All yew warbow pointers

[MWirwicki]

I was generously gifted a very nice yew stave.  I've heard in some circles that a warbow needs to be a minimum 80 lbs draw.  Was that just the circle or are they generally more?  Also, with that minimum (I don't want to start off too heavy on my first one) what should I start off with on handle, mid-limb width?  I was hoping to make it a selfbow with no backing.  I thought that if I peeled just the bark which is kinda loose already, that I would have a good back.  Should I rawhide it, anyway?  I don't want to laminate anything else onto it.

Any tips/pointers with a solid yew wood stave would be greatly appreciated.

[fishfinder401]

i personally have never used yew but from what iv'e heard you can just remove the bark, there is no need to back it, and yes it should be 80+, so if its too heavy now, i would make something else first to build your strength then make an 80+warbow
congrats on the stave though
noel

[Del the cat]

Have a look at my website (click the globe symbol under my username).
The bow on the homepage is 75# at 28" and 90# at 31.5" self Yew (as are all my longbows).
Warbow is a loose term and I'd suggest something similar the one mentioned above is a good start, of course you may want to get just over 100 for the heck of it.
i'd say 100-120 is a reasoanble weight (at a medieval style 30 plus inch draw). I saw someone pulling 170 a few weeks back , but that was an exceptional spliced billet Oregon Yew bow.
No no no no no, don't back a Yew bow unles the sapwood is compromised or has been removed. You may however need to reduce the sapwood thickness to about 3/16 - 1/4" to avoid having too much sapwood at the tips.
Regarding dimensions, I'll throw in some figures for the bow obove later on, but be aware the dimensions very much depend on the quality of the wood (also the length, and the bow above is fairly short).
Del

[MWirwicki]

Fishfinder:  Thanks for the info.  I am strong enough to pull the 80.  My thoughts were that I should stay low thinking it may take a few attempts at the skill before making something that pulls stronger.

Del:  Great website!  enjoyed reading it.  I didn't realize the different midieval draw.  Typically for my hunting bows, I draw 26 inches.  I see by your pics that you open yourself up and pull back to your ear, as if shooting a compound bow.  Looking forward to those dimensions.  Of course, I know that all staves are different and I would only use as a reference or starting point.

[Del the cat]

I'm back , yeah, there's a huge difference between 100# @ 26" and 100# at 32" !
I've just measure that bow. Ignoring the swell at the grip, it's about 35mm wide x 26mm thick at the fattest part of the limb and 19mm x 16mm at the tip.
Overall length is about 5'10".
I mix mm and inches as mm are good for the smaller dimensions.
I'd suggest roughing out a bow to about 38 x 30 at the grip and say 20 x 20 at the tip as a start point ready to try on the tiller, with an even taper.
In the later stages the tips will get tapered more to give a slight curve to the taper.
If the bow is longer or the wood may be weaker increase those dimensions a bit. I roughed out one bow to about the same size as the 75# bow and it struggled to make 50#, mind I think it was some sort of of fast growing 'domesticated' Yew planted for landscaping.
Del