Primitive Archer

Getting a lot of supplies along with the meat. 
 Pappy

Great weekend, very busy one but I like it that way, keeps me out of trouble. We done a lot of clean up from all the trees cut around the cabin, got most of the logs dragged out where we can cut them up for fire wood, still lots of brush but making head way. I also got my deer worked up and in the freezer along with 2 more euro mounts and a little hide work. Quite the mess but this is before we started, looking better now. 
 Pappy

I'm planning on using two lams - belly and backing. At least to start. Bamboo and an Australian hardwood, called Ironbark. It's heavier than water and stiffer than the timbers you folks think are stuff, like bulletwood or ipe.

According to virtual bow, the thickness overall at the start of the working limb will be about 11 mm, and just over 5 at the tip.

Willie – please define what you mean by “top-end hickory,” either from a bowyer’s perspective or specifically as a backing material. Quality alone is not a sufficient reason, because it does not directly affect bow speed. If a finished bow functions well and has no problems, then the wood quality is adequate.

The most important parameters are strength, elastic modulus, and density. One possible reason is that hickory, on average, has a lower elastic modulus relative to its density than bamboo. As a result, a finished bow is heavier (in physical weight) compared to a similar bamboo-backed bow.

Thanks folks. This is good material so far.

When reflexing laminations so close to finished dimensions, what do you expect the spring back to be off the caul? As in, if you want to have the tips deflected 3" from their deflexed position, do you glue the limbs in 6" of reflex? More? Less?