Selfbow longetivity

[Joec123able]

I have a big interest in how wood bows hold up overtime. Considering the fact that they spend most of their life unstrung, it seems they should last many many decades with ease. But if you ask someone about it I've always seen two answers, some guys believe a self bow will last 10 years.... Where that number comes from I don't know. Then some guys will say they last a life time... Personally I haven't been making them long enough to see how they hold up over decades. So I really want to hear from the guys who have been making bows for many many years and their experience on how their oldest bows have held up. Have they take lots of string follow over years or do they stay the same as when you made them when you unstrung them ? I'm really intrested in hearing from some of you ..

[IndianGuy]

My "go to" Osage self bow that is 57# @27" and 63" long was built n either 1991-or 92 and when it was made it was 57#@ 27". it still has the same profile and has had tens of thousand of arrows put through it. It is not sealed but has been oiled often through the years.
I think longevity depends on if the bow was well made and has been taken care of.
E

[bradsmith2010]

if its" well made",,it will last decades,,I use osage mostly so that is what I have the most experience with
Pope was testing some bows that were 100 years old,,one comes to mind that was hickory and sinew,,Ishi shot quite a few of them and really overdrew them as well,, so there is quite a bit of documentation confirming long life of wood bows,, if the bow is of poor design and overstrained to begin with,, one or 10 years who knows,, maybe if no one shoots if for 10 years it will make it

[Joec123able]

Thanks for the replys I love to hear it. For whatever reason I love the idea of making a wood bow and having it last a lifetime....

[adb]

A well made and well cared for bow, whether it's laminated or self, should last a lifetime. I have a yew selfbow >10 years old and it's looks and shoots the same as the day I made it. Same for most lam bows. 10 years is nuthin'. Hell, they drew some of the Mary Rose yew warbows on the tiller to full draw, and they're 470 years old!

[Joec123able]

A well made and well cared for bow, whether it's laminated or self, should last a lifetime. I have a yew selfbow >10 years old and it's looks and shoots the same as the day I made it. Same for most lam bows. 10 years is nuthin'. Hell, they drew some of the Mary Rose yew warbows on the tiller to full draw, and they're 470 years old!

Yea the Mary rose bows are unbelievably cool!

[Pat B]

I never keep them long enough to know. 

[Buckeye Guy]

I don't do a very good job on my bows so I don't know if they will last a life time or not but then I ain't dead yet so who knows
 the one I love to shoot the most is about 20 years old  so the 10 year thing don't work either
just keep having fun  it ain't over till it's over

I have a bow that was made in the 1940s not a good job either but it has survived longer than I will

[smoke]

I agree with the others.  I have an osage selfbow that I've shot no less than 8,000 times and it looks the same as the first time I shot it.  And I've used in in temps over 95 F. and as cold as -5.  It will probably outlive me!  I hope it does!

[mwosborn]

Some of my very first bows only lived a short time - less than 1000 shots - chrysals and eventually failure.  It really depends on the bow.  Like has been said already, if it is well made and tillered AND taken care of they can live a long time.  My "oldest" is only 3 years old but it looks and shoots the same now as it did when it was first made.

[PEARL DRUMS]

I never keep them long enough to know. 

Its easier that way Pat! Less worry!

[Joec123able]

I never keep them long enough to know. 

Lol well not me, I like to stick with one bow most of the time

[willie]

I think longevity depends on if the bow was well made and has been taken care of

well that covers a lot of ground, and probably most of it.

would well made be a moderately stressed design, well tillered?

would taken care of be preventing decay by keeping it dry enough, but not so dry as to over strain the bow when shot?

of course some woods are more naturally resistant to decay than others

[Hamish]

They stopped drawing those Mary Rose bows, pretty quickly when many started to break, because the sapwood had degraded when underwater.  Pretty amazing nonetheless.
                                                          Hamish

[duke3192]

I've got an osage static recurve that I made  over 20 years ago, still pulls 52@28". I shoot it all the time. I've also got a bow made in 1956 by L. Stemller, 45@28" and still shoots great, believed to be lemon wood, it is sinew backed.