mixed emotions - an open discussion

[eflanders]

Let me begin by saying that I love wood.  Wood boats, bamboo flyrods and traditional bows made of various wood combinations.  Now I am starting to question my current devotion to the building of all-wood laminated bows. The benefits of glass bows are numerous, longer shooting life, weather resistance and others.  But I love working with wood, the smell, natures beauty, the variances between species in performance, etc. It always seemed to me that in using glass in a bow, you neutralize those species differences and that you are working with in-organic materials.  What are all of your thoughts, concerns and ideas.

[fujimo]

well i swore i would only ever build self bows- i just love them- still love em- but they are harder to shoot- little less forgiving- now i am no expert bowyer by any strech of the imagination- but i have built quite a few now, and really am on a quest to improve my shooting- so geuss what- i have ordered a kit from binghams- my first of many to be built i'm sure!!!- i'll never stop lovin' self bows- just want to expand my horizons a bit- can still do some nice woodwork in the risers ands tips etc- just not that artistic fluid woodwork of self bowyery- but still good woodwork.
its all a journey i geuss.

[Rainshooter]

I have no problem with the fiberglass bows(in fact some are just gorgeous)but to me I prefer all wood and primative. cost is a big factor. I can cut vine maple all day long for free and their is a decking/flooring outfit near me for cheap board bow stock. every time I get extra funds I think I could buy,wood/arrow shafts/quiver/you name it, then I think I am cheating myself out of building the same stuff. Fiberglass just doesn't appeal to me like all wood bows do however I am liking them more and more which is scary since I dont want to get addicted to anything else(which is why I have yet to check out the knapping forum on PA. lol.

[Pat B]

An all wood bow or selfbow can last as long as a glass bow, shoot as many arrows as a glass bow is no more adversely effected by bad weather if  finished properly. I have glass bows, one recurve and one longbow but I haven't shot them in a few years. I have hunted exclusively with my own self and backed bows for 4 or 5 years and haven't thought twice about it. I hunt whatever weather comes when I can hunt and have never had my wood bows let me down. I don't think it is a matter of whether a wood bow can handle it but whether the shooter can handle the idea of "just" a wood bow.  
  If you like wood bows, build wood bows...and shoot them and hunt with them. If they are properly built and well finished they will last you a lifetime. I have selfbows with at least a few thousand shots through them and they are still good to go!

[Dick in Seattle]

I love wood, have worked with it for nearly 45 years.  I learned to make bows first with glass and that's what I do.  Tried selfbows, but honestly, they are far more work for a less certain outcome and I'm results oriented, so I stick to glass.  However, that said, I still find tremendous wood working satisfaction in playing with riser woods and varying limb woods.  I build glass bows, but I consider it a woodworking project:

 

 

[Osagetree]

Pat and Dick always have a great prespective on these issues. Glad they are on here allot!

[PEARL DRUMS]

Originally posted by Pat B:
An all wood bow or selfbow can last as long as a glass bow, shoot as many arrows as a glass bow is no more adversely effected by bad weather if  finished properly. I have glass bows, one recurve and one longbow but I haven't shot them in a few years. I have hunted exclusively with my own self and backed bows for 4 or 5 years and haven't thought twice about it. I hunt whatever weather comes when I can hunt and have never had my wood bows let me down. I don't think it is a matter of whether a wood bow can handle it but whether the shooter can handle the idea of "just" a wood bow.  
  If you like wood bows, build wood bows...and shoot them and hunt with them. If they are properly built and well finished they will last you a lifetime. I have selfbows with at least a few thousand shots through them and they are still good to go!

I second Pats thoughts

[SEMO_HUNTER]

I agree with both Pat and Dick on their perspectives. I've only made all wood selfbows up to this point. My plan is to graduate into making some with glass on them, but I don't think that it takes anything away from an all wood selfbow. They have a beauty all their own.

I guess I fall somewhere in between the two?

I've seen some very beatiful wood/glass bows that I just dream of someday owning one, and eventually build my own.

I think if you want to try your hand at adding glass to your aresenal of bow building materials you should definitely go for it. I don't see it as "Turning your back on wood" at all. I merely see it as a bowyer striving to improve his workmanship and learn new trades.
I for one would not think any less of a man for it.

