Saturday, January 28, 2017

Wookie's Recurve Bow Build Gallery


Click on any image for a larger view.



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Stats: 58", 52# @28",  200fps with a 378gr arrow
Riser:  2 x 3.75 x 22" New Desert Camo Coreflex/Superaction Wood
Limbs: Hard Maple
Tips: black & red phenolic



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Stats: 58", 56# @28", 205fps with a 378gr arrow
Riser:  2 x 3.75 x 22" New Desert Camo Coreflex/Superaction Wood
Limbs: Hard Maple
Tips: black & red phenolic




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Stats: 65", 53# @ 28", 205fps with a 378gr arrow
Riser: 2 x 3 x 26" [Walnut|Birdseye Maple|Walnut], bocote accent
Limbs: Hard Maple and Birdseye Maple
Tips: walnut, black phenolic, maple


 

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Stats: 65", 50# @28", 203 fps with a 378gr arrow
Riser: 2 x 3 x 26" [Kingwood|Bubinga|Kingwood]
Limbs: figured Bubinga
Tips: walnut, black phenolic, kingwood




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Stats: *64", *50# @28", 205 fps with a 378gr arrow, 
Riser: 2 x 3 x 26"  [walnut|bloodwood|maple|bloodwood|walnut]. black phenolic accents
Limbs:  Moradillo wood
Tips: walnut, red phenolic



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Stats: 65", 45# @28", 197 fps with a 378gr arrow,
Riser: 2 x 3 x 26" [cherry|walnut|bloodwood|walnut|cherry]
Limbs: Actionboo
Tips: maple, black phenolic




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Stats: 65", 40# @28", 187 fps with a 378gr arrow
Riser: 2 x 3 x 26"  [walnut|bloodwood|walnut] (bow on far right)
Limbs: Jatoba (back), Honey Locust (belly)
Tips: walnut, maple


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Stats: 65" AMO, 48# @28", 2" wide limbs
Riser: 2 x 3 x 26" charcoal Actionwood
Limbs: Hard Maple
Tips: maple, black phenolic




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Stats: 65", 45# @28"
Riser: 2 x 3 x 26"   [walnut|maple|walnut], bamboo accent
Limbs: Hard Maple, Zebrawood
Tips: bamboo, black phenolic




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Stats: 65", 45# @28"
Riser: 2 x 3 x 26"   [Actionwood|Redheart|Actionwood] (charcoal Actionwood)
Limbs: Hard Maple, Moradillo
Tips: black & red phenolic




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Stats: 65", 40# @28"
Riser: 2 x 3 x 26"   [walnut|Redheart|walnut],  red & black phenolic accent
Limbs: Hard Maple, Zebrawood
Tips: Zebrawood, red phenolic




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Stats: 65", 43# @28"
Riser: 2 x 3 x 26"   [walnut|mahogany|maple|mahogany|walnut], red cedar accent
Limbs: Hard Maple, Bocote
Tips: maple, Bocote




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Stats: 65", 43# @28"
Riser: 2 x 3 x 26"   [Ipe|Birdseye Maple|Ipe], moradillo accent
Limbs: ActionBoo, Hackberry
Tips: maple, ipe




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Stats: 65" 45# @28"
Riser: 2x3x26" [Actionwood|Zebrawood|Redheart|Wenge]
Limbs: Bocote, Walnut
Tips: Zebrawood, red phenolic

Stats: 65" 53# @28"
Riser: 2x3x26" [Actionwood|Zebrawood|Redheart|Wenge]
Limbs: Actionboo, natural & stained
Tips: Zebrawood, red phenolic





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Stats: 65" 45# @28"
Riser: 2x2.5x26" 
        [Mun Ebony | Purpleheart | Leopardwood w/Purpleheart |  Purpleheart | Mun Ebony]
Limbs: Ebiara (Red Zebra)

Tips: Purpleheart, brown phenolic, Zebrawood


 

 

 

 






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11 comments:

