Thanks again for the encouraging feedback!! I was intent on an all Hickory recurve, but had 2 HHB staves that have been cut 2 years, and am in the process of getting ready to boil the tips for a static type bow. I'll start a new thread if with some luck get some solid bends!
I admire all of the amazing work I see here, but Marc St. Louis makes the bow I aspire to make. I have a good source of HHB, and it is the wood that works the best for me.