Elm Shortie stiff handle help please

[Thesquirrelslinger]

OK, so I took one of my sister staves of elm... and roughed it out. I want to make a stiff handled flatbow. I need to remove the bark. I want to get it mostly roughed before I go on vacation. That way when I get back it will be completly dried and ready to tiller.
Shooting for a pretty light weight(this one is for a friend of mine, he doesn't shoot bows yet)- about 30#@20something".
Roughed with hatchet. If something goes wrong, I have the sister stave and the other half log as well... 4 tries to get it right;)
Here are some pics of the thing... I think its about 45" long. Thanks. I have never made a stiff-handle flatbow before(with a narrow handle riser)

[Slackbunny]

If you want a twenty something draw with a 45 inch long stave, you may want to consider a bendy handle. Although 30lbs won't be over-straining it too much. Still, I think I'd go bendy.

[Thesquirrelslinger]

If you want a twenty something draw with a 45 inch long stave, you may want to consider a bendy handle. Although 30lbs won't be over-straining it too much. Still, I think I'd go bendy.

Thanks. with a 5" stiff handle riser, no narrowing, would be OK or must it be bendy?

[Slackbunny]

I doubt you need to go bendy, just saying that if I had that piece of wood, that is probably the way I would go. I've never worked elm so I don't know how finicky it is.

I imagine you can get 30 lbs out of it with a stiff handle without much trouble. I recently made a 35 lb at 20 inch bow that was similar in length and it held up just fine, but it was HHB, and it was only a 20 inch draw.

[Thesquirrelslinger]

HHB? What does that mean?
Elm is tension strong, according to the books... But is will still break if overdrawn. I am going on vacation so I will let this one sit after i rough it out completely.
I am going for a bendy handle on one of the staves, stiff on this one.
Will post pics as I go.

[bubby]

hhb, , it's a type of bow wood

[Joec123able]

hhb, , it's a type of bow wood

Hophornbeam ??

[Thesquirrelslinger]

hhb, , it's a type of bow wood

Hophornbeam ??

Thanks.
I have been wondering for a while.

[Slackbunny]

Yeah, sorry its hophornbeam, should have clarified that.

[Zion]

I think a bendy handle bow would be a good idea, it's much easier to get your weight and a longer draw.

[Thesquirrelslinger]

Yea... Well, about that stave...
I decided heck, why not...
Made its sister stave into a #25@26" bow... It has a stiff handle(but measured 48" NTN), I heated some reflex into it with a torch, so net total of 1" of set(from 3" reflex, so 4" set).  but man, ITS FAST! The tips are only 1/4" wide!!!!! Mid limb on the top limb is 2 1/4, bottom is 2". Its quite cool.
It does look like a piece of carp though. I intend to make it pretty tommorow... And Ill post pics of it(maybe even while on vacation!). And Ill get to distance shoot it on a beach
Thanks for advice. The origional stave in the pics is still untouched... and it will stay that way until I get back.
I did cut the handle down to the same thickness as the rest on the original stave.
So I am going for a bendy handle. I have done that 4 times without breaking.
Shouldn't be hard.
Thanks for the advice guys!

[rossfactor]

"Twenty something" describes about 90% of all draw lengths known to man. 

With an unbacked 45" stave, at 30# draw weight, I'd say you're looking at around 18-21" draw length for stiff handled bow and maybe 22-24" for bendy handle bow if you tiller the thing out well.

Gabe