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First shot at horn bow, need some input.

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Cloudfeather:
I've been thinking of trying my hand at a horn bow. I'm just not sure what I should go for. I want something that's going to be able to have a 26-27 inch draw, so I was thinking gemsbok and sinew. Should I do a laminate with a core wood or just the horn and sinew. Also, what are some good approx. starting dimensions? Any input would be appreciated.

Pat B:
I believe that building a "horn" bow is a little more complicated than you are thinking. You would better serve yourself by reading Karpowicz's book and everything else you can find to educate yourself on the complexities and nuances of building a "horn" bow.

Cloudfeather:
I prefer to learn by doing. If I screw up a 40 dollar set of gemsbok horns and waste my time, no big deal. If posting this in the "horn" bow section(emphasis on the quotations) was a mistake, I apologize. There's a whole lot of unrelated info that comes up when I try to do google searchers for this.

loefflerchuck:
Gemsbok horns once cut to bow specks will be thin. Best put in a wood core

james parker:
no mistake in posting this in the hornbow forum sled,
there are two ways you can build hornbows,, successfully- and unsuccessfully
building these bows  within the tried and true perimeters is hard enough,, I know this because Ive tried.
don't be fooled,, any who attempts making the bows including seasoned horn bow makers do and will experience failures during and after the building process,even  the best hornbow builders, have failed bows  ,either at the first stages of the build,during the build, or at the very end, during tellering and shooting the bow in.. none of us are perfect..

that being said, free form horn bow building can be a more hit and miss experience,
 any and all modern horn bows that  you see here and other places may have been built using  either or both methods,, 
everyone has to start somewhere, all the info needed is  out there, it just takes a little searching.
 my suggestions are,,,, for a first horn bow- try for a lighter weight , to get the feel for the process in whole
don't use your best materials starting out
don't be disappointed when something during the procces goes wrong
don't get in any hurry,,and
and most importantly don't give up..
keep us posted with your progress
we are all here to learn and help one another

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