Elder tree. Is it good bow wood?

[SpringyWoodPassion]

Has anyone ever used Elder for bow making?

[bassman211]

I have never tried it , but guys on Paleo planet say it is the most brittle type of maple. (Box elder). Some say stay away from it as a bow wood. I have tried making bows with red maple with no success. Wider, and longer may have worked with that wood. If you are going to try it make  the first one extra wide, and long, and low poundage.

[SpringyWoodPassion]

Thanks. I'll have a go. Somebody once told me it makes for a "good" bow wood. We'll see

[GlisGlis]

Elderberry (sambucus nigra) is also called elder or elderflower and is rated as good bow wood but it is a completely different plant from box elder

[CRCopland]

If you mean elderberry, it can make a bow if you can find a shrub straight enough, wide enough and long enough. Elderberry has a pithy centre which must be removed. This allows the makings of a natural hollow limb. I have made one elderberry bow which has survived the years; although it has fretted badly along the edges due to poor deign and tillering. It was one of the earlier bows that I tried making. Elderberry grows quite well in the Pacific Northwest.

[Del the cat]

Yes it will make a bow, it's a bit brittle tho'.
Here's one I made as a sort of homage to a Native American bow
https://bowyersdiary.blogspot.com/2019/08/busy-weekend.html
https://bowyersdiary.blogspot.com/2019/08/little-elder-bow.html
Del

[bassman211]

He referred to it as being a tree, so I just thought it is box elder. Maybe not. When I was a young boy every body in our town picked elder berries from elderberry bushes , and we used the shoots with thick kite string to make bows. We used golden rod shafts for arrows. The bows had great flex. We had a lot of fun with those bows, and arrows.