bustle refurb

[sookout sh'nob]

I'm refurbishing an old fancy bustle... most of the dowels on it broke after 20 years and it seems a shame to throw the rest away. I'll be posting up picks as I go.

So far, I've removed all the old dowels and discovered that this thing is held together entirely by tape! The sticks were covered in a blue duct tape that was/is super gluey. I wound up pulling some skin off of my thumb tip in the process. All the backboards and arm bustle wheels were made with cardboard. Some hella good tape, that's for sure!

The bustle came from the old Heart of the Earth school here in Minneapolis - I'm still not sure if it's half of an adult set, a boys set, or if it was always just one bustle and some arm bustles.

At any rate, let the good times roll!

[sookout sh'nob]

Shots of the refurb post dowel rod removal. There are 40 spikes, if I counted correctly, and the colors are white, purple, blue, red, and yellow. It's turning into more of a remodel than a refurb - I'm tempted to go early 20th century fancy with them as one bustle + arm bustles (red and yellow arm bustles not pictured).

Single Spike

https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/112082246971108740867/albums/6088259700589853217/6088259980138387010?pid=6088259980138387010&oid=112082246971108740867

28 spikes in a Circle +12 on the side

https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/112082246971108740867/albums/6088259700589853217/6088259702641408098?pid=6088259702641408098&oid=112082246971108740867

The style I'm thinking of:
https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5025/5...0b8cf309_z.jpg

Check this guy out for fun:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wG729eMxHDY

I also have some brown turkey spikes, white hackle, red hackle, and blue hackle laying around the house - all I'd be missing is purple to add a few spikes to this. Not sure I want to go that route - but I might. At any rate, when I work out how I want to put it back together, I'll move on to the next step!

[sookout sh'nob]

This looks about right to me...

Here's the dry fit of how it'll all go together. Bridles, backboards, laces, and spacers not included. Includes the arm bustles - which may (or may not) get a center row of blue and white.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do for the trailer... I do have a large stockpile of blue wool, so that will probably be the base. I'm open to suggestions on what to jazz up the trailers with. Maybe I'll have a look and see what's lying around the house.

http://goo.gl/Y0q9ig

[sookout sh'nob]

Howah!

So I finally came back to this one - All the dowels but three are glued into place. The feathers that those sticks are for need to have the previous sticks burned out. I'll do that when I find a minute to start a fire. Once that's done, I'll glue 'em in and then I'll line everything up to make sure it's roughly the same length from bottom row of hackle to the end of the stick. After that... taping! I have no idea what sort of pattern I'd like, maybe I'll just punt and throw in a star.


or

https://goo.gl/8DmRLA

[Fancyboi87]

I was starting to wonder if you have given up lol. Looks great man!

[sookout sh'nob]

I was starting to wonder if you have given up lol. Looks great man!

I had to walk away from it for a while, things got super discouraging once I got it apart - it'll be a good looking bustle when it's done, but someone took a lot of sloppy shortcuts with duct tape (if they would have taken more care they would have looked just fine) and used a lot of spikes with super, super short quills.

The arm bustle are on cardboard, but I have some thin wood blanks laying around and some mirrors, so I might just go ahead and do a transplant there as well. I have an old drawer bottom hanging around for just such an occasion to cut a backboard out of. '

Hoping to post an update tonight!

[Fancyboi87]

Can't wait to see it! I've run into similar situations with a couple I've redone, but seems likenyiu had more issues there.

[sookout sh'nob]

back at it!

I managed to save all the little leather bits when I tore this bad mamma jamma down - I dug them out (of the misc. bin that got all kinds of stuff from my room thrown into it when I moved last Nov ) last night and am ready for phase... wait, wait phase is this?

https://goo.gl/photos/XAEb7K9VjJZFbdwj9

They're so sticky from that 80's duct tape that when I went to take them out, they tore the plastic bag I was keeping them in! So maybe I don't need to track down a glue gun today... we'll see.

