I tried to resist posting in here, but couldn't.
I hope this comes across in the way I mean it to - helpful and thoughtful, as compared to an insult.
You've yet to post a bow that people are impressed by. So far, you've only shown poorly tillered bows, rushed bows, and bows that aren't finished. You came damn close recently with a recurved bow, but again it wasn't finished. It was rough, hard edged and looked totally rushed. My advice to you - stick at it until you feel you've actually accomplished something on an acceptable level. Here's why.
If you give up now, when you look back in a few years, bow making will seem like something you tried but never finished. You won't be able to call yourself "a bowyer" because you've yet to "finish" a bow, you won't be able to say to yourself "yeah, I learnt a skill there" because you've not learnt even half the things required to state that. If you quit now, you'll have wasted all the months you spent being autodidactic and it won't have ended up meaning anything. You'll have a handful of half-finished out-of-tiller bows covered in tool marks and a few kids / people will have a bow you made. They won't kill anybody, the bows aren't powerful enough. They won't be particularly proud of them, because they don't look slick, finished and professional. The bows will either break soon, or develop hinges/chrysal with enough shooting and become useless. This isn't an insult to you, or your bowmaking, it happens to all of us. Nobody can do something as skilled as making effective bows within a year of trying. It just doesn't happen.
Set yourself a goal, and see it through to the end, if for no other reason than to be proud of yourself, and to learn vital life lessons that include not just walking away before you see something to it's end. Your goal should be "I want to start, finish and FINISH a bow before I call this newly acquired interest done." That means make an effective bow, of a sensible poundage, with great tiller and lovely finish. Sanded, polished, burnished, oiled and detailed with well shaped nocks or overlays. Something you'd be able to hang on your wall with pride, sell to somebody safe in the knowledge that visitors to their house will say "wow, how much did that cost?! Is that hand made?!"
If you can achieve that (in any length of time, no point rushing as it won't happen) then for sure, call it done and walk away and do something else with your time. But until you can actually, honestly tell yourself that you're proud of what you've accomplished, quitting will just be a waste of everything you've done so far. If it takes you one more bow, fine. If it takes 100 bows to get there, fine. It doesn't need to happen next week. You could keep dabbling in bow making for the next 10 years before you get to that point of pride - doesn't matter. By the end, you'll have actually learned a skill and discovered patience and pride in your work. These aren't wasted talents, and they'll be more important during your life than you'll ever realise.
Don't quit. By all means don't feel you have to post on forums if it's the constant beating down of your posts that is making you want to stop. Places like this are fantastic for advice and help if that's what you want. If you're posting a bow because you just want praise, you're in the wrong place. You won't get praise until you can praise yourself. Step away from the forums for a bit, get your head down and finish learning how to make a completed bow.
