Making a bow and arrow (help)?

Question

i am planning on making a bow and i was wondering if you could buy a plank of wood like from home depot or something, or will the wood be to dry and not springy enough. i was thinking about going to home depot and buying a thin plank of red oak and turning it into a bow. is this possible?

Answer 1

Oak is not a 'bow wood'.

You're getting into a skilled trade here.

The best woods are, (in descending order), Lemonwood, Yew, Osage Orange, Spruce.

A good 'select blank will cost ya.

For one source look here: www.possibleshop.com/bow-kit.htm

Answer 2

Yes, it is possble to make a bow out of a plank of wood from Home Depot or Lowe's (or any lumber supplier). Before you try, though, you really should read the Traditional Bowyer's Bible; Volume Two has a chapter specifically on board bows.

Be aware that oak has very specific properties, such as it is not extremely flexible compared to other woods such as yew and lemonwood. Do the research into learning how to make the bow first, then apply the results of that research.

You can very well ruin your bow even before you begin working on it by getting the wrong piece of lumber. That is why I recommemnd that you first read the Traditional Bowyer's Bible, Volume Two, Chapter Two: "Bows from Boards". You can find the Traditional Bowyer's Bible (all 4 volumes) at

http://boisdarcpress.com/

Although there is always a "learning curve" when doing something new, "If you have enough time to do the job twice (doing it over), then you have enough time to do it right the first time." Do the research, learn how to do it right -- then do it right.

Answer 3

Yes, it is possible.  Over the years, I've taught countless numbers of Boy Scouts to make their first bows out of furring strips from Lowe's.  I still see them from time to time on Ebay.

Grab yourself about four or five of the straightest grain furring strips you can find at your local store and start off with that as your wood.  It's cheap, it's fast, and it's easy to master the basics.  Once you get a bit of practice, then you can worry about getting pretty wood.

Answer 4

look it up on youtube thats what i did and i made a 50 lb 62 inch 25 inch draw 7 inch brace height longbow and i shot right through a 1 inch peice of plywood