Hey thanks everybody for the advice.
I think maybe I will give this a go, although it'll be a long process. I'm going to start with some reading and see what I come up with. I have a lot of projects on the burner right now, and I mostly wanted to know whether I was wasting my time even thinking about trying this.
I will definitely go with a topless mold and innertubes. I can definitely forego the reflex too in order to simplify the build.
Now the real root of why I wanted to try this in the first place, is that I'd like to try phenolic in the riser of a hill style bow. Is that asking for trouble in a first build? I know it's hard in tools.
Thanks again.