Bamboo backed fibergalss belly

[Lazyeye506]

Would a bamboo backed, maple core, glass bellied bow survive? Obviously I'm not dumb enough to do this myself, asking for for a friend...  

[Eric Krewson]

My only question would be "why the glass", an unusual combination for sure.

[Pat B]

I agree, Why the glass.

[EwokArcher]

Interesting idea? Maybe reverse trap to keep the tensile and compression ratio in range?

[Roy from Pa]

Obviously I'm not dumb enough to do this myself, asking for for a friend.

Then tell him the truth, No.

[Lazyeye506]

Some context:

I have come to admire horn bows, as do many people who have shot the Asian horse-bows that are modeled after them.

I know it takes a lot of skill and time to make a proper horn bow, I have heard that they can cost four figures and take three years to make.  

What I lack in time, skill and money, I hope to make up for with a willingness to cheat.

I was pondering how one could make a bow that is similar to something like a Korean flight bow without actually using horn (they were traditionally horn-bamboo-sinew). I guess the obvious answer is to just throw glass on the back and be done with it, but I am curious if anyone has tested the limits on bamboo by trying something like this.

[passion for knowledge]

The thing about Asian horn bows is that the guys who made them had an amazing, intuitive grasp of the forces involved, long before engineers threw math at things.

These days, with a bit of research, it's possible to  use materials the old guys didn't have access to, but you still have to understand what's happening when you draw a bow to make the best use of what's available.

To quote the Nobel Prize winner Richard Feynman...

Nature cannot be fooled.

[Pat B]

You can use heavily tempered bamboo as a belly of an Asiatic style horn bow. James Parker(huntworthyproductions) has made a few and they shoot great.