What do you think--5 cores

[Mad Max]

I built a R/D 64" a couple years ago and the plans called for 5 cores and 2 glass  for the stack.
What do you think?
Go to your corner Roy

[Roy from Pa]

7

[Stagmitis]

That's a lot of bowsnot!

[Crooked Stic]

More lams = less spring back out of the form so a bit better performance.

[Mad Max]

Laminated beams are stronger.
so I'm with stic

[monterey]

7

Shouldn't that be "7 ???"  8^)

[Roy from Pa]

Now yunzs did it, way to go stickypops.

Ole Shreddy will be making 10 core lam bows now...

But....

All those glue joints are dead weight and slow the bow down.

[Crooked Stic]

Now you gonna get him confused talkin about dead glue joints.

[Roy from Pa]

The epoxy dries hard and doesn't flex well.

[Mad Max]

Quote Roy ---All those glue joints are dead weight and slow the bow down.

But it takes less stack

[Roy from Pa]

Let's wait for Clem to roll outta bed n see what he says...

[Flem]

Why not just make an epoxy and fiberglass Bow?

[Mad Max]

You guys don’t know nuffin

[Flem]

Yeah but if you have achieved enlightenment, everything is nuffin.

[Mad Max]

The question is
What do you think——5 cores

[Mad Max]

I was going to let you do the inlightinment 

[Roy from Pa]

ya

[Shredd]

I think it depends on how thick your limb is going to be and the curvature that you put in it...  Thinner limb may do well with 4 cores...  A flat limb with no curvature will do well with one core... I talked with an very experienced  bowyer that said, "people get carried away with cores...  They just fill the void...  The glass does all the work"...

[Flem]

5,7, sure. Sounds like a good plan if you got a bunch of skinny lams and expired glue collecting dust.
I prefer 2, or 3 max, but I'm making walking sticks that look like Bows.
It would be interesting to make 2 bows using the same wood and stack, but have a 3 lam and a 7 lam and compare the two for feel and speed.

[monterey]

My RDs up to 50# have four cores.  Over that, five.

But, maybe five, six or seven in a 40# bow would be a good idea???  I don't put much stock in the weight of glue lines or number of glue lines.  In the overall scheme of things they probably don't have much to do with limb weight (as compared to osage cores vs elm, etc.).  Bows built with four bamboo flooring lams probably have more glue in them than a bow with 5, 6 or 7 maple lams.

Maybe I'll try 7 core laminations in my next personal bow of 35 or 40#.