Bow Backing question
#1
Thread Starter
Dominant Buck
Joined: Feb 2003
Posts: 26,274
Likes: 0
From: land of the Lilliputians, In the state of insanity
Ive just recently started making my first bow. Ive got the stave cut out and the bow tillered. It is 72 inches and pulls about 60lbs. I am not going to leave it as a selfbow, I want to back it to make it more durable, pluse add some spring to it. The bow is white oak, im thinking of backing it with either hickory or bambo. I believe bambo would be the best. What do you with more expericence think?
#2
Giant Nontypical
Joined: Feb 2003
Posts: 9,175
Likes: 0
Bambo??

I might use bamboo instead. [8D]
I really don't know which would be best. I've never made a bow from white oak. The red oak bow I backed with hickory is still shootable and I made it very short - 66" for a 31" draw. It was my first oak bow and I thought the hickory back would let me get away with it. The bow has a lot of string follow - don't hardly have tobend it at all tostring it - but it's still together.
I'm sure bamboo will be just as tough and a bit lighter. So it might yield a tiny bit more arrow speed.
Frankly, I'd choose whichever one looks best to you.

I might use bamboo instead. [8D]
I really don't know which would be best. I've never made a bow from white oak. The red oak bow I backed with hickory is still shootable and I made it very short - 66" for a 31" draw. It was my first oak bow and I thought the hickory back would let me get away with it. The bow has a lot of string follow - don't hardly have tobend it at all tostring it - but it's still together.
I'm sure bamboo will be just as tough and a bit lighter. So it might yield a tiny bit more arrow speed.
Frankly, I'd choose whichever one looks best to you.




