Cherry Question?

[mcginnis6010]

I was wondering if cherry should have backing or should it be ok without? Im gonna do an ELB around 72" @ 55lbs.

[DarkSoul]

Cherry certainly needs a backing, from what I've read. It is also a pretty poor candidate for a deep bellied ELB. Best to go for a flatbow, or if you insist on an ELB, to leave the belly flat and a crowned back.
I personally think a maple or ash backing would be best, but rawhide should also do fine.

[dwardo]

It depends which cherry as they all seem to be very different.
Prunus avium is the one i use a lot and is great for bows. Still yet to try an elb as its hard to find a long enough bit without lateral knots. Does make a fast short bow around 60 with some high stress designs.

[mcginnis6010]

i was was wanting to try a ELB with cherry bc i havent seen one done on PA and wanted to see if it was possible to do so. I wave several pieces that would be make excellent short bows but i also have some staves from a 7ft. log i cut from a standing dead wild cherry tree a year ago. its the straightest piece of cherry i have ever seen and the stave have no knots in them at all. So if i do mess this oneup then it would be a great learning experience and i have other great stave from the same log to do some flatbows from.

[lostarrow]

Just finished tillering a cherry Board bow with a rawhide backing. pretty springy stuff with the backing .It's light ,so it takes a little more wood to get your draw weight. Twilightandmist just posted a real nice stave cherry shorty self bow.  I haven't tried a rounded belly but I would think it would be too much stress for black cherry.My2cents.

[twilightandmist]

flatbows are a great design for cherry. that being said, my favorite ELB is an unbacked cherry one. it can certainly handle the design, but must be made long, and not unreasonably narrow. my ElB is 69 inches long, and an inch and a quarter wide at the handle. the string falls dead center. it has 1 and 3/4 inches of set, and is still a sweet and very very powerful shooter. the stave was from the same log as the 72# shorty i recently posted. so i can tell you, it can make an absolutely deadly ELB, but must be tillered with great care.

[lostarrow]

But Connor, did you use the typical D shaped cross section for your ELB, (I'm assuming yes ) and how many shots have you fired through her.Give the man some pics.

[mcginnis6010]

yes pictures of any cherry bows that anyone has done would be appreciated.

[Hrothgar]

Here are a few pics of an old longbow. Its 68" ttt, 45# @ 28", cherry backed with hickory. The limbs are 1 1/4" at the fades, and flat limbed. This bow has been really smooth and good for target shooting; however, after a couple hundred arrows it has taken some set and has lost quite a bit of its "zing".
 I would definitely back a cherry bow, hickory works well but keep it thin.

[blackhawk]

There are some amazing unbacked cherry anomalies out there...druid made a long unbacked 70lb cherry elb(a euro species)....I'm sure if your only drawing 24 or so a 72" long unbacked bend thru the handle cherry will work almost every time.

[dwardo]

These are all silk backed but more for aesthetics and insurance as some were not for me.

http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,32206.0.html

http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,30536.msg404240.html#msg404240

One at the bottom of this post.
http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/index.php/topic,25689.30.html

Cant seem to find the thread for this one.






So yeah a big fan of cherry Have two roughed out and a molly type in the way.