept the 2 ends of the pipe and whip a cord section for the bird to perch on. Easy, indoor or out!!

[KenHawker1970]

sorry I cant up load the picture. :?

[Peregrynne]

Ok just trying to clarify terms here..."railway sleeper"...not a term used here in the states

Alcathene I would have to say is the same as pvc pipes here (plastic) yes?

[Gaz]

what the tracks lay on dude,wood beams :mrgreen:

[Shaun Byrne]

Cheers for the translation Gaz! lol

[Peregrynne]

ok now I feel like a total idiot...lol...should have been able to see that myself...

I guess the question is, would a good 4x6 or 4x8 work as well or is it the weight of the sleeper that you need?

[Shaun Byrne]

yes Peregrynne, its the weight that helps. These bow perches dont look too pretty but in an emergency they come in handy. A sleeper is about 12 x 5 and hardwood. We could buy them here very cheaply at one time, that was until the mad cow outbreak, now they are in short supply and expensive.

[Wightwings]

pmsl.....(altho i shouldnt ) because i know what question is coming next..

[Shaun Byrne]

pmsl! oh yes, I just took it for granted everyone would know!! lmao!!

[Hawkmaster]

Some more advice here to a VERY BIG MISTAKE, most people make when constructing a bowperch.

The bow only needs to be about 3 inches higher than the lenghth of the hawks tail, as the whole purpose is to keep it off the ground from breaking. This also makes it easy for the ring to slide over.

[Peregrynne]

Ok so don't make it look like the St. Louis arch then....lmao

Seriously though...thanks for all the advice

Some of the perches out there can be bloody expensive and if I can make one that is even just a portable one instead of having to buy two it makes a big diff.

Any other ideas or tried success stories out there?

[Jack Merlin]

I have always made my own bow perches from a hazel staff cut out of the hedge or wood.

My latest is for a big female goshawk and I cut the staff when I was down south (near Perth, Scotland). It is about 2 inches in diameter.

I steamed this for several hours. The ideal would have been to put the staff into a steel tube, then direct steam from a can of boiling water into the pipe. But I didn't have a pipe so I rolled a length of old corrugated iron, tied it with wire so it stayed that way, and put the "U" shape channel over the dogs' boiler! A few old bags kept the steam in.

Even so, it was very difficult to bend into a bow until I had a brain wave and attached one of those ratchet straps onto each end. When I had a nice bend, I put on a four inch diameter ring made of 1/4 inch stainless rod, then a "bow string" of 2mm galvanized fencing wire, stapled in place.

I had to dig the two ends of the bow into the ground because as Hawkmaster says, you need a shallow bend so the ring can slide easily from one end to the other. The points go into the ground at a sharp angle. Then I knocked in a pin (15" long) to hold the "string" down so securing the perch to the ground.

Total cost nothing at all! (That's the way I like it!<g>).

Jack

[Gaz]

Total cost nothing at all! (That's the way I like it!<g>).
Short arms...deep pockets :mrgreen:

[Shaun Byrne]

Total cost nothing at all! (That's the way I like it!<g>).
Short arms...deep pockets :mrgreen:


AND they are empty!! :D

[OhMyGod]

yeah yeah like hawkmaster said.

I went to a falconry centre not so long ago where they had 3 eyas spars sitting on 3 new perches. There was no way these tiny birds could pull 100g rings over st.louis arch. I wonder how they flew with only three tail feathers on each side. In straight lines I expect, that'll be ok just tell the audience they are moulting they'll never know.

yeah so 30 degrees or so and a really light BIG ring say 10 cm I reckon, and make sure the light ring goes over the foot padding as well. If you are going to use astro you will need heat shrink or little leather bits on each end to make it safe.

