Long story short, this is the first bow I haven't broken so far. Two were tried with East Texas cedar and the third was a red oak board from a box store.
This is a Crepe Myrtle stave that I trimmed from my yard and have been drying in my barn for a couple of months.
I had split the branch in two but this had so much twist I only got one usable half. This branch had a natural bow at one end (on the left in the pictures). So far I have scraped and floor tillered. I have used heat to bend the right limb to flip the tip similar to the left. I have used some heat on the lright to begin matching the curve in the left limb-mid section. This picture shows pre-long string status.
![](http://i1288.photobucket.com/albums/b487/Cruiserdm/Mobile%20Uploads/A29DE6F7-A690-4595-B908-915CB09403C2_zpsxwzipsps.jpg)
The next picture is with the long string pulled 12 inches.
![](http://i1288.photobucket.com/albums/b487/Cruiserdm/Mobile%20Uploads/C6FAAC0E-122B-46D0-B98A-63399456A7A7_zpsqunwg6xj.jpg)
So the picture shows the natural curve on the left and probably needing to scrape the mid section on the right, I think.
I exercised the limbs and then did a quick experimental pull to 15" and snapped this photo. Then I stopped for the day.
![](http://i1288.photobucket.com/albums/b487/Cruiserdm/Mobile%20Uploads/65AE905B-65EE-4070-BCE3-F9C6A879442B_zpsabovjzp2.jpg)
The stave is 53.5" tip to tip. I am shooting for a 40 lb draw at about 20" or so.
Any input will be welcome. I would prefer not to break another bow. But I understand that there is a big learning curve and I am just getting started. I know I should probably do a 68" pyramid board bow to learn on, but that is not what I'm doing.
I have read all of Ken75's crepe myrtle posts and those are a great help. Especially the one where he says that the bark on these will make cracking noises when bending. I heard that first crack and thought I had already broken another bow just by putting on the long string, but then recalled what Ken had said. I am still in process of removing that light bark, but I don't think that is having any effect on the process.
Thanks.