sinew bow length relative to draw

[bradsmith2010]

   I hear alot of quotes or suggestions on bow length for sinew bows,, in my experience it needs to be somewhat relative to the draw the bow is designed for,, not sure one size fits all, I shoot mine through a chrono graph,, and find the length relative to draw can vary, depending on amount of sinew and reflex, and still perform well,, thoughts???
   also I find the longer bows a bit more forgiving to shoot,, for example I have some like 48 inches shooting a 23 or 24 inch arrow, and with practice shoot reasonably well, but a 54 inch or  longer bow drawn to 26 or 27 is a bit more accurate for me,, I have been making a 62 inch sinew bow for a friend, which most might think is too long for a sinew bow,, but he draws 30 inches, and shooting through the chrono,, shows it perfroms well,, a good hunting bow,, I love making sinew bows,, and they always seem so quite and smooth to shoot,, there is something really different about the feel,,

[bassman211]

Most on here would say I sinew back bows for the wrong reason with the wrong glue. I have a 63 inch sinew backed Osage 35lb at my 25 inch draw target bow. Holds just a touch of reflex, and will shoot a 350 gr arrow at the same basic speed as a 35 lb foam carbon limbed Ilf bow that I shoot target with also . Gap at 20 yds is the same with both bows. Draws smooth, and is durable so far.Works well for me , so I guess it is just a personal choice. For me anyhow.

[StickMark]

 

Great topic..
hoping to hear from others that made tons of these bows.

I have made two shooters with sinew. Took a 57.5 ttt down to 55 ttt, 53.25 ntn...and it picked up weight, but in retillering, as it had been sinewed since October 2020, went back down to 48# ( summer weight, in deserts, but that is another topic)...down from a 53#.

I shot great at 57.5" but seemed slow, with my 26 max drawlength, and 25.3" practical field length.

[bownarra]

It is all to do with design. Wood species, width, width/thickness etc etc....
The length of a bow is just one factor in the design of a bow....saying that a sinewed bow has to be less than a set length is far too simplistic.
I have an osage sinew backed recurve that shoots 185 fps with 10 gpp arrows, drawn to 27". It is 64". It is a good bow to give to people who think sinewed bows can't be more than such and such a length.....
One of the most important factors is adding reflex correctly. I rarely see that being done.

[Gimlis Ghost]

I've been wondering how the Scythian and Mongol bow makers could build a bow that unstrung forms a C or even pretzel shape and when strung can be drawn past the ear. They seem to have a 30-34" maximum draw length without damage to the bow and their bows look to be pretty short. Of course the radical recurves mean longer effective working limb length compared to nock to nock length, could this be the answer?

[PatM]

I've been wondering how the Scythian and Mongol bow makers could build a bow that unstrung forms a C or even pretzel shape and when strung can be drawn past the ear. They seem to have a 30-34" maximum draw length without damage to the bow and their bows look to be pretty short. Of course the radical recurves mean longer effective working limb length compared to nock to nock length, could this be the answer?

 Brad is talking about wood bows, not bows with horn.   The Scythian bows were not reflexed like that in any case.

[Marc St Louis]

I tend to make sinew bows with performance in mind.  As such I've never made one more than 64" long for a 28" to 30" draw on a stiff handle bow but also no shorter than 60". I also put in quite a bit of reflex and lay the majority of the sinew mounded down the centre of the working part of the limbs, I add pretty much all that reflex before I lay the sinew down.  Seems to work for me

[loefflerchuck]

As has been said above, its more design over length. You could have a longer bow with stiff levers with sinew only on the reflexed bending portion of the inner limb. I prefer light compression strong conifer woods for sinew bows. If you make the wood frame light weight(low draw weight) the sinew will draw it into more of a reflex.

[BowEd]

As has been said above, its more design over length. You could have a longer bow with stiff levers with sinew only on the reflexed bending portion of the inner limb. I prefer light compression strong conifer woods for sinew bows. If you make the wood frame light weight(low draw weight) the sinew will draw it into more of a reflex.

I've noticed that sinewing red cedar before.

[Gimlis Ghost]

I suspect that there's a length factor in resistance to shock. A longer cable can withstand a sudden shock better than a short cable.