Got my stuff, gonna take the plunge

[FurFlyin]

I got the hand tools I need, I hope.  I got a red oak board with straight grain.  I decided to skip the bandsaw and make a pattern jig to cut the bow out with my router.  The growth rings on the end of the plank are curved all pretty close from one side of the board to the other, the grain runs straight down the side, the growth rings are close together, I hope that is what I needed.  I want to make a bow that's around 50# @28.  I was thinking about backing this board bow with another wood, mainly for looks and strength.  Maybe hickory, or cherry? On a thin strip of backing wood, does the grain of the wood matter?  I guess the only way I can explain my question better would be to say, if the backing wood is 1/8" thick, does that 1/8" need to come from one growth ring?

[walkabout]

grain definitly does matter, the straighter the better, with little runoffs. im not sure about cherry for backing but hickory works great

[Pat B]

Brad, I would suggest if you are ready to start building bows to start off with a simple design and learn how to tiller, how to read tiller and the different characteristics of different woods and also different bow designs before you try to build a specific bow. Hickory or other woods are great backings but not necessary for a good shooting hunting weight bow. If you are nervous or tenuous about your first couple of bows holding up add a simple cloth backing for protection. Check out some of the on line websites that pertain to wood bow building like George Tsoukalas' or Poor Folks sites. Lots of great bow building info there. Take pics of your progress and problems and post them here and we will help you through them.
  These are just some suggestions from someone that learned the hard way and would like to help others have smoother sailing.

[FurFlyin]

Thanks for the info guys.