What is it about Yew

[LongStick64]

I have noticed that two of my bows that are made with Yew are easily the smoothest of my bows I own. Enough that it is noticable. Is that a characteristic of Yew.

[longarrow]

Peter, I have no ideal! I have a YEW selfbow that is over 50 years old, (came from Alaska in the 60's) it shoots smoother and quiter than ALL the other 16+ bows I have! It is my hunting bow now. I am looking for a bowmaker who can make me a second for backup!

[MikeM]

I have a Don Adams Yew selfbow and a Howard Hill Redman both very smooth drawing bows.

Longarrow you might check Pacific Yew or Don Adams Archery for a second yew selfbow.

[WildmanSC]

I have a Marriah Thermal T/D recurve with Yew limbs that Ric Anderson built for me.  It is a very smooth, very quiet and very quick shooting bow.  And the craftsmanship is top shelf!

Jay St. Charles of Pacific Yew, Inc. builds Yew Selfbows.  The following is a link to his website:

 http://www.selfbow.com/

Bill

[Steve Clandinin]

Same question men have been asking for hundreds of years.In the old days men thought Yew was put on this earth solely for the purpose of Bowmaking.It is "Magic Wood".I've owned many Yew bows over the years and noticed the exact same thing.

[snag]

Yew is strong without giving up it's flexibility. A lot of woods are better at strength or better in the flexibility dept. Yew has it all.

[ArkyBob]

I have a ChekMate Crusader with yew limbs and it is very smooth and quiet.  I took the cow elk in my avatar with this bow 2 years ago.

BOB

[BobW]

Originally posted by ArkyBob:
I have a ChekMate Crusader with yew limbs and it is very smooth and quiet.

BOB

 yep, got the same thing myself.  smooth & stable.  Yew limbs are SWEEEEET!

[Apex Predator]

I've got some beautiful yew lams I'm gonna build a special bow with for a buddy.  Never used it before, but I'm really looking forward to it.

[Ric O'Shay]

The Yew tree is a unique critter. The outer or "back" sapwood, is approximately flat, follows the natural growth rings. The inner side or "belly" of  consists of heartwood. The heartwood resists compression and the outer sapwood performs better in tension. This combination in a single piece of wood (a self bow) forms a natural "laminate", somewhat similar in effect to the construction of a laminated longbow.
 
Most bowyers today grind away the sapwood leaving only the heartwood to make their glass laminated bows. Thus the glass performs the duties of the sapwood. The glue or epoxy adds strength to the heartwood. The very thin, straight grain of the yew makes it the ideal wood for a longbow. A true English longbow, with properly cured wood can take up to 4 years to produce. But it is well worth the wait.

[snag]

Ric, that is a beautiful piece of wood in that bow!

[LongStick64]

Ric
Thanks for the post, now I have a better appreciation for the mighty Yew.