I still have to decide on:
1. Backboard shape
2. Tape pattern, if any (there's about 4 inches of stick there)

There's a small dance here May 1st, I hope to have them together by then. Also, I counted the spikes and one broke and another two might have gotten lost in the move! I have a set of spikes laying around from an order that never paid - so maybe I'll snatch one of those and get even stevens with this thing!

[Fancyboi87]

Hahaha, hurray for phase qx34! Dang sticky retro tape destroying plastic like that, it should be flogged lol just kidding.

That sucks about the missing spikes, hopefully the unpaid order comes in handy for ya bud. Keep up the updates!

[sookout sh'nob]

Hahaha, hurray for phase qx34! Dang sticky retro tape destroying plastic like that, it should be flogged lol just kidding.

That sucks about the missing spikes, hopefully the unpaid order comes in handy for ya bud. Keep up the updates!

Miigwech for the encouragement! All but the spikes (two of them) that need repair are tabbed and taped. I went with no tape pattern, mostly because the sticks are pretty short. You can see where the new tape starts and the old tape ends in the photo.

I'm still not able to get the image linking to work, so I'll keep posting links :D Here we have a big ole pile of progress! New sticks, reglued tabs, new tape, and a spike or two's worth of hackle repair.

https://goo.gl/photos/6xWtb29UuLXUcJUJA

Feathers sorted and matched into symmetrical sets. Longer sets on bottom, shorter as they approach the top

https://goo.gl/photos/2fPui3qWDz1RtPiS8

Work continues... I have three in tact spikes without partners and hackle enough to make three partners for them!

https://goo.gl/photos/g1Pvy3pATChpdzuy7

Strpping down a busted feather

https://goo.gl/photos/cLxtsR3mz5oGvoi78

The new turkey spikes, naked

https://goo.gl/photos/fdgXUU7dV6E2qhPF9

And the three rebuilt spikes:

https://goo.gl/photos/AtGjJruRZEggYvfS9

The end result will be 3 more spikes to each side and a better looking bustle. I'll have to do a recount, but I think I must have lost a spike or two when we moved last Nov.

I didn't get them ready for the last dance, but they will be ready for the next one (altho my new mocs might not be :D)

[sookout sh'nob]

Here's the update! I've got two configurations to choose from, here are the photos.

Here it is as a single

https://goo.gl/photos/HScdERy3eRH6uVqp9

And here it is as a double

https://goo.gl/photos/XPrWRkwegzeyu1Mx9

I've still got four brown naked spikes laying around and I have red, white, and blue hackles hanging out in the basement... I plunked down the $10 + $4 shipping for a quarter oz of purple and a quarter oz of yellow to get a little more oomf out the double config- so that''ll be a lower bustle with a total of 22 feathers and upper with a total of 20. About half the count you usually see, but I'm working with what I have here.

I'm also thinking I should ad a row of white on the inside of the arm bustles.

What say ye, powwows.com, single or double bustle?

[Fancyboi87]

That single is pretty sweet, can't get the double to show though. Looks awesome brotha!

*finally got the double to work. Either is slick, like the smaller look with the double, reminds me of the set of my uncle's I used in my early teens and still whip out from time to time size wise.

In the process of building a northern traditional rig, and my moms sewing machine is being..."bipolar" so i started plucking all these wings i got in a few weeks ago...for multiple benefits on my behalf, A) get that much closer to start extensions for bustle, and other feathery goodness...and B) getting the wife off my case for having 10 goose wings in the freezer and "giving her "her" table back.HAHAHA

She got a cricut for anniversary/birthday little does she know I have her right where i want her, it's got a fabric setting. HELLOOOO fast applique cut outs =D

[wyo_rose]

Good job! They look great, whichever config you go with.

And a CRICUT!! I'm jealous!

[Fancyboi87]

Yes, it's the explore air, she does a lot with it, has already paid for itself and then some. And with the pen attachment, drawing out new to me designs that i cannot free hand is AWESOME

[sookout sh'nob]

I figured I only need a quarter ounce of two colors to add two more spikes to each bustle so.... I'm adding tow spikes to each bustle and going double! Odds are good I'll find a way to make ot modular, so it can be worn as either a single or a double bussle set.


Thanks for the input - it's been fun!