Troubles with ash

[Flintarrow13]

I've been working on my third attempt on a longbow with ash that I cut a while ago. My first attempt went almost right but now on the third I've had trouble with some warping. I'm wondering if minor limb twist. Although in the early tillering stages I haven't noticed any issues but I'm still concerned.

[sleek]

Limb twist causes no problems unless you recurve the tips. I wouldnt worry about it and go on as normal.

[rps3]

I remember on my first few bows focusing on the limb twist to the point of obsession, thinking something must be wrong. Just used to looking at production bows and thinking my selfbow should look the same, of course that is not the case. Most of my selfbows now have at least a hint of twist somewhere in the limb.  As sleek mentioned, recurves do require a bit more manipulation with the heat gun or steam.

[George Tsoukalas]

If you started with a straight stave and get some warpage then it was most likely caused by uneven wood removal. Ash, IMHO, is not suite for a longbow in the original sense of the word which is an English longbow with a deeply or cored or even a rounded belly because it is pretty weak in compression. If you are making a long flat bow then that should be ok. I often favor one side of the limb over the other when removing wood which will cause a twist. To fix it remove wood  from the high side of the limb. To prevent it inspect the limb visually or tactically with your hands and feel for uneven removal. Jawge