Decided that making a pair of traditional snowshoes might be a good carpentry project and was wondering if anybody knows where I can find some plans to make a pair, or has advice for when I start making them. I have some 7ft cured ash logs that I was planning on using for the frames.

I figure that I'm not the only one to get this itch to try a build some. Thought that is would be fun, always wanted a pair of traditional but never got some.

Also, does anyone know where a good place to get rawhide lacing, looked a little online but does not seem to be a lot of options?

thanks

Try posting this in the Wilderness trapping and living thread

Gil Gilpatrick has a book out on making wooden snowshoes and snowshoe furniture. He has several books out. I have one on making a strip canoe. I have read his book about snow shoes, very neat! Shows how to make the forms and how to steam the frames. Shows the different webbing for the different areas, and different ways to fasten them to your feet. He is (was?) a teacher that taught these things in wood working classes.
Dennis

There are people here that make them.They use a steamer to make the wood bendable and have a jig to form them when they come out of the steamer.
Moosehide is used to make the babiche for filling them.The dehaired moosehide is cut in a continuous long strip,and is stretched really tight between the walls of a shed,back and forth across the shed and it is let dry like that to take any stretch out of it.It is wetted just enough to be soft when its time for filling the frames.

Check out the Alaska Trappers Association website they have a great collection of how to books and I'm certain one will have information on snowshoes.
Allan