Lol. I agree...I've been learning about these things and Im also not sure why they'd use ipe in the middle of this bow. You know based on pics I studied it does look a lot like lemonwood, but I think it's not likely. There are quite a few bows sold in the UK that I found online that are "lemonwood belly, purple/greenheart core, hickory backed" that look very similar to mine. Dunno. Hmmm.
How come UK makers like Bickerstaffe etc. use purpleheart or greenheart as a core? Aren't those woods very similar to ipe?
Haha, on 3Riversarchery.com where they sell the bamboo backed version of this bow, the ad is quoted as "ipe center lamination for added speed"...Del you'd probably call bollocks on that eh?
Here's what I found on greenmanlongbows.co.uk:
"Another effective and popular configuration in laminated longbows uses a third strip, (known as the core) between the back and belly. Cores are generally no more than 1/4 of an inch thick and often taper towards the bows tips. Cores experience mostly compressive forces and as such can be made from all the woods used for belly's. They can also be made from woods that are characterised by their stiffness and stability such as purpleheart, greenheart, IPE, or osage."
"The reported advantages of using a core strip can be that they act as a buffer between the back and belly, increasing their effectiveness and helping to spread the loads and forces in the finished bow. They also give an amount of stiffness and stability to the bow and in certain cases can reduce the development of string follow. Using multiple cores will impart a higher degree of stiffness to the bow."
Here are two pics of lemonwood and hickory. Gosh studying this bow its so hard for me to tell. To me at least, it looks like lemonwood based on the pics I've studied, but as you all have been saying chances are its hickory. I emailed Jim Boswell directly, maybe he can help.
