Bow #3
Partially successful. Made out of a 6' 1x4 maple board with a pyramid shape to the limbs and some scrap hickory glued on for the handle riser. I made the handle section slightly too long but it seems to be working well enough. The hickory adds a lot of necessary stiffening through the middle. Originally I made the limbs longer but I decided to cut them down to get a heavier draw weight. And I wanted a shorter bow in any case. Still needs a little more tillering but there is some twist happening in one limb that I'm not sure how to correct.
Managed to cut a contour to the grip for my hand as well as a narrow arrow shelf. Overall I learned plenty and this bow is fun to shoot despite its flaws. Pictures care of my 4 year old.
UPDATE: Actually got to shoot it a bit and a couple others shot it also. Turns out the bow isn't half bad as it is and the limb twist may yet be fixable. Yay!
Bloodwood – FAIL!
Not sure exactly why, but my bloodwood cudgel cracked while I was practicing with it today. I surmise that there was an inherent weakness in the wood grain and while I was whacking at a free swinging padded post I managed to hit against a corner of that post. I was mildly upset about this as the length and feel of this cudgel was just about right for me. However, not all is lost: I can cut off the jagged portion and still be left with a mighty fine stick.
Shark Tooth Weapons of Ancient Hawai’i
Part of the material of the book Warrior Arts and Weapons of Ancient Hawai'i is available on Google Books, including the chapter on the construction of shark tooth weapons. There was a recent episode of Deadliest Warrior that demonstrated a recreation of an Aztec war club made of wood embedded with obsidian that functions much the same way as these shark tooth weapons. It was amazing to watch it smash then cut like a chainsaw through whatever flesh it hit. These weapons may not be durable but when they work they are pretty fearsome.
Irish Stick Making 2 – Real Hardwoods
Picked up a cheap bandsaw and some scraps of various hardwoods to mess around with. I wanted to see how my drawknife and spokeshave handled much harder woods than red oak or white maple. Today I made a short stick out of purpleheart and a longer but thinner stick out of hickory. I started one in bloodwood today but did not complete it.
My intention was to try and make sticks with more of a knob on the end and I wanted a bandsaw to help thin out the blanks. However I don't quite have the saw tuned properly so I did more harm to my materials than not. Either that or the saw is just a POS or I just suck. Had to "redesign" all the sticks I worked on today. 
The bloodwood sadly had to be shortened about 4", which I'm somewhat upset about, but I am a beginner after all.
I rushed the hickory so the knob end is still rough. The shaft is too thin for any serious contact but it will be good for light contact practice. The purple heart stick is very short; kid sized really, but it moves pretty quickly and handles well. I could probably practice tomahawk with it easily.
As prototypes, I learned a lot with these. I like all three woods in fact. I have a bunch more purpleheart, some cocobolo and a bit of mahogany I can play with later.
Irish Stick Fighting – Doyle Style
So the weekend has come and gone. I kinda miss it even though I was bone weary after the first day. I learned some good stuff and I think this particular style will suit me well. I described the system to someone as having no fluff and no techniques of dubious merit.
Sifu Doyle is generous man and sharp as a tack. He's got a grand sense of humor but he's dead serious about his family art. This level 1 certification is just the tip of the iceberg.
His students were all exceptionally good people as well, and they were a big help to everyone over the weekend. They represented Sifu Glen very well.
It's been a long time since I've taken anyone on as a teacher but there is something about this system that really gets me going and I am very happy that Glen was generous enough to let me come out to play.
Had to wear my Catch Wrestling shirt on the second day tho!
Thanks to Jocelyn Outlaw of Solstice Photography for the pictures!