Ironwood Bow Designs

[wooddamon1]

Hey guys, what designs are your favorites for ironwood selfbows? I have a piece blanked out at 2" wide and 68" long, it's currently in the caul to reflex a limb to match the other. I've seen a couple flatbows styled basically the same as an Osage bow, but was wondering if I could maybe make a narrower longbow (1.25-1.5", approx).


Anyway, thanks in advance for any ideas or suggestions. This will be my first ironwood bow after making a few successful Osage bows.


 I plan on heat-treating the belly as well, should I wait until final tiller, or is it okay to do when I'm close?

[superdav95]

Ironwood hhb is very good bowl wood.  It’s tough and very dense.  It also takes heat treat very well.  What sort of draw length you looking for?  At 68” you should be ok to the drawlength of your choice within reason.  Is this going to be a self bow?  How will you be heat treating this bow?  Will the piece need some straightening prior to heat treatment or will you clamp down or clamp out any twist while heat treating.  Really the sky is the limit with hhb.  It’s good thin and wider or narrow and little thicker.  I’ve made them both ways and they hold up well if you can get them straight.  That’s the challenge with hhb is finding a piece that’s straight or able to be straightened with little steam or heat furring heat treatment.  I usually just go to floor tiller dimensions and then heat treat.  Best of luck. 

[bassman211]

 Iron wood can misleading as to what the wood  really is. American horn beam, or as I refer to it as blue beech is also called iron wood by some. I have made more bows from blue beech than hop hornbeam. Both are good bow wood. My draw is 25 inches ,so I make them 62 long, 1 5/8 wide at the fades to 1/2 at the tips, and floor tiller, and put on a form ,and heavy heat the belly. The back on blue beech is more irregular ,so I sinew back them. For me hop horn beam had a tendency to belly fret with the wood I was using as opposed to blue beech, but was easier to make a self bow from.

[wooddamon1]

Thanks guys.


 Dave, I plan on using a heat gun to get a little deflex out of one limb, it's at floor tiller now. Tomorrow I'll get the limbs narrowed down a little and get the thickness taper looking good before I do any heating. I draw 28" and usually make Osage bows 66", even though I've gotten down to 62" and got a nice shooter.

[bjrogg]

All good advice.

I might add make sure it’s dry. I really like to get it roughed out, shaped to caul and then let it set for a couple months. HHB can really hold its moisture for a long time if it isn’t close to bow dimensions.

For recurves I usually steam for at least a hour. Really getting a boiling hard the last 15 minutes. I use a metal backer to keep belly side of recurve from lifting slivers. Have everything ready before you remove from boiling . Work with a purpose, but don’t force it if it doesn’t want to go. Put it back in the boiling water.

Definitely agree with the heat treatment. Love the smell of heat treating HHB in the morning.

Bjrogg

[wooddamon1]

Thanks BJ. No plans to recurve this one, but good info. As for now it's in blank form untill I can get back to it. Can I rasp the sides to shape or should I follow the grain with my drawknife?

[bjrogg]

I believe it has an interlocking grain. I do try to follow it around knots, but if you have a nice clean fairly straight stave you can rasp it out to shape you desire.

A rasp is usually the preferred tool. Draw knife tends to gauge out spots. I find a good rasp and cabinet scraper my most used tools for HHB

Bjrogg

[Jim Davis]

As with any wood, there is a combination of width, length and thickness that works without set or chrysals. For the same draw length and weight, hornbeam needs to be wider and thinner than Osage. About like the dimensions for hickory.

[wooddamon1]

Thanks BJ and Jim. I'll leave it a little wider than my Osage bows and rasp the sides down to dimensions. Only one knot to go around on this piece so no problem there.

I'm thinking full width to about 12" then taper down to 3/8" tips. It's 68" long with a 8" stiff handle section. How's that sound?

[wooddamon1]

Oh, and the limbs are 2" wide, but I'd like to be a little less than that, say 1.75" max. Just like narrower bows looks-wise

[Pappy]

I make most of my HHB bows 1 1/2 wide at fads to about mid limb then tapper to tips, 64/66 long N-N for 50 lbs or so at my 26 inch draw, it’s my favorite white wood, I do follow the grain on the lay out, most around here have a little snake in it unlike hickory which is usually straight grain. Pappy

[wooddamon1]

Thanks, Pappy! Hoping to get back at it later today.

[superdav95]

Oh, and the limbs are 2" wide, but I'd like to be a little less than that, say 1.75" max. Just like narrower bows looks-wise

Yes that would be a good starting point and give you some wiggle room to narrow up as you see fit.  My hhb bows end up thinner then my hickory bows after heat treatment for the same draw weight.  It’s a little harder then hickory just don’t be in a rush to heat treat it and get it clamped to a form for a bit as was suggested.  I would take it to floor tiller or at least an even bend both limbs then clamp it to form.  1/2” is usually good rough out thickness out of the fades for heat treat.  I will say this about hhb.  Make sure if there are knots and or inclusions in the working parts of the limbs to tread carefully with a deep heat treatment in that area.  I’ve got away with it more on questionable hickory more often then on hhb.  Just my opinion.  I’ve had hhb explode on me for this reason I suspect.  Best of luck.  Dave

[wooddamon1]

Thanks, Dave. There's a couple knots in the middle of the belly on one limb and one on the edge of the other. I'll be careful around those. Good advice!

[wooddamon1]

Here's where it's at so far if my pics post. 1 5/8" wide to mid point of the limbs, tapered to half an inch tips.