I have made hundreds of bows, but nothing compares to Bamboo, I still have the first one I made, from hickory and bamboo backing.
And yes you can make recurves out of bamboo.

Yea, a bad shoulder can sure put a damper on things. Sorry to hear. Is it the tendon? Any rehab possible?

I hae 2 bad shoulder and i am only 16. I have had surgery one my left on already and i have to on my right one now becuase i tore it the other day. But i will never stop shooting. I think i might make one out of bamboo.