Am thinking of building a lam bow. Advice please.

[Claypipe]

Hey guys,  I am seriously considering building a bow.  I have the Oct./ Nov. 2005 issue of TBM and it gives instructions.  Will that style of form would work for a deflex/reflex type of long bow?  I have considerable woodworking skills but would a D/R style bow be too much to undertake for a first project?  I would like the bow to be in the 50# to 55# range, what total lam thickness, not counting the two lams of .050" glass, would be required to get this range in a 64" longbow and are there any advantages to using all parallel versus parallel and tapered lams?  I won't be in a hurry for cure time, so I probably won't use a hotbox.  What kind of epoxy do you recommend for this type of application?  I apreciate any advice that you guys could give.  I looked through the build alongs and found much good stuff but still don't know the answers to these questions in my mind.  Thanks in advance.  Travis M. Gabbard

[the Ferret]

Seriously IMO build a straight end bow first. It will be easier to glue up and easier to tiller.

If you find that easy then try a rf/df which is harder to glue up and harder to tiller.

[Randy Morin]

Travis...you ever in the Belgrade area?  Stop by my house one of these days and I can answer/show you a lot of stuff you want to know.  Determining lam thickness is a educated shot in the dark at best the first time you build any  bow.  Measure thickness's (and everything else) on other bows similar to the one you want to build if yo can.  Then you can add so many thousanths for this or that or subtract.  It's a guessing game but if you measure (spec out) enough bows you may get lucky the first time on your design.  Often it's better to just build one when you have a good guess and go from there on the next one.  You can use the rule...1 pound draw weight= a difference of .oo3" for ballpark R/D longbow.  Total lam thickness (with glass) should be in the .220-.290 area I would guess at the tips for 53-57#. Thats a huge range demonstrating how much other design factors will come into play.  If yo want to stop over some day let me know. Randy.

[Claypipe]

Thanks for the advice guys.  Anybody else got tips for me on any of the questions asked above.  Thanks in advance.  Travis M. Gabbard

[Claypipe]

TTT

[OconeeDan]

Travis, if you have any woodworking skills, you can make a laminated bow, any kind you want.  Do a search for Bingham Projects, they have excellent plans, a "how to" video, and all the materials you need.  Not too hard, mainly basic woodworking.
I like Smooth On epoxy (available from Binghams), they recommend a hot box for stronger bonding strength.  Wouldn't want to skimp on that!
Dan

[soaring eagle]

Travis  when I started building bows I had some ideas of my own some were good some were not. I would recomend just getting your stuff from  bingham projects and following their plans on the first one and see how it goes. it will probably save some headaches, money, and self doubt

[Claypipe]

Thanks for the info guys.  I am thinking that the form design from TBM issue will work for straight or r/d design.  I don't really have the money to buy everything from Binghams.  I figured I would just buy a riser block, lams, epoxy and possibly plans and video to get an idea of how everything works.  I am going to talk to Randy Morin an friday.  He is a Trad Gang member from Belgrade about a 1 1/2 hour drive for me.  I will get first hand advice from him and decide from there what design I will build first.  I will keep you guys posted with PM's, posts and photos.  Thanks again, Travis M. Gabbard  

[kennym]

Travis,youre on the right track IMO.  Go visit Randy,ask ?'s,and it will speed up the curve a lot. Learnin the mistakes the hard way ain't the way to go,very costly too,I can tell ya!