Minimum width flatbow

[northvtarcher]

Hey everybody. I'm pretty new at bow making and was hoping to get some insight.  If you wanted to make a D style flatbow around say 45#@26 around 68" how narrow could your limbs be?

[Josh]

Welcome to PA!!!  It really all depends on the kind of wood you are using.  I have a hickory backed ipe laminate bow I built last year that is 7/8ths of an inch wide at it's widest point, and i also have a red oak board bow I built that is around 2 inches wide at its widest point.  Maybe someone who makes more d bows will chime in with a better answer.    Good luck to ya, can't wait to see one of your bows! 

[northvtarcher]

What I have right now are some white ash staves about 72" long that I cut from a friends property about 2 years ago. They have been seasoning in my shed and I believe that they are plenty dry to turn into bows. At least I'm hopeful they will become bows. I've been doing alot of studying about bow design and from what I gather so far it's good to start with a D shaped bow.

[Del the cat]

I'd say you have a good amout of leeway Ash will make a longbow (at a pinch) which is pretty narrow, but I'd say go for your flatbow 3 fingers wide at the widest, narrowing down to as thin as you dare like .
Del

[Pappy]

I would say for the weight and at that length I would go at least 1 1/2 to 1 5/8 at the fads.
I usually take that to mid limb and the tapper to the tips. That should get the weight you want.
I have never really made many d bows,I usually make my belly flat. That could change things.
   Pappy

[J05H]

I have never really made many d bows,I usually make my belly flat. That could change things.

I'm not sure, but I think he means D-shaped as in bend in the handle, not a D cross-section. I'm no expert but I think Ash could handle 45lbs at 1 3/8" wide out to
mid-limb.

[Marc St Louis]

I have never really made many d bows,I usually make my belly flat. That could change things.

I'm not sure, but I think he means D-shaped as in bend in the handle, not a D cross-section. I'm no expert but I think Ash could handle 45lbs at 1 3/8" wide out to
mid-limb.

It might but you're better off to go 1 1/2: wide.  Ash can have a nasty tendency to chrysal

[northvtarcher]

By D bow I do mean bend in the handle. I was reading one of the sample articles n this site and it was about making sapling bows that bend in the handle. It looked like they were made fairly narrow. I'm not using a sapling but I was figuring even with a regular stave you could get away with this same design

[George Tsoukalas]

Yes you did say flatbow, northvarcher. I'd go 1.25 in to 1.5 in. wide. My site may help. Jawge
http://georgeandjoni.home.comcast.net/~georgeandjoni/

[northvtarcher]

My mistake. I was thinking any longbow made with a flat belly would be considered a flatbow.  If you make a bend in the handle with a rectangular cross section what kind of dimensions would you need? How much width compared to depth at the handle section? You still want to make the belly flat right?