Yea I was surprised myself too.Some thought out plans go quicker than others.It helps if you've done it a few times before.
I had a fella bugging me to try to get some whale baleen.He thought it was more dense than gemsbok & so much longer too.I investigated it and it has to come from a native of Alaska[Which is the only place I tried.Could be other places but I'm afraid it'll get expensive] like an eskimo.It's pretty well protected.Never tried water buffalo but I'm sure it's doable but a little more expensive.I think my way of heating flat would take the twist out of any water buffalo horn too.Bison horn most times will need butt joints and sinew wraps and wonderful little powerhouse bows have been made on this site too.I here water buffalo horn is denser than gemsbok horn or finer grained so to speak.Hav'nt used it yet though.Gemsbok horn is a horn that is plenty dense enough for bows,it's cheaper,and easier to work with in my opinion.Really I'm a fledgling in this horn bow making,but after a dozen or so made you get a good feel for what you are doing.
Now sheep horn I've never actually made a bow out of.Just used it for overlay tips etc.It seems to be plenty dense.More so than gemsbok horn.Maybe more brittle yet too.But I've seen sinewed sheep horn bows made on this site that are phenominal.Now if you want an education about getting twist out of horn there's the place.Amazing to say the least.
Bone and antler come into the picture here too but will need butt joints & most likely sinew wraps also.Still doable though as seen on this site too.That's why I like gemsbok no wraps or butt joints.
Shorter more reflexed bows get the best out of horn,but it can chrysal too like wood if put into too much extreme a design with poor tillering but pretty rare.
I'm sure there's someone on this site that can shed a little more light yet on the subject of horn on bows or for bows.
It can seem like an over whelming task but like I said earlier if you want to challenge yourself give it a try.We're all here to learn.
