Doan never intended to build equipment to sell
Published in the November 27, 2013 issue of Morgan Hill Life
By Robert Airoldi
Don Doan shoots one of his custom-made bows.
Don Doan was born to work with wood.
He began tinkering when he was about 6, and made his first bow as a teenager. Despite a few forks in the road that led to other jobs, he rekindled his love for woodworking in the mid-1970s.
And now, while many look forward to traveling, fishing, or just sitting on the porch in retirement, Doan is perfecting another woodworking skill-set. Actually, the most difficult form of woodworking he has ever done: the design and crafting of traditional archery equipment.
Locally, Doan is best defined by his business, Wood Creations. For more than 35 years, he designed and built production and custom furniture in San Martin, then Morgan Hill. During those years he placed his work in hundreds of homes throughout the Bay Area and beyond. It was a rewarding career. Always drawn to the look, feel and possibilities of wood, Doan gave himself to the craft after years of work in other venues such retailing, manufacturing, writing, distribution and management.
“My education is in philosophy and history, but woodworking is what I was born to do,” said Doan, who has two children and four grandchildren. “For me, the marriage of woodworking and archery came as naturally as breathing. The offspring of that passion is the archery equipment that I offer – traditional, handcrafted, honest.”
Several years ago, while making furniture, Doan turned to another childhood love: archery. His love of the sport has been life-long — and he still has his first “real” bow, a Bear “Alaskan.” He bought it when he was 16. Soon after, Doan became obsessed with figuring out how to make traditional archery equipment. He had made his own arrows as a teen. But laminated, wood and fiberglass bows were something else.
Some of Doan’s hand-crafted bows in a case he also designed and built.
“I didn’t think I’d build them to sell,” he said. “I wanted them for myself, my children and grandchildren.” He searched the Internet and learned there was a select group who make them well enough to sell, and that became a challenge. “If I got good, I could sell them,” he told himself.
So he began the process of learning how to expertly make the equipment. It took him about 20 bows to get that first one right, he said, trying to perform each of the estimated 100 or so steps exactly right.
“Hands down, this is the most difficult form of woodworking,” he said. “There are so many nuances to building a bow.” If the wood is not laminated correctly, it could snap due to the pressure.
Fast-forward a couple of years. Doan is standing in his shop with his 11-year-old grandson, Ian. They are looking at a stack of bows in a corner. Doan asks Ian, “What do you see?”
Ian responds, “A bunch of broken bows.”
“No,” Don replies, “what you see is an education.”
The truth is that making a traditional bow is really difficult. And failure is certain. Lots of it. But, Doan is nothing if not persistent.
His approach to the craft is even more complicated because he mills almost all of the component parts of a bow in his shop. Most bowyers (the name for one who makes bows) buy “kits” from supply houses. These kits include wood and glass laminations, the bow’s riser (handle), epoxy and wood overlays. The bowyer “assembles” the bow. That’s not to say it’s easy, but it’s far less complicated than what Doan puts into his product. His fully-equipped woodshop allows him to control the bow-making process from beginning to end. It also means he can quickly implement his design ideas without having to wait for a kit.
He manufactures his own parts for bows and makes arrows out of 2-by-4 boards. He has invented several woodworking tools to complete the process. He personally tests every bow and arrow before the finishing process is applied. In addition to the bows and arrows, Doan also builds the racks to hold them and the boxes in which he ships them anywhere in the world.
It was a bit daunting, but after building some pretty nice bows for himself and his grandkids, Doan decided to try to sell a few. At the very least, it would offset some of the cost of his retirement “hobby.” So, Doan built a website to show off his work. He was pleasantly surprised to find that his product sold.
Along with his wife Trudy, he moved to Morgan Hill in 1978 with their two children Jeff and Amy. Doan and Trudy had decided to leave the Boston area, where he was the president of a health care company. They sold their home and most of their possessions, and used the cash to set up a small furniture-making business in San Martin. They established their home in Morgan Hill, where they were involved with a number of community-related activities and where their children attended school. Over the years, Doan has built just about anything that can be made from wood. He crafted model airplanes when he was 6, made bows and arrows as a teen and after purchasing their first home restored every room in the home. Quantifying that passion is difficult.
“In my case, I found out by the time I was 6 years old that I loved making things,” he said.
It’s that passion that has Doan embarking on what he calls his “last hurrah.”
“I’ll be 70 in January,” Doan said. “The last thing I need is to create a stressful business out of a perfectly good hobby.” He might not have much choice. Archery is experiencing resurgence. And very few have the talent, experience, and facilities to do what Doan does.
When asked to explain his life-long passion for working wood, Doan responded “I don’t know how to quantify that with words. It’s like trying to explain love. Deep down, there are reasons, but a lot of it is emotional, so I just let it be.”
Doan loves sharing his passion for wood and archery. The best way to contact him is through his website: www.doanarchery.com.
