Limb wood question ...

[Bob B.]

Relative to longbows, does it make that much difference in "feel" with limb cores made of cedar vs yew.  I am talking working lams here.  I know cedar can be quite smappy.  I am jsut wondering not so much in performance but in the smoothness if there is much of a difference between the two woods as a limb lamimation.

Bob.

[Jim Wright]

It does'nt get any smoother than bamboo cores!

[Javi]

Originally posted by Jim Wright:
It does'nt get any smoother than bamboo cores!

Truedat...

it's the only core wood I'll use

[Koko Bow]

I would think you'd need to compare the two woods on the same bow design and same weight.  O have not had the opportunity to do this but can pass along what I was told.  Limb cores on a longbow may be more noticeable (yew vs cedar) favoring the yew because longbow limb cores are usually thicker than recurves. So the yew may feel smoother to you. But what one "feels" can be a relative term.

[LookMomNoSights]

Boo all the way!  Id ask for any curve or longbow to be cored with bamboo.  Its got a subtle,  warm,  buttery feel and energy about it that nothing else Ive tried so far comes close to.  funny to think that bamboo is actually a GRASS!   Best to have 2 bows next to each other to shoot.....one with boo cores and one with action wood or whatever.  Youl notice the subtle warmth Im talking about I think...and maybe even performance a bit!

[Lee Robinson .]

I like bamboo...but if a core was "subtle, warm, and buttery" I don't think I would use it. LOL. Just messing with you of course.      

Instead, I prefer a snappy, stiff, light weight core that stores and transfers energy efficiently. Bamboo does do this too of course. Red elm is probably my favorite core material though. Maple or a small amount of osage also work well on the belly, but are too heavy for my liking to be used on the backside.

[bentpole]

I love the looks of yew and cedar especially on a longbow as veneers. It has to be all about the core wood though. They do the work. 2 or more lams of bamboo or action boo with some nice cedar veneers will be my next bow choice. I never shot an all yew longbow [core wood and veneers] but have heard it's a great limb wood. I also like red elm and good ole  maple as core woods too. Bob I sent you an e-mail by the way.

[Bob B.]

Bentpole, thanks for the reply.  I did not reciece the email, if you want, you can try to send it to [email protected].

(I am a YEW fanatic).

Bob.

[Troy Breeding]

I normally use bamboo or lamboo in my bows. However, I did build a one piece longbow and used walnut and hickory as core woods with great results. Pound for pound in bow weight and grain for grain in arrow weight it was the fastest longbow I've ever built. Couldn't tell any differnce in how the bow shot when compared to the other bows as far as feal, but the chrono told a differnt story.

Troy

[Rob DiStefano]

i prefer grass and not wood for limb cores - bamboo, tempered tonkin cane.  very Very VERY smooth.