Slim Profile Longbow Design

[Kyle Patterson]

Hey all, First post here, i have been lurking for a little while and am really impressed with this site!
I am quite new to bow making. I have made both a hickory and a red oak board bow (one of which is still living) but would like to move along into a more aesthetically pleasing bow. My past bows have been rather wide (2" at fades) and i would like to make something more low profile. Im not opposed to it being longer (68"-70"), and will likely shoot of the hand or have a very mild cut out. I have also been thinking quite a bit about making it from Ipe.. Probably hickory backed. I also wouldnt mind making it a R/D, but am a little nervous of the R/D tillering as i am still working on normal tillers.
So i guess my questions are, how narrow can i effectively make the bow and have it still turn out 50lbs at 28"? If i Use Ipe, is hickory a decent backing for it, and if so, should the hickory be any thicker than the standard 1/8"? What kind of measurements  (handle, fades, tips) would provide the best performance?

I apologize if this seems vague or not well thought out. I am a novice and respect any advice that you have for me!

Kyle

[30coupe]

I haven't tried ipe yet, but my understanding is it is the one you want for a narrow profile bow. Either hickory or bamboo seem to be the backings of choice for ipe. I don't think you'd want to go any thicker with your backing.

Again, I haven't worked with ipe, but I backed a maple board bow with 1/8" hickory and the maple fretted before I could even finish tillering. I learned that the backing overpowered the belly. So, I'd use care with the thickness of the backing.

I'm still sticking with the normal tillers myself. R/D bows are a whole other challenge. I am just finishing a hickory board bow (silk backed) that appears to be a winner so far. It has a bit more set than I'd like, but I think I got the tiller right. I shot some arrows in the garage due to the dark, cold, windy conditions outside, so it was only about 5 yards, but the arrows went where I pointed them and there is little to no hand shock with a B50 string.

I think I'll leave the R/D stuff to the pros for now.

[red hill]

Kyle, I've not worked with ipe, however, I've read here and elsewhere that the dust can be a problem. So be careful.  I do use hickory backings and like them a lot. My backings are usually 1/8" or less. I use osage mostly and have had good results with fades at 1 1/4" out 6" from the fades then tapering to 3/8" at the tips. The osage is very strong and tough. I would think you could make osage more narrow depending on your design.

[D]

I usually start my boo backed ipe r/d at an inch and a half and haven't had any problems yet.  I keep my boo backings around 1/8 inch thick.  As far as pushing the limits I built one that was 59" tip to tip and 5/8ths wide.  Its super super skinny.  Don't remember exactly what the weight is but its around 60# @ 28.  But it does have a 24" maple power lam and the riser is 17.5" from fade to fade.  So you can go pretty narrow with it.

[Kyle Patterson]

Beautiful, thanks for the responses! I think I have a good idea of how I'm going to make this, and ill post pics as I go. Another question, can you tiller a bow, then reflex the tips and still have a good tiller? Or will this change the tiller too much?

Kyle

[Roy from Pa]

Be careful with IPE. It has a reputation of giving folks a bad allergic reaction. Wear protection.