Shortbow builders

[ken75]

i would like to do a challenge ...not between bowyers but a challenge for our wood. during a recent conversation about a 49 inch hickory paddle bow i was building a friendly short MI bowyer asked what type of handle i had and what draw length i was trying to reach i replied "10 inch rigid handle and 28 inches of course". he let me know right quick the last remaining brain cell i had must have fell out !
     well what i would like to do is create a thread where we can show off our short bows and learn more about what each wood species can handle and what designs will lend itself better to a functioning full draw short bow. now i know the disadvantages of short bows ,however there is no better way to test a wood type or design than whacking off the ends. it seems in my mind the more we know the limits of our material the better we can design not only for efficiency but for application .
    now im not one for rules but the only way to do this and learn is to build them without sinew , horn or any backing material that would lend itself to holding the bow in one piece. also a minimum of 27 inch draw length .
anybody thats built one or wants to build one show it on here so we can keep this information in one spot

ill try and get one up today if i can

[ken75]

ill start off with one i built about a month ago and never finished or showed. hickory board bow 53 inches on the string grooves 6 inch handle and fades and 6 inch stiff tips narrowed. 1 3/4 at the fades narrowing to 7/8ths 6 inches before the tips 45lbs at 28inches. 1 1/4 inches or set

[billy bowmaker]

i like building shortbows, too.  but if that is a 28" draw in your photo, then you must be 8 feet tall!

[PEARL DRUMS]

Ken how do keep the severe string anlge at bay? It seems like the string would want to come right off a 48" bow pulled 28" or so.

[ken75]

pearls best way to help string angle is by making tips stiff  and or recurving slightly

billy would you like me to pull it with a tape measure as well ?

[RyanY]

I've made three really short bows from hickory. It can probably stand up to any kind of design but performance wise there are a few things to consider. I think a key to making shorter bows is making the limbs wider and not overdrawing it. Short bows can be very high poundage but overdrawing will either break the bow or cause a mass amount of set leading to poor performance. Here are three short bows I've made of hickory.
Simple D bow 30#@22" 44" ntn. If this one were a bit wider it could have taken less set. About 2" of set. 


D/R 60#@23" 48" ntn. This one is extremely powerful even with the odd tiller.


Recurve 50#@32" 48" ntn. This one took a lot of set as opposed to breaking. Poor performance.

[ken75]

i remember your bows ryan really like them , thats the stuff im talking about . i realize set and performance are going to be issues but the point here is to push the wood to determine what species can withstand what stress . and what design lends itself to better performance. these things dont have to be chronoed , you know when you turn the string loose wether its a dog or not.

thanks for sharing these Ryan

[JackCrafty]

Cool idea for a thread.  I'll be watching this one...

[Aries]

ryoon your short  hickory "composite style bow"  is SO sick! i have a shorty molly osage i will post here in a bit after I get home.  Ty

[half eye]

Here's one from the short Michigan dude.....white ash, self bow, slight double curve here's the spec's made as an experiment, from a 3/8 ash quartersawn board (more wood would have allowed for more draw weight) anyways here's the bow, the full draw is 27" the arrow is 28 1/2" to the tip of the field point.

46" ntn
44# @ 27"
1-1/2 wide with straight tapers to 3/4" tips
finish is the pitch and grease

[ken75]

right on Rich ! thats a hell of a high mark for Ash.
i wanna add here that ive used and shot your mich. ash bows and one of the great things is the high growth ring count from the short growing season. i think it performs better than ash from other parts of the country.

great job man thanks for sharing this one !!

[gstoneberg]

Dang you Ken...I need to do some tiller repair on my trade bow and now I have an overpowering urge to go make a short bow.

George

[ken75]

well George as we say down here..... skin it back at let the knats eat at it !!!!   

[straightarrow]

Here is a short osage i did last winter. Is 49 1/2" groove to groove. Its a 1 1/4" wide with a 1/2 tips. It shoots very fast but has a boat load of hand shock. Took about 1 1/2 of set.

Jon

[John K]

Good thread Ken !

Osage 52" 55#@26"  Doesn't take much Osage to make a hunting weight bow.







FYI i'm 6'4'' for those that care