Oh I made some with thin spikes once that were c*** and I had to weld thicker spikes on in the end as my hawk was pulling it over somtimes when it was wet. I went from say 6mm steel to 12mm aluminium with a long thin point so it would go in when dry

[Spudy]

question could i use plasitc rings they are very stong and very light at the same time i used to make marquees and we used them as hitchs and when you think one part of a marquee waighs in at about 16 stone with only four of these as moores thay can take the waight

[Jack Merlin]

There was a gaenicologist (can't spell) who was also a falconer. He had access to some sort of nylon rings that are used in some aspect of intimate female surgery and reckoned they woulod be great for bow perch rings. One broke and the hawk went off with the leash. Personally, I wouldn't risk it. Some plastics deteriorate when subjected to repeated wetting, drying, hot, cold, plus ultraviolet light. I'd go for stainless steel rings, you can get them at yachting centres (for money! Yuck!).

Don't laugh, but I make my rings from 1/4 inch stainless rod (scrap from a local engineering shop!<g>), bent to shape, then welded. Cost -- nothing!<vbg>

[Spudy]

cheers j m these rings i can get have a ten year integreal strenth garentee with them as thats the genral life span of a new marquee(as in thats what the british standerds required from us) so detiriation in the wether isent realy a factor as they are designed to hold circus tents up in all wethers for a minimum of ten years....
but i would rather do it safely for the bird rather than cheeply...thanks
forgot to mention they have normally 1 cubic ton of waight on one side the tent attached by strap on the other...??

[Gaz]

some sort of nylon rings that are used in some aspect of intimate female surgery and reckoned they woulod be great for bow perch rings. O
Do you realise how dodgy this is :?: ..you trying to get me banned.. :?: :twisted: ...i must leave this thread alone..i must..i must..i... :shock: :mrgreen:

[Falconry Equipment International]

[quote="Jack Merlin"]There was a gaenicologist (can't spell) who was also a falconer. He had access to some sort of nylon rings that are used in some aspect of intimate female surgery and reckoned they woulod be great for bow perch rings. One broke and the hawk went off with the leash. Personally, I wouldn't risk it. Some plastics deteriorate when subjected to repeated wetting, drying, hot, cold, plus ultraviolet light.
money! Yuck!). quote

Jack
I think they may be called ring pessaries( even worse than you at spelling
rgards
J

[Spudy]

i get the highest score outta all of us for bad spelling and grammer lol
so you sj and jack are sound lol

[Jack Merlin]

How the heck am I meant to know about such things, let alone spell 'em! I'm a bachelor!!

Anyway, the yachting centre has lovely stainless steel ones. (Rings, that is; not gynacologists).

What do you guys reckon on ring perches? The only problem I can think of is when the hawk gets the leash caught over the top of the ring. The great thing about the traditional bow perch is that a tangle is almost impossible.

[Rob Redtail]

Jeez J M you must squeak when you walk , i know quite a few jocks but you make them all seem like big spenders, rlmao.... shall i send you a can of 3 in 1 ??? lol....R'gards Rob.

[Gaz]

What do you guys reckon on ring perches? The only problem I can think of is when the hawk gets the leash caught over the top of the ring. The great thing about the traditional bow perch is that a tangle is almost impossible.
J.m. dude,check out Equipment-michalleaneous-poles. :mrgreen:

[Rob Redtail]

Oh by the way i make stainless steel bow perches as i am a fabricator/welder and specialise in stainless steel and aluminium the only thing i don't do is put the astro turf on or whatever thats up to the customer they work out at about £10 each but before you start pm ing me i have about a months waiting list at the moment as i have to stay on at work at night to do them and i don't always feel like stopping over after a days work i also make the spikes for falconry blocks to any design you like....to put your own block on...R'gards Rob.

[Spudy]

rob any chance you can give me the specs to work off as im going to weld up some perches myself..not useing stainless thou i hate welding the stuff just going to use mild or galv(in a vetilated area of corse lol)

but yeh any specs you can give would be a big help lenth hight dieameter of the tube you use thickness of the plate for the feet and all other size's you think i may need (not trying to rob your work or owt so dont p.m me either for them lol) but i want to make a portable one i can bring in and sit in the room if needed or place in the garden also the angle of the curve you use mate cheers spud

[OutFlying]

I was told that some people use the 4" water pipe, cut 6mm thick off the end of the pipe to make a nice light weight ring for either a ring perch or bow perch.

