A bow for Gregb.....Finished pictures added !

[Pat B]

Very nice recurve, Ryan. Greg, how'd you get so lucky!     I'm with the others...there is something about a short osage recurve that touches my soul.
  Ryan, for protection, wouldn't rawhide be as effective as a single layer of sinew and less seceptable to the effects of moisture. I know both would be succeptable to moisture but I believe the rawhide would be easier to seal against the moisture.

[Jesse]

cool Thats looking sweet

[Muina]

Wow, I just gotta say I love the look of those recurves!

Looks gorgeous, well done

[Bear]

Nice. I want to try on someday. Is there a significant difference in the way it shoots?

[medicinewheel]

BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAADDDD curves....!!!!

[GregB]

Very nice recurve, Ryan. Greg, how'd you get so lucky!

Pat, I guess I'm just a nice guy...most bowyers on PA have already sent me one of their bows, when should I expect delivery of one of yours???

[Pat B]

The check...I mean bow is in the mail!

[Ryano]

Thanks everybody!
Pat, Greg helped me out, and lets just say this is reward! Greg is a great friend, thanks again Greg.
I also have a little something sitting here for you Pat, I've been trying to get it in the mail for so long, I'll probally just bring it with me to the classic at this point, lol.
Hillbilly, I got a piece of hhb roughed out and drying for you too brother. Don't change your name just yet.
The rawhide had crossed my mind but we decided on a thin layer of sinew with snake skins to waterproof it.
Bear, Sure they shoot differently. They draw smooth as silk for there length and usual are pretty quick.

[Pat B]

One cool thing about these short static recurves is that they are convenient because of their compact size but once the string lifts off the recurve they shoot like a longer bow so you get the best of both worlds. My first short osage static recurve(60"t/t) I made(Bobby[boo] has it now) was a bear for me to learn to shoot well. I was used to straight limbed bows in the 64" to 68" range which are pretty forgiving to shoot and the recurve gave me fits. I had to revert to shooting only the recurve for the longest time before I got consistent with it. Now I love them and shoot them well. I don't know how to explain it but they do shoot different.  The good thing about it though is when I finally picked up my old straight limbed bow again, I couldn't miss. I was drilling everything I shot at. Maybe having to concentrate so much on my form and release with the recurve, it carried over to the straight limb bow.

[DCM]

Good looking start Ryan.  If it's the wood I'm thinking of, I don't know if you could get it dry enough for the back ring tol let go.  Definately not in Nashville.  Much more likely to crush the belly.  Be wary, that osage wants a little more wood to make a bow, in my experience.  It's game wood, just not as dense. 

2 rings, or 3 on the limbs so far?

I just parted a quarter off that tree (I believe).  These probably the fattest osage rings I've ever cut, 3 to the inch in places.

[Ryano]

Yep David, I'd say that woods out of the same tree. The mid limbs are almost down to one growth ring. Thanks again!

[nickf]

that's great Ryano! osage seems to be the perfect wood for it. seen many bows being 'overdrawn' that much, still having low set and good performance

goodluck! looking beautyfull.

Nick

[Mechslasher]

those are my kind of growth rings.  i love having one growth ring in a limb.

[DCM]

My pleasure Ryan.  I regret not having built that apple wood bow, but I'll get there in time.

I hate to hijack here but a 60", 62" to draw 28" is not all that remarkable.  With big recurves one can focus work on a smaller section of limb, but not necessarily.  Even flatbows of 58" and 60" ntn for 60# or more at 28", while not trivial to build, are absolutely viable, shorter even than than perhaps.

One of my theories about osage and other ring porous woods is that the hard rings tend to act as laminates, w/ the soft wood acting to bind them together.  Kinda like a lam bow where the soft wood acts like the glue.  As such one ring bows may not be the best medicine, but from experience they can be made to work perfectly well and may avoid some of the hazards of thin ringed wood.

[cowboy]

Wow! Nice curves Ryan! Aught to be a real sweet shooter .