Steel pipe bows

I do not use steel bows but I think they are quite common in Australia. I think there would be some advantages in the ability to fine-tune the fit which is the most important thing. Pipe is also accessible in most places which is an advantage. In North America we are blessed with abundant timber so wood has been widely used. In many parts of the world that is not the case and pipe is a great alternative.

Rod, i’ve spent some time before contemplating the matter.

steel bows are good, they keep shape, as you said, but they do have some other disadvantages. personally i’d prefer them as they outlast the wooden bows, and there is no fuss about them snapping, breaking in use or manufacture, and they can handle more abuse than wooden ones.

how to bend them?
that’s the biggest problem. they have to keep their round shape in the place of bending too. i guess the best way is as said in Oxen, a teamster’s guide: fill the bows with dry sand (if wet it will burst out of the pipes), seal, and heat the bows (forge fire, flame torch will do too) until the steel gets red. then bend on a wooden form, like the one for wooden bows, for shape. guess you can nail some thin iron sheet over the wood form if you fear it will catch fire. after bending put in water to cool down, than unseal and get the sand out. drill the holes, and – that’s that!

or you can visit a metallurgy workshop, or someone who works with these pipes, i think they said they have a machine that can bend pipes in a certain radius.

advantages –

– you can drill more holes in the bows without compromising the strength, so you get a more accurate fit without those wood blocks.

they last longer, like a good yoke, and you don’t have to worry about them snapping, etc.

“easier to bend”, but only so far as they’re unlikely to snap in the final step as wooden ones are known to do.

drawbacks –

weather – steel can get very cold in cold winter temperatures, which can cause discomfort and maybe frost burns. that’s my guess though, oxen were used with steel bows in cold weather. maybe i’m worrying for nothing.

in hot weather they can get hot, so hot your animals will be discomforted, or burned. but then again, oxen shouldn’t be used in that hot weather…

here’s a web site of a couple who used oxen with a steel pipe bows in Montana, i guess they know more about steel pipe bows in winter.
http://www.singingfalls.com/gallery_oxen/oxen_gallery.html

good luck!