Outflying.

[Rob Redtail]

No NO NO ...O F water pipe goes brittle use it at your own risk....right Spudy ...i use 10mm diameter s/steel bar rolled to 500mm diameter...so what ever you use that diameter with astro turf or whatever you put on it means your bird sits at least 10 inches off the ground a brace welded across the middle with 10 inch spikes to go into the ground or welded onto a nice thick piece of steel plate or 2 pieces of 40 mm diameter solid bar at 90 degrees as a base ...i can't figure out how to post pictures on here it keeps telling me the file is to big or i would show you what i mean... if you give me your email addy i'll send a couple of pics to you . R'gards Rob.

[Falconry Equipment International]

Oh by the way i make stainless steel bow perches as i am a fabricator/welder and specialise in stainless steel and aluminium the only thing i don't do is put the astro turf on or whatever thats up to the customer they work out at about £10 each but before you start pm ing me i have about a months waiting list at the moment as i have to stay on at work at night to do them and i don't always feel like stopping over after a days work i also make the spikes for falconry blocks to any design you like....to put your own block on...R'gards Rob.
You dont supply griff by any chance as he is in your neck of the woods!!!
J :roll:

[OutFlying]

what the thick blue stuff, the thicker version of what loads of people use for a bow perch.
Never realised this stuff went brittle, it must explained why they dig the roads up you often.

[Rob Redtail]

O F it's meant to be buried and the sunshine makes it go brittle in time...And no i don't supply Griff i've never made the guys aquaintence i may meet him one day as he says he might make an appearance at the falconry club i attend.....R'gards Rob.

[OutFlying]

Roughly what time scale are we talking ?

thanks Outflying

[Rob Redtail]

Not sure O F but sods law is it'll catch you out well thats the way my luck seems to run anyway i would have thought it would last quite a few months but not years. R'gards Rob.

[Jack Merlin]

There are plenty of uses for plastic on the farm. Those blue plastic sheets used by builders as a damp proof membrane in concrete floors is meant to last decades. Different thing when you use it to cover bales or something. Just the movement caused by the wind will crack it. I would imagine a bating hawk would have a similar effect on a solid ring made of the stuff. Use s/steel and be sure! How far would you trust a plastic swivel?

[Jack Merlin]

Oh by the way i make stainless steel bow perches as i am a fabricator/welder and specialise in stainless steel and aluminium the only thing i don't do is put the astro turf on or whatever thats up to the customer they work out at about £10 each

Hey, I've had my abacus out and even I could afford that. I reckon that's a bargain. Problem is, the carriers want a small ransom to ship across the English-Scottish border. They say it's because the packages have to be manhandled over Hadrian's Wall.

[Spudy]

lmao at j.m
but thanks rob i will p.m my email to you later for those pics mate cheers,
like i said thou i hate working with stainless so mine will be mild or galv(not so sure about galv with the bird but anyone here had problems with it let me know).....spud

[Spudy]

hi rob got the pics cheers some nice workmanship there mate i'm going to nick!!! two of your ideas and make one for myself mate cheers going to use the 90/deg legs but with the direct arch mate...spud
will stick a pic on when done and painted...any paints i shouldent use guys
spud

[Rob Redtail]

No problem spudy glad i could help mate , i'm sure you can buy non toxic paints have a look....Hi Jack i think we should build that wall a lot higher there's to many of you lot coming down here , let me ask the boss how much the courier's would charge us to send up to your neck of the woods it might surprise you ...R'gards Rob.

[Jack Merlin]

The carriers seem to have got together and charge extra for shipping north of Perth. There seems to be a total ban on shipping anything that is bare metal. I was quoted a stupid price for a roll of weld mesh -- then I found a local supplier who sends a lorry south to beat this embargo and I bought from him. You'd think we all lived out on some island somewhere -- or possibly on top of a mountain. Makes me hopping mad!