Out of curiosity....

[Manolovis]

Maybe stupid question but is there such a thing of recurving tips of a D shaped cross section bow?


Also, fellow Kiwi bowyers, have you ever tried lance wood as bow wood? If yes what was your approach? Debarking ?
Cheers
Manu

[Pat B]

Some of the Welch war bows had reflexed tips I believe and maybe even a few of the Mary Rose bows. I've not seen recurved longbows.
 I've heard of lance wood being used for backed bows and maybe even selfbows but I can't say for sure.

[Del the cat]

Yes
Del

[Dances with squirrels]

All of the wooden bows I've recurved, by various methods and to various degrees, have had rounded bellies. I don't make any of my bows with flat bellies.

[PatM]

A number of examples of 'recurved"  longbows out there.  It's a nice design.

[Manolovis]

thanks for your answers! it seemed like a nice and elegant design and couldn't  find any pictures of such design, i wanted to give it a crack. if you have some photos i d love to see them. I ve built just a few bows, all flat bow design (most reflexed), but wanted to try something different.


As for lance wood the back of such stave are very ridgy … I was wandering then about flattening the stave and backing it with bamboo. I though kind like the roughness of a ridgy back but having a feel for a good thickness taper seemed pretty hard...

thanks all

Manu

[Hamish]

I'm guessing the lancewood, is a native NZ tree(wikipedia: Pseudopanax crassifolius, the horoeka or lancewood, is a New Zealand native tree belonging to the family Araliaceae)?
The lancewood used by bowyers in the 19thC  is from S.America, Carribean region.
We have a couple of woods we call lancewood in Australia, and they make good bows. They are actually very dense desert acacias, look nothing like the original lancewood timber.

I have no idea about your wood's properties. I think I have heard of other NZ bowyers using it successfully. I'd probably start off with another flatbow, selfbow to find out if the timber has any idiosyncrasies, like chrysalling, brittlness, or excessive set. Its a gamble to back one with boo first, before you know if its resistant to chrysalling.

[Eric Krewson]

All my bows have the same design, something I like but have no particular reason to make them that way except that I like to be different and I like the way they look.

My bows start with a slightly rounded belly at the fades that I carry to mid limb then become more D shaped as the limbs progress to the tips and end up almost round.

Krewson Bows, I can spot one from 30 ft away.

My statics are the same way with very tiny tips.



 

[Manolovis]

Hamish: you re probably right, i ll make a test self bow with the bit that i have. i have just finished a bow few weeks back to find that after the first hunt I went with chrysals appeared ! gutted.

Eric thanks for the photo I have sent you a PM

cheers all for your insight