First Osage stave, looking for design help.

[ionicmuffin]

oh trust me. im in no hurry to get anywhere, i have all winter and even all spring to work on it, If i need to i can take longer, just want to be done by next summer so i can practice a ton before hunting season. Also, for upwards of 30 inch draw should i cut it short or keep it the same length? Doesn't matter to me, just want to know what i should do based on what i want out of it.

[Bryce]

Leave it long.

[ionicmuffin]

ok. Will a lot of the wood still retain its brown color when im done? i really hope so! looks amazing even as a stave!

[Bryce]

Brown? It should be yella.

[Will H]

You will lose all that brown color as you work into the new wood. Osage will turn that lovely dark over time but yours will likely be very "yellow" when you get done. And like I said, leave it long and be sure to draw a line that accurately follows the longitudal grain the entire length of the bow. This can be somewhat of a challenge. I usually get out in the sunlight and go real slow so I know I have followed it correctly. After that it dosent matter if you make little circles or draw straight lines just connect the dots with the proper dimensions and you're on your way

[crooketarrow]

  With such a long draw I would'nt make it under 64" 1 1/2 at the fades. You really don't have to sinew it but the sinew will make it faster with any design.

[Knapper]

JW nailed it! I've made two bows like this one and a quarter out to mid limb and taper to tip. Bendy handle. One was for the trade and one for myself. One was 60#at26"&56 ntn and mine was70#at26" and 60" ntn. Both were sinew backed just because! Both shot fast and straight. Good luck and hope to see some pics sone what ever you decide