  1. AnonymousSeptember 2, 2014 at 11:34 AM

    hi
    your bows look good what is the arrow 378gr but what is the tip/point weight and the spline of arrow!
    Have you seen any difference in bow speed and smoothness with the different wood limb laminate see difference in lb just courious Thanks

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. WookieSeptember 2, 2014 at 1:56 PM

      Hi, so we shoot a lot of Gold Tip around here, since they are local. I have been shooting a GT 3555 with all my trad stuff in the 35#-55# pull weight so far. It has a .500 spline & I shoot 125gr tips
      ( http://goldtip.com/productdetail.aspx?ptid=5 ). They have worked great for me so far. However, some of the bows I am building now are pushing over that weight, especially with my longer draw, so I am looking at a stiffer arrow solution. I could just jump up to the 5575s, but I would like to keep the weight the same, or close. So I am looking and testing.

      There is little difference between the materials used in the limb lamination. In this design, the glass does most of the work in the limb, so it mostly blends with any good hardwood. However, I will say that walnut has consistently come out a couple pounds light every time I have used it, with longbows and recurves. Other builders have pointed that out to me as well.

      One builder on the TradGang forum did a really good test by building 4 bows with identical designs (as best he could) but using different woods in the limb cores. These longbows were tested, using the same arrow setup, on a mechanical shooting device. Only the walnut had any statistically significant deviation, and it wasn't much. Construction and finishing issues can easily move the weight up or down this much.

      - Actionboo, 48 #,181.1 fps
      - Maple, 49#, 182.1 fps
      - Red elm bow, 49.8#, 183.0 fps
      - Walnut bow, 46.5#, 180.8 fps

      Delete
    2. WookieSeptember 2, 2014 at 1:59 PM

      I also want to add, that although I can't prove it, I swear that the bamboo (Actionboo) limbs feel smoother in the draw. :)

      Delete
  2. AnonymousSeptember 3, 2014 at 10:32 AM

    thank you for your reply that what my reserch all comes down to and which one feels better to the shooter and build it your self for the feel and the money saved but so many used bows on market I have a Dh hunter and browning firedrake to compare other bows to. ordered bingam kit so we will start there! I like your site keep it up

    ReplyDelete
  3. UnknownApril 30, 2015 at 8:06 PM

    Hey!

    So I saw this blog through a couple of threads I saw over on tradgang.com. I actually sent you a PM with a couple of questions and since I'm not sure which place you see the most of, I thought I'd give you a heads up here! Thanks and great looking work!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. WookieMay 1, 2015 at 11:02 AM

      I replied on tradgang, to give you my direct email addr.

      Delete
  4. David BrownJune 8, 2015 at 1:24 PM

    This is a wonderful blog. Thanks so much for sharing it. I was thinking of attempting a recurve build, but I do not own a band-saw. I'm a fairly experienced woodworker and have always used a hand-held jig-saw to roughly cut out shapes before sanding to the line (not ideal, but I've made it work). I'm concerned that the fiberglass won't machine well with the jig-saw. Do you have any thoughts on this? Thanks in advance

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. WookieJune 9, 2015 at 11:10 PM

      Hi David.
      I am not sure about the jig-saw blades. They would probably work for rough-shaping the limbs, if you had the right type. I know there are lots of blade types available.The riser is 3" at the thickest, so the blade would have to be long enough to cut thru that and still reciprocate. I can tell you that the glass will sure dull a blade quickly. I have one blade (my "smoker blade") for glass and another that is for wood only. After a few bows that smoker blade gets so dull that it has to be tossed. It's just part of the cost of building.

      Delete
    2. David BrownJune 10, 2015 at 2:53 PM

      Thanks for the reply. I got hung up thinking about the glass and forgot about the riser dimensions. I ran into that problem last year with another project and had to get creative. This may turn into a long-bow build. I think I'll have to buy some glass and experiment. Thanks again. Great blog.

      Delete
  5. UnknownNovember 28, 2017 at 11:40 PM

    Do you have these for sale???

    ReplyDelete
  6. AnonymousFebruary 5, 2020 at 3:15 PM

    Thanks for keeping your page up, the information you shared is awesome. The pics are great as well.

    ReplyDelete

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