thanks you guys,,,
chuck-- the plates may add a little stability to the siyahs, but not much on this bownn they are more like a thick veneer,, the siyahs are mnt mohagony are sort of sfter wood, so the plates are more like armor for the wood, to keep down string wear ,abraision, and attrition to the string gooves,, I used this type of wood to cut way down on tip weight. I have seen some examples that had very minimal wood with more bone or antler plates,, also regular horn has been used.. I am trying more wood alternatives for siyahs ,such as poplar, very strong- lighter weight.spanish cedar fairly strong much lighter weight, I even have a couple of horn bow hybrids of my own design,for flight shooting , that have balsa wood and antler siyahs, a very light and strong combination, that has worked well for me...