There's no reason why you couldn't do both and here is my honest opinion.
I think anyone who builds bows should experience the beauty and the challenge of building a selfbow from a stave, by taking on a stave head on one on one you learn an appreciation for the wood and how this all got started in the first place. That's something  I think every man who calls himself a bowyer shouldn't cheat himself out of. Doesn't really matter where you go from there as long as you've had that experience.
It sounds to me like you've already got a good handle on that.

[okie64]

I got nothing against glass bows, I own several of them, I just choose to work with wood because of the satisfaction I get from building an all wood bow and hunting with it. I used to build a lot of wood laminated bows but I get much more satisfaction from a selfbow. I really enjoy the whole process of building a selfbow. From finding and cutting the perfect tree to scraping the last few shavings off the belly. Maybe if I lived somewhere where there wasnt near as many trees to choose from I might have a different opinion.

[Roy from Pa]

I think glass bows are very nice bows. But I choose to make bows from wood. It's all in what a guys wants and likes.

[John Scifres]

I made a few lam bows.  Enough to know I prefer selfbows as far as crafting them.  But I shoot a glass recurve as much as I do my selfbows.  It's just easier to shoot well when you don't have a consistent work ethic as far as practice, which I do not.

[Mike Most]

After reviewing all of the above, I feel that we are fortunate indeed to be building our own bows in this day and time. The broad spectrum of materials present for one to use is almost mind boggling. Whether you choose to craft a bow from wood (such as a self bow) or a longbow with fiberglass, the satisfaction comes from using the finished product afield. Economics plays a part for some, but the passion of the hunt and days past are most certainly in our forethoughts as we work towards our goals whatever they may be.  

[Roy Steele]

I can't speak for others but for me building all wood bows run way deeper then the bendifits of glass.

[DVSHUNTER]

I make selfbows. I have only helped make one laminated bow.  Never tried a glass bow. I have a few all wood laminate projects in the works as well as a few glass projects in the planning dreaming stages. Selfbows are it for me though. I just bought a black widow from a friend because I wanted one since I started trad shooting. I can say I shoot that bow maybe a handful of times, definitly less than 100. I finished making an osage selfbow about a week ago and have already put 500 shots through it. The glass bows don't have the personal feel that my selfbows give me. You really spend alot more time with a selfbow. It's odd, but they are kinda like raising kids. You can teach them with the best of your ability, and yet they all have their own personality. No two are the same even when coming from the same tree. Thats what I like about selfbow.

But I got nothing against glass bowyer. You guys build awesome stuff too.

[NYArrow]

I'm brand new to all of this and so my opinion comes from limited experience. With that said I own a glass longbow and recurve. They both shoot nice, quiet and smooth. Yet my absolute favorite is a self bow made of boo, jatoba core and osage belly. The all wood bow will throw an arrow with authority! Believe it or not it will out shoot my glass bow hands down and it is the same draw length/weight. Both sides of this discussion can appeal. From a craftsman and conservationist standpoint self bows really call. They bring a grass roots, simple form of art and function. Contrarily, you can learn a recipe with glass to make a great bow that will last years and perform at the top end of the spectrum.

[vanillabear?]

[Bradford]

I honestly think it is just a personal choice.  Everyone is unique and different with different taste.  I LOVE building glass bows and LOVE working with wood.  I love the fact that I am taking square pieces of wood and turning them into something beautiful.  I have built many wood projects and never felt like building a wood bow with fiberglass was taking away from it.. as there is a lot of wood working to do with the riser.  A creative fellow will have his hands full on the riser.

So do what you love and don't be afraid to expand.  It just makes you that more diverse.  I have made one piece recurves, all wood laminate recurves, take down recurves and have had a blast.  I want to build a "Lord of the Rings" elf bow soon.  I think that will be a great challenge and will be fun to take with me when I go to the Renni fairs.

Have fun!

[jsweka]

I tend to fall in Dick's camp on this one.  The results of glass laminated bows are fairly predictable and so far I haven't had any fail.  A couple years ago I finished a Dryad BBO blank and it came out nice. So I figured I knew what I was doing and tried making a hickory backed ipe.  Well, out of three attempts I ended up with one light weight bow (other two broke while tillering).  This gave me a whole new respect for you wood bow builders and I've been sticking to glass bows since.  I am getting a hankering for a selfbow though since I don't have one yet.

[aric]

In my opinion bowyers have always tried to use the best material that they could find/produce. I love wood bows but i also know that if an indian had some glass and some smooth on he would have put it to use

[fujimo]

hear hear, aric.
my sentiments exactly.