![Cheesy :D](http://www.primitivearcher.com/smf/Smileys/default/cheesy.gif)
have fun.
We call american hornbeam musclewood. I made a bow of it back in feb. Is the bark off,if its not and the stave is green then get it off asap. If not then its a real b!#$# to scrape the bark of because of the ridges and valleys along the back. Use a gooseneck scraper if you have one. And be careful not to nick into a ridge and violate the back.
I love my musclewood bow. Its prob my most accurate bow right now that will be one I take to the woods this fall. It responded well to heat treating too. Its some tough gnarly stuff for sure.
![](http://i1181.photobucket.com/albums/x436/blackhawk28/00small25434581.jpg)
![](http://i1181.photobucket.com/albums/x436/blackhawk28/00small39796516.jpg)
Let me know if ya have any more questions. Yours is gonna have to bend thru the handle. Mine is 59" ntn. My bend comes up thru the fades. And I can just "feel" a slight tension in the handle right as I hit full draw. And follow that grain of the muscles. You'll prob have to heat correct for sure. There's no such thing as a dead straight full stave of american hornbeam.