First takedown recurve

[prognastat]

I have been looking in to making a bow for a while now and have gathered a decent bit of information on various types of bows.

I decided I would like to try my hand at a takedown recurve. I however am on a budget and am trying to do it for hopefully less than $100 though a little more won't be terrible. Am I being at all realistic in this figure?

One thing I was having some trouble finding information on though was cheap wood types that work well for the riser and limbs. I am not looking to make an extremely decorative bow so one wood type for the whole riser would be fine. I would rather spend less and if I am successful make another with better wood than spend a lot and ruin it due to my lack of experience.

I live down town in Texas and don't have access to a truck so I would be limited to wood I can get from a store.

The other thing I have had some trouble finding information on it whether it is possible to do the limbs without laminating them. Was was wondering if it would be possible to just steam bending the wood and using backing or is laminating a must?

[jsweka]

I have seen some guys build a three piece take down that is not laminated, but if this is your first bow, I would not recommend that approach.

You should check out Bingham's.
 http://www.binghamprojects.com/
They have everything you need and their instructional materials for a take down recurve will let you know what you need.

Another good source for materials is Kennys Custom Archery   http://www.kennyscustomarchery.com/index.html

Sorry to give you some bad news, but keeping it under $100 will be tough.  How much wood working equipment do you have and can you grind your own laminations?  If not, you'll have more than $100 in laminations and glass alone.  I build 1 piece longbows and typically have $150 - $180 in materials alone.

[prognastat]

I have already come across bingham projects, though I did like what they offer I doubt I would able to get away with going out and spending $333 with the wife.

If that is the case I might have to hold off on it till either Christmas or birthday where I could work it in to the gifts or something like that.

Thanks for both the websites though.

One question I had about the laminations is what is the difference between parallels and tapers?(beyond the fact that tapers have a taper of course)What is the difference in use or performance?

[arrowlauncherdj]

Lams for a recurve will need either two tapers or a taper and a parallel and two 72" pieces of glass.  Black glass can run ~ $15 a piece, lams about the same for each pair if you get something simple like hard maple. So for limbs you are looking at $60.  You'll want an extra piece of glass to cut up and put as laminations and a backing over the riser for strength, so +$15.  Riser wood will run you about $25-30 for a good riser block, and you'll need it big enough you can cut a set of wedges out of it. Add a minimum of $20 shipping and there you go, a bit over $100. Glass scraps can be used for pad and tip overlays, you dont need phenolic.

Now as for a laminating press for your limbs... whole new bag of worms as you have to have the hardware, plywood for the form, etc... That is the largest cost of a first build.

Dave

[prognastat]

Thanks for the info.

Is there a significant difference in performance between going with two tapers or a taper and a parallel?

[arrowlauncherdj]

Nope, just as long as you get the whole taper rate right to start with. Taper for a recurve usually goes .001 or .002 per inch overall taper, so two tapers of .001 a piece = .002 taper overall.

On light bows, say 45# or less .001 taper is my preference due to core thickness and stability. I just taper more on width for those when I sand out the limb shape.

Dave